Bill Leatherman’s book takes baseball fans back to a magical time in the world of Major League Baseball.

An author who wrote a book about a magical time in the history of Major League Baseball is coming to The Villages.

Bill Leatherman, who wrote “Baseball’s Golden Season,” will be at Barnes & Noble in Lake Sumter Landing on Saturday, Feb. 29 at noon. The book takes a look at the 1956 season that saw the New York Yankees defeat the Brooklyn Dodgers in a World Series that was highlighted by Yankees pitcher Don Larsen’s perfect Game 5.

Leatherman talks about many of baseball greats, including Yogi Berra, Sandy Koufax, Hank Aaron and Satchel Paige. He also offers some classic quotes from some of the best to ever wear a Major League Baseball uniform.

New York Yankees catcher Yogi Berra jumps into Don Larsen’s arms after the pitcher tossed a perfect Game 5 in the 1956 World Series.

Some of those quotes and anecdotes include:

  • Yankees catcher Berra, on Sandy Koufax’s 25-5 record in 1963: “I can see how he won 25 games. What I can’t see is how he lost five.”
  • Legendary umpire Beans Reardon, when recalling how Major League Baseball’s commissioner called him on the carpet for “cussin” at players: “They cuss me out. Why shouldn’t I cuss ’em back?”
  • Philadelphia Phillies player Robin Roberts on the legendary Hank Aaron’s relaxed hitting style: “Aaron sleeps between pitches.
  • Cincinnati Redlegs Manager Birdie Tebbetts, on Boston and Milwaukee Braves pitcher Lew Burdette: “There isn’t a pitching rule that Lew Burdette doesn’t break. He spits on the ball. He spits on his glove. He spits on his hand.”

    Bill Leatherman
  • Brooklyn Dodger pitching ace Preacher Roe, when asked if pitchers were using the spitball: “There’s 12 or 14 pitchers I think use the spitball. I can’t say for sure they’re using it, but I taught about a dozen of them how.”
  • Satchel Paige, at age 46, after becoming the oldest pitcher to throw a complete game shutout when he defeated the Detroit Tigers 1-0 in 12 innings, commented afterward that he would not be there tomorrow as he was “going fishing.”
  • One drunken fan avoided jail time, as he proved to the judge that he was not in the local saloon, but in Briggs Stadium in Detroit. He could not remember the score, but he described exactly where Yankees great Mickey Mantle’s two home runs landed that day.
New York Yankees catcher Yogi Berra, left, shares a special moment with Don Larsen, who pitched a perfect Game 5 in the 1956 World Series. Larsen has said that he never could have achieved such a feat without Berra’s steady guidance.
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