Originally published in 1948 from interviews conducted and set down by Cleveland sports writer Hal Lebovitz, this work, the autobiography of one of the most colorful and talented players to play professional baseball, is at once the story of a person and a unique and valuable document in the history of baseball. As John Holway puts it in his preface, "there were at least three Satchel Paiges. One was the star pitcher of baseball legend. Another was the droll humorist and minstrel show end-man. The third was the least known of all, the revolutionary who helped effect a sea change in the game - and in American society as a whole. Jackie Robinson symbolized the revolution, but Satchel had been one of the crucial pioneers who helped force open the door so Jackie later could walk through." In this book, we see the first two sides of Satchel Paige quite clearly. He was without a doubt a media star who used his newly acquired visibility to enchant and enliven professional sports and the literature that feeds off it. But, while his greatest playing days were spent outside the major leagues, the bottom line was that Paige - like many other Negro League greats - had vast reserves of talent to bring to white-dominated baseball, racking up major wins in his seasons with the Cleveland Indians. The story of Paige the revolutionary is here as a subtext. Under his account of his rise from poverty, his life on the road with the Kansas City Monarchs, his pitching duels with black greats, the winning of a major league contract, and his joining the Indians, there is a serious story that in many ways parallels any struggle to succeed against a battery of odds. That Paige retained his sense of humor and his ability to charm, is a testament to the man whose nickname became so thoroughly a household word and whose record established him as one of the all-time greats of baseball.

Pitchin' Man: Satchel Paige's Own Story (Baseball and American Society 20)

Lebovitz, Hal

Paige, LeRoy Satchel

Sports & Outdoors

Mecklermedia

“A Hall of Fame writer at the top of his game.” ― The Beacon JournalThe best sports writing of Hall-of-Fame sportswriter Hal Lebovitz, longtime dean of Cleveland sports journalists. Several generations of sports fans grew up reading Hal Lebovitz on the sports pages. Hal covered just about every major sports event over 60 years, reporting on each with honest, straightforward words and firm opinions―and most likely a scoop on the competition. He wrote about the greats―Jim Brown, Bob Feller, Ted Williams, Woody Hayes . . . and the great moments―the Indians’ 1948 playoff game, the Browns’ 1964 championship season, Rocky Colavito’s four consecutive home runs. His writing was featured 17 times in the annual Best Sports Stories and selected for numerous other anthologies. He won countless writing awards and been inducted into 12 halls of fame―including the National Baseball Hall of Fame. Always, Hal has written for the fans. And for as long as anyone can remember, fans have been reading Hal for his particular take on events. His constant, steady presence in the local sports pages for so many decades has made Hal Lebovitz a legitimate icon in Cleveland sports―a guy who, with his typewriter, has been as remarkable and consistent and rare as a .400 hitter.

The Best of Hal Lebovitz: Great Sportswriting from Six Decades in Cleveland

History

Americas

Gray and Company, Publishers

“Very few writers (or broadcasters for that matter) know the rules of the games they cover as Hal Lebovitz did.” ― Bob Costas
A fun and fact-filled collection of baseball Q&amp;As from a legendary sportswriter and rules expert. 
Think it couldn’t happen on a baseball field? It probably did! Just ask Hal. Hal Lebovitz reigned as a leading expert on baseball rules for more than four decades. From 1957 until his death in 2005, Hal answered readers’ questions about sports in his popular “Ask Hal” newspaper column. Baseball provided the most frequent questions―and often the most curious and confounding ones. But Hal was never stumped. 
Many questions came from real situations―Little League, church-league softball, major league games―even the World Series. (National TV broadcasters even called him at home live during the World Series for opinions about on-field rulings) Some came straight from fans’ vivid imaginations. Either way, there was always an answer, and Hal had it. 
This book collects the best and most entertaining questions and answers about baseball rules from four decades of “Ask Hal.” Flip to any page and you’ll find a question that might spark a lively debate at any dinner table or settle a bet at the local tavern. How many can you answer? A book for fans who love to “know it all.”

Ask Hal: Answers to Fans' Most Interesting Questions About Baseball Rules from a Hall-of-Fame Sportswriter

Reference

Gray & Company, Publishers

Here, collected for the first time, are the best columns and feature stories by Cleveland’s greatest living sportswriter. 
Hal Lebovitz is a true major league hall-of-famer. Enshrined in the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, he’s still at the top of his game after six decades on the beat for the Cleveland News, the Plain Dealer, the News-Herald, and others. 
Several generations of sports fans have grown up reading Hal Lebovitz on the sports pages. 
Hal has covered just about every major sports event of the past 60 years, reporting on each with honest, straightforward words and firm opinions—and most likely a scoop on the competition. 
He has written about the greats of living memory—Jim Brown, Bob Feller, Ted Williams, Woody Hayes . . . and the great moments—the Indians’ 1948 playoff game, the Browns’ 1964 championship season, Rocky Colavito’s four consecutive home runs . . . 
His writing has been featured 17 times in the annual Best Sports Stories and selected for numerous other anthologies. He has won countless writing awards and been inducted into 12 halls of fame. 
"Ask Hal, the Referee," his long-running column, also appeared nationally in the Sporting News, establishing Hal as one of the foremost experts on sports rule books. (Which explains why his home phone sometimes rings in the middle of a World Series game, the producers from NBC or Fox calling for an interpretation of an on-field ruling.) 
Always, Hal has written for the fans. And for as long as anyone can remember, fans have been reading Hal for his particular take on events. His constant, steady presence in the local sports pages for so many decades has made Hal Lebovitz a legitimate icon in Cleveland sports—a guy who, with his typewriter, has been as remarkable and consistent and rare as a .400 hitter.

Best of Hal Lebovitz: Great Sportswriting from Six Decades in Cleveland

Gray & Co.

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