A few offseasons ago, this book was mentioned several times in a baseball book thread as one of the funniest books ever. Being a Rangers fan, I picked it up at Half Price Books and thought it would be a good light read in these dark times as the pandemic spreads and baseball is canceled.

It was ok. It had moments. I enjoyed reading about some old players I hadn't thought of in years and especially about the infamous Ten Cent Beer Night in Cleveland. But overall, the humor was sophomoric and the story was as much a loving ode to alcoholism as it was about a tragically, comically, terrible baseball team and its players. ( )

This was one of the funniest books I have ever read. ( )

Shropshire is genuinely funny, and he knows it. Nevertheless, his writing isn't annoying. On the other hand, the very title of the book is inaccurate. The 1973 Rangers were certainly awful, losing over a hundred games, but the 1974 version managed by Billy Martin finished second in their division. 1975 was, of course, a huge disappointment, as the team, expected to win their division, finished 79-83. This book spends as much time (or more) on the first season as the other two combined. Comic ineptitude is definitely more funny. Whitey Herzog, the manager replaced near the end of 1973 by Billy Martin, is especially memorable, with his deadpan pessimism about his team's talent and its chances. Martin also gets in a few good lines, but certainly (no surprise) isn't as likable as Herzog. Of the players, Jim Merritt, the veteran pitcher trying to save his career, is perhaps the most memorable. In general, this book goes for the laugh rather than trying to find something profound in baseball, and it suffers in comparison to something like Jeff Pearlman's The Bad Guys Won (about the 1986 NY Mets). Shropshire is too nice to name names in some of the more embarassing or extreme incidents or quotes, so this book is sort of a throwaway in the end--but an unquestionably enjoyable one. ( )

The book was dated as it covered a baseball team in the early 70s which was not very good. Occasionally I would recognize a name from the past. Some of the Stories were funny; some were just bizarre. The author certainly did not have a glamorous job covering a bargain basement baseball team. There are the usual stories of players drinking too much, whoring around too much and smoking too much weed.

This was not the best sports book that I have ever read. It was not the best book about baseball that I have ever read. Let’s just say it was the best book about the 1972 - 1975 Texas Ranger baseball team that I have read.

Read Ball Four By Jim Bouton if you would like to read a classic inside baseball book. ( )

This book is the funniest sports book Ihave ever read, bar none. It's filled with witty anecdotes and really goes behind the scenes in a way few other sports books do. Shropshire shows how listless Whitey Herzog became while managing the team. The way he writes, you almost feel like you're there with Shropshire, getting drunk before having to write about another Rangers loss. I would recommend this to all people, not just sports fans. ( )