A Baseball Hall of Famer as of 1948, Pie Traynor was the face of Pittsburgh baseball during the twenties and thirties, when the Pirates were a perennial pennant contender. (They won the Series in 1925.) Traynor was a line-drive hitter who drove in runs as effectively with doubles and triples as most of his peers did launching balls over the fence, and by all accounts he was a dazzling defender.
After his playing days ended, Traynor stayed in Pittsburgh, managing the Pirates for five years and working as a popular broadcaster for decades, cementing his place as one of the most popular athletes ever to play in the Steel City.

James Forr is a marketing consultant and director. He lives in Columbia, Missouri.
David Proctor is retired from the United States Postal Service and lives in Waynesboro, Virginia.

James Forr and David Proctor
Format: softcover (6 x 9)
Pages: 275
Bibliographic Info: 34 photos, appendices, notes, bibliography, index
Copyright Date: 2010
pISBN: 978-0-7864-4385-7
Imprint: McFarland

Acknowledgments      ix

Preface      1

1. From Canada to Somerville      5

2. Discovered on Cape Cod      21

3. Portsmouth’s $10,000 Beauty      29

4. Killing Ushers in Birmingham      41

5. I Wouldn’t Trade Him for Half of the Brooklyn Ballclub      51

6. World Champions      70

7. A Great Club Melting Away      89

8. Not a Kid Anymore      106

9. Endings and Beginnings      120

10. Squeezing Orange Juice from a Potato      135

11. The Homer in the Gloamin’      151

12. Keen Regret      171

13. At the Corner of Walk and Don’t Walk      181

14. Live from Ringside      204

15. It Kind of Made Me Feel Like Crying      217

Appendix 1: Funeral Service      231

Appendix 2: Major League Statistics      233

Chapter Notes      235

Bibliography      251

Index      257

Finalist, Casey Award—Spitball
“McFarland…again offers a signal contribution to our understanding of a great golden age player…meticulous account…its style is engaging wit a narrative that flows without a hitch. Splendid”—Library Journal; “a must read for fans and scholars of baseball…essential”—Choice; “richly executed and successful…immeasurably increases both our knowledge of and respect for the greatest third baseman to ever wear a Pirates uniform”—Spitball: The Literary Baseball Magazine; “a mellow, pleasant biography of the erstwhile Pittsburgh Pirates third sacker…a very nice stroll down memory lane. Steel City natives should pounce…fans of old time baseball also have a safe choice here…the authors have done their homework”—At Home Plate.