Bat Boy

My True Life Adventures Coming of Age with the New York Yankees

By: Matthew McGough

Narrated by: Jason Harris

Sixteen-year-old Matthew McGough was a fairly typical teenager, obsessed with getting through high school, girls, and baseball, not necessarily in that order. His passion for the New York Yankees was absolute, complete with a poster of his hero, Yankees first baseman Don Mattingly, hanging on his bedroom wall. Despite having no connections whatsoever with the ballclub, Matt dreamed of sitting in the dugout with the fabled Bronx Bombers. So, in the Fall of 1991, he wrote a letter in his very best penmanship to the New York Yankees asking for a position as a bat boy.

Miraculously, he got the job, and on April 7, 1992, Matt walked into the madness of the Yankee clubhouse on Opening Day. And there was Don Mattingly, Donnie Baseball himself, asking him to run an errand, an errand which soon induced panic in the rookie bat boy. Thus began two years of adventures and misadventures—from the perils of chewing tobacco while playing catch with the centerfielder, to being set up on a date by the bullpen, to studying for a history exam at 3:00 a.m. at Yankee Stadium, to his own folly as Matt gradually forgets he’s not a baseball star, he’s a high school student.

BAT BOY captures the lure and beauty of the American pastime, but much more it is a tale of what happens to a young man when his fondest dream comes true. Matthew McGough wonderfully evokes that twilight time just before adulthood, ripe with possibility, foolishness, and hard-won knowledge.©2005 Matthew McGough; (P)2005 Books on Tape, Inc.

Critic reviews

“Wonderful. . . . It should eventually find its way to that very short shelf of enduring sports nonfiction, perhaps somewhere between Ball Four and Friday Night Lights.” —Leigh Montville, author of Ted Williams and The Big Bam“A terrific memoir, combining an endearing coming-of-age story with a unique window on the inner world of baseball. It is warm, witty, shrewd, and entertaining from start to finish.” —Doris Kearns Goodwin“[McGough] writes fondly and opens a window that baseball fans rarely see.”—The Tampa Tribune“McGough provides humorous, often poignant, observations about Bronx Bombers legends.” —USA Today

Fun

This book was a fun jaunt through professional baseball from the eyes of a teenaged fan. An inside look at the players from a different viewpoint than usually heard. Well written and holds your interest throughout the book. I really enjoyed the read. You don't need to be a baseball fan to enjoy it.

Put on your cleats and sit next to Don Mattingly

This book had the wonderful aspect of taking me inside the real world of a Major League Baseball from a wide-eyed boy's view. Anybody that grew up a baseball fan will love imagining being in his shoes. I loved the baseball parts and even the parts about his life as a high school student burning the candle at both ends. There was a problem though, to me it seemed like the Publisher must have decided that the book was too short and needed more content. There is about 2 hrs of story (during the off-season) that deals with a financial scam the boy got into that really doesn't fit with the rest of the book. I would have rated the book higher had it not been for that.

A Diamond

If you were ever a teenaged boy, you will be entertained by the uber-honest telling of this tale about baseball, fame, glory, screw-up and redemption.

Prepare to relive your youth for a moment or two.

80's Yankees Fans Will LOVE It!

What did you love best about Bat Boy?

Everything. Well written, moved along nicely, the narration (although it took a little while to get use to it) was great. Real stories about the NY Yankees that I grew up loving.

What did you like best about this story?

As a teenager at that time, I would have done anything to have that job!

What about Jason Harris’s performance did you like?

He got more and more into it as the book went on.

Wonderful fun

Even if you're not a sports fan (and I'm really not), this book is simply laugh out loud fun. Mr. McGough writes as if he's talking to you, and he writes well. The stories are funny, the characters are wonderful, and it made me want to find out if there were any jobs with the Yankees.