Baseball Book Review - Teammate by David Ross

I haven't done a Baseball Book Review in quite a while.  I know I have read a few baseball books but never took the plunge and posted a review.

Today I thought I would share some thoughts about Teammate - My Journey in Baseball and a World Series for the Ages by David Ross.  I heard about this book on a podcast and decided to check the local library and was lucky enough to find it.  

I have to admit that I didn't know much about Ross until his final season with the Cubs and actually became a fan watching his journey on Dancing with the Stars (I am somewhat embarrassed to admit that I have watched a couple seasons of the show)

Image taken from online retailer as I returned the book to the library

This was a solid baseball book.  He follows the 2016 Cubs season and sprinkles in anecdotes from earlier in his life and career.  He talks about how he wasn't always a good teammate but got some direct and somewhat harsh feedback that made him rethink who he was and adjust his approach to life and baseball.  I am a fan of that message.  In my job I have gotten some pretty direct feedback a couple of times and dished it out several times more.  I look at feedback as a gift and it is all about how you take it and what you do with it.  I have been fortunate enough to do well with getting this kind of feedback as did Ross.  Can't say everyone I have dished it out to has reacted the same.

There is some sharing of lessons learned and giving advice but not to the point it was preachy.  I am glad about that as that would have turned me off.  The best aspect of this book is hearing some of the baseball stories Ross has to share and learning a little bit about the inter workings of a baseball team. I have gotten that from other books as well but always appreciate a new perspective.

I also enjoyed the fact that I didn't have to be a Cubs fan to appreciate the book, while he is a fan of the organization and appreciative of how he was treated (especially during his final year), it isn't an over the top Cubs love fest.

If you want a pretty quick read with some good stories and insight into the baseball world, I would definitely give this a read.