Middle-aged Phillies fans should read this

books:

	• September Swoon: Richie Allen, the '64 Phillies, And Racial Integration (Keystone Book) William C. Kashatus Pennsylvania State University Press, 2005 - 258 pages average customer review:based on 9 reviews view larger image
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highly recommended

A quick and dirty read

I was only 4 years old in 1964, yet many of the players were my heroes as I grew up and my father took me to Connie Mack Stadium. In particular we went to Bat Day every season, and I recall always getting a Richie Allen bat. I truly admired his play and was saddened to see him go and thrilled to see him return in 1975, although he was a shadow of his former self. While I enjoyed the book, the author's conclusion that Allen deserves to be in the Hall of Fame is ludicrous. He compares Allen to Berra, Campanella, Cepeda, Clemente and Killebrew in various categories. Allen comes up short in almost every category and to every player except Campanella (who only played 10 seasons).
There is no denying Allen had HoF talent. However, due to circumstances largely under his own control, he failed to live up to it.

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reliving a bittersweet time

As a 13-year-old Cookie Rojas fan, I thought '64 was finally the Phils' year. Everything was looking hopeful in Connie Mack Stadium. Kashatus does an admirable job of capturing that moment in time. His interviews with players from that '64 team are particularly interesting, as is his look at the managing dilemmas facing Gene Mauch--a man who probably overanalyzed things in the final weeks of the season: odd because Mauch was one of the all-time staunchest believers in basic baseball. But anything could happen in Connie Mack, as Phillies fans were all too aware. Kashatus tries to be impartial about the situation surrounding Richie Allen, and Kashatus successfully deals with the various facets of Allen's considerable talent and amazing '64 season, along with his unpredictable and sometimes problematic personality. To baseball fans in general, however, the most fascinating aspect of "September Swoon" is how mercurial the game can be, even when things are supposedly in the bag.

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Readable, Interesting, imperfect

This is a readable look at the 1964 Phillies team that just missed winning the pennant. Author William Kashatus shows how the Phillies had been perrenial doormats with just two pennants (1915, 1950) in the 20th Century, and were the last NL squad to integrate. Then in the early 1960's management shook off its racist past and sought an integrated player roster. Shrewd moves brought in talent like Jim Bunning, John Callison, Richie (Dick) Allen, Chris Short, Tony Taylor, Cookie Rojas, etc., helping the team jump to respectability after 1961. The author takes us through the long 1964 season where the Phillies held first place and exicted the City of Brotherly Love throughout the summer. Then we see the heart-breaking finish, the Phils losing ten of their last twelve to finish a game behind St. Louis. Kashatus examines manager Gene Mauch's harmful use of starters Jim Bunning and Chris Short on two-day's rest during the late-September collapse, but barely mentions team shortages in offense and pitching depth, nor potential harm from Mauch's high-strung style and love for sacrifice bunting. The last chapters cover the team's slow decline from 1965-1969 against a backdrop of the irresponsible antics of superstar Dick Allen.

Overall, this is an interesting but imperfect effort. I liked the look at the players, management, the city's troubled sociology, and the footnotes, though the author should have devoted more prose to the 1964 season. Also, blaming Dick Allen's crybaby antics largely on racism seems debatable, as is the author's assertion that an irresponsible, non-hustling star (Allen) doesn't affect lesser players nor team performance.

Note: Dick Allen's 1972 MVP year practically saved the White Sox franchise, and his tossing foul balls to Sox fans (the penalty was $50) helped end that idiotic rule. But despite being treated well in Chicago, Allen soon returned to his immature antics and wore out his welcome.

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Makes Me Quiver, AGAIN!

As if living through the debacle that was 1964 in Philadelphia once wasn't enough, I had to red this blow by blow recount of the year that established the benchmark for me and my expectations of my team, the Philadelphia Phillies. That benchmark was failure, and 1964 was the year that defined failure!

Written through the eyes of a historian, the book chronicles the summer of racial unrest and how the '60s affected the team's star rookie Richie, ooops, Dick Allen. As a 9 year-old at the time I recalled many of the events but didn't have the experience to grasp the significance at the time. It was interesting to revisit those events and weight them with my additional 44 years coloring my current perspective.

While there are a few inconsistencies in the book, it is a MUST READ for any Phillies fan, not just those scarred by the actual events, but those who would like to understand what has made us (Phillies fans) the way we are. It is also must reading for anyone interested in the discussion of the races, the '60s in particular, and how baseball was affected by and dealt with the at-that-time-recently integrated ranks of the players.

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Middle-aged Phillies fans should read this

Now that we're all older we can look back on this sad chapter in Philly sports with a bit more perspective. It's hard to stay mad at Richie Allen after you read this, especially if you aren't familiar with the story of his shameful treatment in Little Rock in 1963. If anything, you'll remember why you liked him in the first place. A decent read for a die-hard Phillies fan.

reviews: page 1, 2

In September Swoon William Kashatus tells the story - both on and off the field - of the Phillies' bitter-sweet season of 1964.

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