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Clearing the Bases: Juiced Players, Monster Salaries, Sham Records, and a Hall of Famer's Search for the Soul of Baseball | 
| Authors: Mike Schmidt, Glen Waggoner
Publisher: HarperCollins
List Price: $24.95
Buy New: $0.71
You Save: $24.24 (97%)
New (21) Used (50) from $0.01
Rating:  15 reviews
Sales Rank: 341100
Media: Hardcover
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 208
Shipping Weight (lbs): 1.1
Dimensions (in): 9.1 x 5.9 x 1
ISBN: 0060854995
Dewey Decimal Number: 796.357640973
EAN: 9780060854997
ASIN: 0060854995
Publication Date: March 1, 2006
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Shipping: Expedited shipping available
Shipping: International shipping available
Condition: NEW::NEVER USED::SHIPS FAST: MAY HAVE MINOR SHELFWEAR AND OR REMAINDER MARK :BUY WITH CONFIDENCE!!
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Product Description
Clearing the Bases is a much-needed call to arms by one of baseball's most respected players. Drawing on his experiences as a third baseman, a manager, and, most recently, a fan, Mike Schmidt takes on everything from skyrocketing payrolls, callous owners, and unapproachable players to inflated statistics, and, of course, ersatz home run kings. But Schmidt's book goes beyond the Balco investigation and never-ending free-agent bonanzas that dominate the back pages. It also examines all that's right with our national pastime, including interleague play, expansion, and, most surprisingly, better all-around hitters. Riveting, wise, and illuminating, Clearing the Bases is a hall of famer's look at how Major League Baseball has lost its way and how it can head back home.
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| Customer Reviews: Read 10 more reviews...
 Disappointing Schmidt book March 25, 2008
Growing up the 1970's I was a fan of many of the National League stars, including Mike Schmidt. I was an admirer of his prolific hitting and his hard work at becoming a stellar fielding third baseman.
With this said, this is one of the worst baseball autobiographies that I have ever read. As a matter of fact, this is one of the worst autobiographies of ANYONE that I have ever read. Self-serving and monotonous, this book belongs in the same class as Canseco's steroids tome. Another vapid book about an ex-major leaguer. Don't waste your money - wait until it makes it to your local dollar store.
 A bloop double October 27, 2007
Mike Schmidt's book is a breezy, lightweight mix of his career and opinions. The first 80 pages cover his career and the remaining 120 pages are his opinions on steroids, the home run explosion, Pete Rose, bats, ballparks, Hall of Fame voting and his failure to land a job managing in the majors.
Schmidt considers 1990-2005 as the Steroid Era. He says he would have been tempted to use steroids, but in the end, he believes he would have resisted the temptation. Schmidt says steroids are the No. 1 problem in major league baseball.
Much of the second half of the book is kind of old news--steroids and Pete Rose, in particularly. For me, the most interesting parts of the second half of the book were Schmidt's seven reasons why he considers Barry Bonds baseball's greatest hitter of all-time, his reasons for saying that the National League should adopt the DH and his observations on the evolution of bats and balls.
There isn't much depth to this book, so it won't take you long to read it. If your expectations aren't too high, it'll be worth your time.
 A fast pleasant read for baseball fan November 13, 2006
1 out of 2 found this review helpful
Clearing the Bases is a quick easy read for all baseball fans, and especially so for those of us who remember Schmidt's playing years (he does spend a large percentage of time on the timeline and events of his career). Schmidt's opinions come across as honest and direct, even if mostly unsurprising. Refreshingly, Mike takes the politically incorrect view that if he were playing in the late 80s and 90s, there is a strong possiblity that he would have taken steriods as well. This is an oversimplification however, and his lengthier discussion is certainly worthy of a Hall-of-Fame role model. In the end, he comes out strongly against performance enhancing drugs, but its the route he takes to get there that is refreshing - he speaks as someone who has a far more intimate knowledge of the sport, the pressures, and the costs/benefits than all the rest of us readers who never experienced it. On the flip side, Mike spends a bit too much time on his managerial interests (and at times seems to be using this book as a vehicle to speak to baseball on this topic). That being said however, on balance Clearing the Bases is an interesting look at Mike Schmidt's career and the opinions he has formed as a result of those experiences.
Schmidt was juiced? September 30, 2006
1 out of 7 found this review helpful
Steroids have been around for 50 years. The Steelers of the 70s were reportedly on 'roids. Schmidt is a competitor, albeit a gentleman competitor. Draw your own conclusions. It's not inconceivable, though the evidence will never come to light, that the superstars of the 60s and 70s, if not the 50s, were juiced. I have not read this book; probably a hagiography.
 A delight September 9, 2006
1 out of 2 found this review helpful
Mike Schmidt's love and passion for the game really shine through in this well-written and often funny book. Number 20's observations on steroids, the Hall of Fame, the Pete Rose saga and Barry Bonds are thought-provoking, and he does a good job describing how the game has changed since he played it. Clearing the Bases is recommended for any baseball fan, especially those like myself, who enjoyed watching Schmidt on the field back in the days when baseball was at its peak. (And I'll forgive him for all those homers he hit against my Cubs throughout the years, including four in one game at Wrigley in 1976).
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