THEY CALLED ME GOD

The incredible memoir from the man voted one of the “Best Umpires of All Time” by the Society of American Baseball Research—filled with more than three decades of fascinating baseball stories.

Doug Harvey was working the overnight shift at a seedy bar when he saw Don Larsen’s perfect World Series game on television. By the sixth inning, he pointed to the home plate umpire and told the regulars that was what he wanted to do. They laughed him out of the bar. Six years later, he was umpiring the World Series. After reaching the major leagues in record time, Doug enjoyed an amazing career that spanned thirty years, and now he’s ready to share the greatness, violence, pranks, rivalries, and triumphs, providing a window into the game that only someone who is himself a legend can offer.

In They Called Me God, Doug shares hundreds of tales, many of which have never been heard off the field. He has plenty to say about legendary and notorious ballplayers, the art of pitching and umpiring, and the game he loved so much. Featuring stories from Doug's singular perspective about legendary players such as Sandy Koufax, Willie Mays, Henry Aaron, Dwight Gooden, and more, and famous managers like Leo Durocher, Tommy Lasorda, Sparky Anderson, Lou Piniella, and others, this part-memoir, part-insider-baseball-story is the tale of a Hall of Fame umpire whose talent, demeanor, and knowledge of the game earned him the nickname “God.” *Up close and personal with baseball legends:They Called Me God includes stories from Harvey's singular perspective about legendary players such as Sandy Koufax, Willie Mays, Henry Aaron, Stan Musial, Warren Spahn, Frank Robinson, Bob Gibson, Pete Rose, Juan Marichal, Lou Brock, Dwight Gooden, Greg Maddux, Gaylord Perry, Don Drysdale, Joe Torre, Bill White, Steve Carlton, Nolan Ryan, Fernando Valenzuela, and Don Sutton. There are stories about the following famous managers, as well: Leo Durocher, Walter Alston, Fred Hutchinson, Red Schoendienst, Gene Mauch, Casey Stengel, Herman Franks, Alvin Dark, Danny Murtaugh, Tommy Lasorda, Don Zimmer, Sparky Anderson, Dallas Green, Dick Williams, Whitey Herzog, Davey Johnson, and Lou Piniella.

*Eight-time bestselling co-writer. Peter Golenbock has written 8 New York Times Bestsellers, among them some of baseball’s most important books, Dynasty: The New York Yankees 1949-64; The Bronx Zoo (with Sparky Lyle); Number 1 (with Billy Martin); Balls (with Greg Nettles), and Idiot (with Johnny Damon.), as well as Personal Fouls, American Prince (with Tony Curtis).

*An insider tale from a storied figure in baseball: Noted for his authoritative command of baseball rules, Harvey's career total of 4,673 games--including five World Series--ranks third in major league history, and he is only the ninth umpire to be inducted into the Hall of Fame. Among the notable games in which Harvey worked was the final game of the 1972 season in which Roberto Clemente collected his 3,000th (and last) base hit. He was the home plate umpire on September 10, 1963, when brothers Jesus, Matty, and Felipe Alou batted consecutively for the San Francisco Giants, and also on June 3, 1987, when the Astros and the Cubs hit a combined three grand slams at Wrigley Field.