Me and My Dad: A Baseball Memoir [Hardcover]

Always a quiet, introspective player, O'Neill was never one to find comfort in the public eye. Though he got better about his shyness in the last few years of his career, rare was the occasion where Paul would offer his thoughts in public. Which is why, when I got word that Paul was going to write an autobiography/memoir about his father, I marked down the release date of the book on the calendar. One of Yankee fans' most enduring memories of the last few years was Paul O'Neill crying during the team's celebration on October 21, 1999 when the Yankees swept the Atlanta Braves in the World Series. Tears of joy? Yes and no. Paul's father had passed away in the wee hours the night before Game 4, the culmination of a difficult year for Paul as his father was in and out of the hospital.

This is the book that explains his relationship with his father as well as O'Neill the man. Unlike another recent Yankee autobiography, this book does not tell stories in and out of the clubhouse at all. Paul has some complimentary things to say about various teammates, particularly Bernie Williams, and very poignant comments about the relationship between he and his father figure, manager of the Yankees, Joe Torre. I was touched by his childhood memories of backyard home run derbys with his brothers as well as his father's words of optimism throughout his life. O'Neill really brought his Dad to life in this book to where, by the end of the book, I felt as though I knew "Papa Chuck" as though he were an uncle of mine.

Baseball fans who dislike the Yankees might be surprised to find the "embracing of Paul O'Neill" as nothing more than fan worship, for Paul was often very emotional on the field: throwing his helmet, punching a water-cooler, arguing with an umpire, etc. But Paul O'Neill, as he explains in his book, is a perfectionist who is harder on himself than anyone. Whether or not this is a result of being the youngest of six brothers is hard to say, though O'Neill's emotions were always directed at himself and no one else. As I mentioned in the first paragraph, the present-day Yankees could use a little of Paul's emotion. But the irony of Paul O'Neill is that while he is indeed an emotional person on the outside, inside he is extremely shy. I once met Paul O'Neill toward the end of his career at a Brooks Brothers store in Kansas City. I wasn't sure if I should approach him or not, but finally did and was forever grateful for the experience. He is very soft-spoken, almost bashful, he was so shy. But he was very kind: he asked where I was from and if I was going to the game that night. I was particularly interested to hear if he was going to be back for the 2001 season, to which he replied, "If we win the World Series this year, we'll all be back. But if we don't, I'll probably have to go back and play in Cincinnati." Though they did indeed win the World Series that year, a three-peat, such circumstances as Paul was in at the time tend to present themselves when you play for George Steinbrenner. The experience of meeting Paul O'Neill and shaking his hand, to this day, remains one of the most memorable of my childhood.

Paul O'Neill is a popular player because he is human. He is a solid person who takes pride in being a son, a husband, and a father. He was a pretty good ballplyer too. Towards the end of his career, he came to symbolize the Yankee renaissance through his passion and his character. There was a tear in every Yankee fans' eye when, during Game 5 of the 2001 World Series, 56,000 Yankee fans stood in unison and chanted, "PAUL O-NEE-ULLL!" to say thanks in what proved to be his last game in Yankee Stadium. In that moment, Paul had become this generation's answer to Lou Gehrig, the Pride of the Yankees. I watched at home with a tear in my own eye as Paul tipped his cap to an appreciative crowd who will one day chant his name again when his number 21 is retired among the Yankee greats in Monument Park. "Me and My Dad: A Baseball Memoir" is about a player who belongs to the old school way of sports- it is a wonderful book and I am grateful to Paul for opening up and sharing his memories about his Dad. My guess is that a number of readers will harken back to memories of their own fathers while reading his book.

As a Yankee fan I look at right field today and no matter who in pinstripes is playing there, no matter how good he is, he could not replace Paul O'Neill. O'Neill's selfless personality and genuine love of the game is evident to any fan who watched the Yankees during his tenure with the team. I miss seeing O'Neill hitting watercoolers and throwing his helmet, but what I miss most about him is the way he played the game. Whenever he hit a ball he knew was going to be a home run, unlike many players today who start their home-run trot and admire their ball fly away, he simply put the bat down and rounded the bases without any flair. As hard as he was on himself, he never vented his anger toward his teammates. He was the ideal team player whose personality earned the respect of his teammates and all Yankee fans.

I was very impressed with the book - I found myself choked up when you talked about the service for your dad - an example of the type of dad any kid would dream of - and a major influence on the type of person you are as an adult. If more Major Leaguers conducted themselves in this manner baseball would be alot better off. BTW - thanks for the nuggets on Donnie Baseball - truly a guy who played the game as it was meant to be played.

I feel I got to know the "real" Paul O'Neill - and Chick, too, thanks to this book. Anyone who likes baseball and has a dad who does too will really enjoy this book - Yankee fan or not.

Highly Recommended