Sports Fact and Book Rec of the Day 7/26/2007

7/26/1987:
Jim "Catfish" Hunter, Sweet Singin' Billy Williams and Negro Leagues star Ray Dandridge are inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame at Cooperstown. Hunter won 20 or more games five years in a row, threw a perfect game in 1968 and heralded the dawn of free agency when he jumped from Oakland to the Yankees in 1975 on a contract technicality. Williams set a National League record for consecutive games played, 1,117, while starring for the Cubs; the durable outfielder's power stats were .290 BA, 426 homers and 2,711 hits. Dandridge was an exceptional third baseman during the 1930s and '40s, famed for his defensive ability, high batting average and team leadership.

Baseball Hall of Fame site

Birthdays:
Bob Waterfield b. 1920
Hoyt Wilhelm b. 1923
Tommy McDonald b. 1934
Bob Lilly b. 1939
Dorothy Hamill b. 1956


Heartbreak, second chances, and redemption. It must be a Luanne Rice novel. Rice’s novels of domestic relationships, finding love in unexpected places, and enduring life’s imperfections and disappointments have won her wide readership and bestseller status. She finds the exquisite in the everyday. If you like Maeve Binchy, try Luanne Rice. Dance with Me is Rice at her best.

DANCE WITH ME, by Luanne Rice (Bantam, 2004)