This is a story about coming of age in America by way of the baseball diamond. Lefthander Henry Wiggen, six feet three, a hundred ninety-five pounds, and the greatest pitcher going, grows to manhood in a righthanded world. From his small-town beginnings to the top of the game, Henry finds out how hard it is to please his coach, his girl, and the sports page--and himself, too--all at once. Written in Henry's own words, this exuberant, funny novel follows his eccentric course from bush league to the World Series.

Also available in Bison Book editions are Bang the Drum Slowly, It Looked Like For Ever, and A Ticket for a Seamstitch, the other three volumes in the Henry Wiggen series.