The Bilko Athletic Club

July 28, 2014
Before the Brooklyn Dodgers departed the fabled Ebbets Field in New York City in 1958 for the City of Angels, one of the key reasons leading to the exodus was the public frenzy for an much admired minor league player, Steve Bilko, and his red-hot Los Angeles Angels two years earlier. Former Denver Post sportswriter White relives that miracle season when the beer-guzzling, hefty Bilko, with his mighty bat, ignited the lowly minor league team in the Pacific Coast League during a historic year. Written in a subdued voice without any sensational prose, Bilko, known as the Sergeant of Swat and Mr. Biceps, is a stirring tribute of a superstar shining on a small stage, guiding "baseball's last great minor league team," slugging 313 homers in the minors, but the highly hyped athlete's luck fizzled in the majors with only 76 round-trippers. However, Bilko dazzled the sports world for the incredible 1956 season, at a time when Yankee star Mickey Mantle pursued Babe Ruth's home run record nationally and baseball fans held their breath. Weaving in anecdotes from Bilko's teammates and rivals both in the minors and the pros, White's precise, powerful account of a remarkable, unlikely athlete who peaked too early without achieving too much when his dream finally came true.

April 1, 2014

Before Walter O'Malley brought the Dodgers to Southern California in 1958, Los Angeles belonged to the Angels. A part of the Triple-A Pacific Coast League (PCL), it was a minor league affiliate of the Chicago Cubs and was as loved in its time as Brooklyn loved its bums. The 1956 PCL championship Angels team was led by the slugging Steve Bilko, a minor league superhero who somehow never made a mark in the big leagues. His memory is given a much-deserved revival in this book. While Bilko is the main focus, chapters are also given over to the voices of other 1956 Angels, with surviving former players such as Gale "Windy" Wade and Jim Fanning speaking of where their careers in baseball went after their time with the team. These reminiscences are enjoyable on their own, though they result in an occasionally meandering narrative. VERDICT Undoubtedly, both old-time and younger baseball fans will relish the stories here. This volume will fit in nicely in any public or sports-focused library, especially in the Southwest.--Brett Rohlwing, Milwaukee P.L.

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