''For Love of the Game'' is a novel by American author

Michael Shaara Michael Shaara (June 23, 1928 – May 5, 1988) was an American author of science fiction, sports fiction, and historical fiction. He was born to an Italian immigrant father (the family name was originally spelled Sciarra, which in Italian is pron ...

, published posthumously in

1991 File:1991 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Boris Yeltsin, elected as Russia's first president, waves the new flag of Russia after the 1991 Soviet coup d'état attempt, orchestrated by Soviet hardliners; Mount Pinatubo erupts in the Phil ...

. The book tells the story of fictional

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding tea ...

great Billy Chapel, thirty-seven years old and nearing the end of his career.

Plot summary

On the second to last day of the season, Chapel's team, the Atlanta Hawks (no relation to the NBA team of the same name), are about to play against the

New York Yankees The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Amer ...

. Chapel receives news from a friend in the media that he is about to be traded. Just the night before, his girlfriend Carol did not show up at his hotel room, and Chapel reaches the conclusion that it is time to move on and finally make the transition from boyhood to manhood. Over half the book tells the story of that final game, with flashbacks from the

pitching mound A baseball field, also called a ball field or baseball diamond, is the field upon which the game of baseball is played. The term can also be used as a metonym for a baseball park. The term sandlot is sometimes used, although this usually refer ...

and Dugout to incidents throughout Chapel's life. Chapel is determined that his last game will also be his greatest, even though, with all the young new players on the Yankees, they are a far superior team. As he strikes out his opponents one after the other, he soon becomes aware of the fact that he has held the Yankees at bay thus far, not allowing one hit from the more talented Yankees team. He soon becomes determined to pitch a perfect game. Meanwhile, he reflects on his personal life, and especially on Carol, whom he finally realizes that he loves, even though he has never shown her that he really does. That morning Carol told him she was going to

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

and was leaving immediately, so the two key passions of his life, Carol and

, are about to vanish forever. As the game proceeds, Chapel feels the sharp pain in his arm that comes with age. Nevertheless, he refuses to give up the pitching mound, and chooses instead to divert his attention by delving deeper into his life and his relationship. At the end of the game, he has pitched a

perfect game Perfect game may refer to: Sports * Perfect game (baseball), a complete-game win by a pitcher allowing no baserunners * Perfect game (bowling), a 300 game, 12 consecutive strikes in the same game * Perfect Game Collegiate Baseball League, New York ...

and retires from baseball with a new dignity. After the celebrations, he heads to the hotel and dials Carol's home, where he plans to go to tell Carol his feelings. With baseball behind him, he has grown from a boy who has led a life into manhood. This short book was discovered after Shaara's death, and publishing was arranged by his son, author Jeffrey Shaara. The book was made into a

movie A film also called a movie, motion picture, moving picture, picture, photoplay or (slang) flick is a work of visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, feelings, beauty, or atmosphere ...

Sam Raimi Samuel M. Raimi ( ; born October 23, 1959) is an American filmmaker. He is best known for directing the Spider-Man (2002 film series), ''Spider-Man'' trilogy (2002–2007) and the ''Evil Dead'' franchise (1981–present). He also directed the 1 ...

References

1991 American novels American sports novels Baseball novels Novels by Michael Shaara American novels adapted into films Novels published posthumously {{1990s-novel-stub