Reggie Jackson and Bob Gibson: Sixty Feet Six Inches
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Gibson and Jackson's Book "Sixty Feet Six Inches"
Bob Gibson, star St. Louis Cardinals pitcher, and Reggie Jackson, star New York Yankee hitter, reveal their pitching and hitting secrets in their new book "Sixty Feet Six Inches." Anyone with more than a passing interest in baseball will find this book by two Hall of Famers worth reading. Unfortunately Jackson only Gibson once the mound, in the 1972 All Star Game, so there isn't much of a record to indicate whether Gibson's inside pitches, occasionally finding it necessary to hit a batter intentionally, or Reggie Jackson's eagle eye and perfect coordination would have prevailed had they played in the same league and faced each other more often.
A couple of reviews of this insider book are linked below.
NY Times 9-29-09 How the Game Changes
- How the Game Changes Gibson & Jackson
Bob Gibson (251 victories) and Reggie Jackson (563 home runs) faced each other exactly once in their long careers in the 1972 All-Star Game.
Bob Gibson Wikibio
- Bob Gibson - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Pack Robert "Bob" Gibson (born November 9, 1935) is a former right-handed baseball pitcher, having played for the St. Louis Cardinals from 1959 to 1975.[1] He was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1981.[2]
Reggie Jackson Wikibio
- Reggie Jackson - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
"Reggie" Jackson was a right fielder for five different teams from 1967 to 1987. Jackson helped Oakland win 3 consecutive World Series titles and helped the Yankees win 2 consecutive titles. He was elected to the Hall of Fame in 1993.
Booksamillion Review of "Sixty Feet Six Inches"
- Sixty Feet, Six Inches by Bob Gibson; Reggie Jackson; Lonnie Wheeler (Hardcover): booksamillion.com
Legendary. Insightful. Uncompromising. Candid. Uncensored. Mr. October and Hoot Gibson unfortunately never faced each other on the field. But now, in "Sixty Feet, Six Inches," these two legends open up in fascinating detail about the game they love.
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Comments
Always great to people sharing about our nations past time. Thank you for reminding me of this book.
Arthur L. Ekrem
DCBULL.com
Incredible and delightful post. I enjoyed every second of the read. Thanks Mr. Deeds.
Tnx for the comments.
Wish we had more like em' today! I will have to check into the book. Thanks Ralph!
The superlatives have all been used appropriately for Mr. Gibson. Listening to Jack Buck call the games on warm summer nights in the 60s while the crickets and cicada were chirping in the background... how could life had been any better for a Cardinal fan?
Our retired pastor was the chaplain of the Oakland A's in the 70s during their World Series domination. He told us that Reggie Jackson was the one player who was exactly the same on and off the field, in private and public, and with important people and nobodies. There was not an ounce of hypocrisy in him, which is rare with pro atheletes.
Very true. I grew up a St. Louis/Stan Musial fan and later became an admirer of Gibson. I'm not as much of a baseball fan as I used to be because there are so many player trades that I have trouble keeping up with whose on my favorite teams. The free agent rule was good for the players but not for the fans, in my opinion.
maven101 says:
6 weeks ago
Two great ball players...Gibson, the Intimidator, and Reggie, Mr October...i followed Reggie in the 70's as an Oakland A's fan...when the team broke up over contract negotiations I lost interest in professional baseball...Great title for the book...a lot happens in sixty feet six inches...Thanks for this...Larry