Sports Fact and Book Rec of the Day 7/18/2007

7/18/1962:
Bob Allison and Harmon Killebrew become the first teammates to each hit a grand slam in the same inning, leading the Minnesota Twins to a 14-3 bombardment of Cleveland. Both jackpot wallops come during an 11-run first inning, when Allison connects of Barry Latman and Killebrew completes the carnage with his blast off Jim Perry. Killebrew will lead the American League in homers this season with 48, one of six times he'll do so in his career. His 573 lifetime round-trippers remain an all-time record for right-handed hitters in the Junior Circuit.

Birthdays:
Joe Torre b. 1940
Nick Faldo b. 1957
Dan O'Brien b. 1966
Anfernee Hardaway b. 1972
Torii Hunter b. 1975


A short, atmospheric rumination on lost love, The Fly-Truffler has the same power and intensity as Sandor Marari’s better-known Embers. When a widower discovers that truffles are the key to bringing back his late wife, he becomes consumed with hunting them. The New York Times Book Review calls it “startling and lovely.” The Washington Post Book World says it “makes you want to catch the first plane to the south of France and head to the nearest oak forest.”

THE FLY-TRUFFLER, by Gustaf Sobin (W.W. Norton & Company, 2001)