It’s hard to make a book that is purely about failure work, mostly because it’s just such a downer to read one tale after another about futility, frustration, and watching someone’s dream die.

Baseball, like all sports but perhaps moreso than the others, is deeply rooted in optimism and hope, and when you remove that from a narrative about it, there’s not much left beyond a hollow sort of sadness.

In some ways it seems like a nice thing to see these players get their moment in the spotlight after that failed to materialize for them as athletes, but it’s a really difficult concept to sell to a baseball fan.

I've been a diehard baseball fan for nearly 60 years and one thing that is always puzzling to me is when "can't miss" prospects do miss. Ballplayers who are expected to become stars or superstars sometimes end up being journeyman ballplayers at best, and sometimes, don't even make the majors. The author, in a fascinating book, addresses this issue with his look at 9 ballplayers who didn't live up to expectations.

Death or injuries are things that have sometimes sidelined "sure thing" stars but the other reasons are quite fascinating. Sometimes, it was just them being in the wrong place with a team that wasn't a good fit for them. Lots of other reasons.

The author certainly did his research, in many instances, speaking with the players themselves, as well as family members, people association with major league baseball such as general managers or scouts. Of particular interest is what happened to those players after their baseball careers, a sort of "where are they now" and how they feel about the game after everything that happened.

Baseball fans will love this one. Highly recommended!!