THE SIZZLER: George Sisler, Baseball's Forgotten Giant

Some outstanding baseball players are lauded with praise, while others are vilified. But some, like George "The Sizzler" Sisler, are simply forgotten. Sisler (1893–1973) made his name as a phenomenal hitter and first baseman playing for the now-defunct St. Louis Browns from 1915 to 1927. He was a versatile player: a skilled pitcher, a fearsome hitter (.340 lifetime average, batting over .400 twice) and, later, an excellent first baseman, the first to be inducted into the Hall of Fame (1939). Afterward, he moved into management and scouted (and gave batting training to) Jackie Robinson. So why is he barely known today? As Huhn demonstrates, Sisler was a quiet and gentlemanly Christian Scientist averse to bragging, with a quiet home life essentially free of scandal. Sisler's astonishing numbers were apparently not enough to ensure he'd be known to posterity outside of the realm of stats hounds. Unfortunately, Huhn, a member of the Society for American Baseball Research, is hardly the guy to bring Sisler to light, as his recounting of the man's life is far from thrilling. Huhn dutifully hits all the major moments of Sisler's life but without much punch, ladling dollops of historical context without much rhyme or reason. The result is an unexceptional book about an exceptional athlete. 34 photos. (Nov.)

Forecast: Seattle Mariners star Ichiro Suzuki just broke Sisler's record of most hits in a season (257). With Sisler back in the news, at least among baseball fanatics, the book could see a minor bump in sales.