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Of the many storylines to the Chicago Cubs incredible 2016 season was the late career renaissance of David Ross, the 39-year-old journeyman player affectionately known to his Cubs teammates as "Grandpa Rossy." Ross became the unlikely heart and soul of the championship team, who finally broke the near 100-year Cubs curse. At the end of the Cubs victorious game seven--in which Ross entered the game in the 5th inning and proceeded to hit a crucial home run (becoming the oldest player to homer in World Series History), he was carried off the field by his teammates. Ross's late career blossoming and role as a Cubs mentor has been one of the defining sports stories of 2016, inspiring a write-in campaign for him for the All Star game, an endless series of feature stories and becoming the nightly talk of TV analysts and sports radio.
This book would be memoir of Ross' career -- written with veteran collaborator Don Yaeger -- with the championship run at Wrigley this year as the capstone through line. The book's captivating frame is the final day of Ross's career - Game 7 of the 2016 World Series, with looks book at pivotal moments in Ross' life and career.
Ross's fairy-tale season is a feel-good story that captures the hearts of Cubs die-hards and baseball fans everywhere.
About the author
David Ross is a retired Major League Baseball catcher, who won the World Series with the Boston Red Sox in 2013 and the Chicago Cubs in 2016. In his fifteen-year career, he played for the Los Angeles Dodgers, Pittsburgh Pirates, San Diego Padres, Cincinnati Reds, Boston Red Sox, Atlanta Braves, and Chicago Cubs.Don Yaeger is an award-winning speaker, business leadership coach, a nine-time New York Timesbestselling author, and longtime Associate Editor for Sports Illustrated.
Summary
Packed with "compelling inside stories" (Chicago Tribune), Teammate is the inspiring memoir from "Grandpa Rossy," the veteran catcher who became the heart and soul of the 2016 Chicago Cubs championship team and was named manager in 2019.
In 2016 the Cubs snapped a 108-year curse, winning the World Series in a history-making, seven-game series against the Cleveland Indians. Of the many storylines to Chicago's fairytale season, one stood out: the late-career renaissance of David Ross, the 39-year-old catcher who had played back-up for 13 of his 15 pro seasons.
Beyond Ross's remarkably strong play, he became the ultimate positive force in the Cubs locker room, mentoring and motivating his fellow players, some of them nearly twenty years his junior. Thanks to Cubs Kris Bryant and Anthony Rizzo, "Grandpa Rossy" became a social media sensation. No one, however, could have predicted that Ross's home run in his final career at bat would help seal the Cubs championship.
Now, in Teammate, Ross shares the inspiring story of his life in baseball, framed by the events of that unforgettable November night.
Foreword
An inspiring memoir from David Ross - the 39-year-old journeyman player affectionately known to his teammates as "Grandpa Rossy," who became the unlikely heart and soul of the 2016 Chicago Cubs championship team.
