Grinders

Anne Keene, author, The Cloudbuster Nine: The Untold Story of Ted Williams and the Baseball Team That Helped Win WWII

“With elements of “Rudy” and “The Natural,” this book takes an earnest, hard-scrabble look at the humble, hard-working kid and the underdog who overcomes impossible odds to achieve an improbable dream. Told through the eyes of a CNN reporter and a veteran baseball announcer, this narrative explores personal stories about grit and perseverance, and the unstoppable desire to win. The tale of the grinder applies to every profession and dream—a must-read for kids and adults who are griding away at life.”

Talmage Boston, Media Member, Texas Baseball Hall of Fame

“Grinders are the soul of baseball, and no one can tell their story better than Mike Capps and Chuck Hartenstein. The dedicated overachievers profiled in this special book will lift the hearts of everyone with baseball burned into his core to the point it will lift the reader up out of his easy chair and make him give a standing ovation for the unsung guys who are the glue that holds our National Pastime together.”

John Allgood, academic director, Executive Sports Business at Temple University and former executive director, Oklahoma City RedHawks

“Mike Capps has captured the “grinding mentality” that will inspire not only baseball fans but people of all ages to achieve their dreams. But this isn’t a just a baseball book; it’s a book that details the day-to-day commitment it takes to become successful at any goal you might have, by using examples in baseball. You want to be an MVP in your field? Read this book!”

Richard Justice, former columnist, Houston Chronicle and MLB.com

"This wonderful book is for anyone who has ever pursued a dream, for anyone who has ever relentlessly believed in themselves when almost no one else did. Baseball fans will view the game, not through the eyes of superstars, but from the point of view of men who pursued their craft endlessly, tweaking this, trying that, riding buses for hours, for that moment when all the work and sacrifice were validated by stepping onto a Major League diamond for the first time or the hundredth. It’s for all of us that love the game, and it’s for the countless players, parents, spouses and kids who supported those pursuits."

Reid Ryan, Baseball Executive and Founder of the Round Rock Express

“Grinders is the story of the men that make baseball special. It is the guys that fight tooth and nail to get that one day in the big leagues. This book is the story of the guys that savor every at-bat and love the life of being a ball player. In many ways Mike Capps is a grinder. He has spent the last twenty-three years calling every game for the Round Rock Express, honing his craft and entertaining thousands and thousands of baseball fans. Grinders play for the love of the game and this book will paint the picture of what “love of baseball” is all about.”

Tim Purpura, former general manager, Houston Astros

“Grinders: Baseballs Intrepid Infantry is a peek behind the curtain of professional baseball and the “bit” players, or “grinders” that make the game operate smoothly and effectively on a daily basis. While the author, Mike Capps, spins the tales of the many overachievers, cup of coffee’ers, and once-in-a-lifetime players, what Mike fails to do is to reveal himself as the “ultimate grinder.” When it comes to identifying a grinder, the old adage, “it takes one to know one” certainly applies here. Through the course of his storied career in news and sports, over and over again, Mike has done many things that exemplify his single-minded penchant for going over and above to achieve the means to an end. Who, for example, would give up his job as a CNN foreign/war correspondent to become a one-man show for three to four hours a day broadcasting minor league baseball? Only our Mike Capps!”

Gene Watson, vice president and assistant general manager, Kansas City Royals

“What Mike Capps has done in encapsulating what a true base “grinder” is with the people that are written about in this book is simply amazing. Readers will truly enjoy these great stories about amazing baseball men and baseball families.”

Charles Kaufman, President of B’nai B’rith International and professor of journalism at Texas State University

“Baseball is a game of heroes—about a few hundred Hall of Famers, a smaller number of legends, and countless milestones, all captured in timeless books and films. Yet, none of these sources address the ‘grinders’ of the game. Author/broadcaster Mike Capps pours decades of baseball knowledge and passion into the dust of dreams that represent tens of millions of people, people who once proudly brandished a uniform, pounded a glove, threw a ball, or swung a bat. In Grinders, Capps shares the stories of dreamers, those who made it up and down the baseball ladder, and those whose hopes exceeded their actual performances within the baselines. Through adept storytelling, Capps delivers a different level of hero, the Everyman who perpetuates the game, from the physically gifted to those with the power to overcome the lack of physical gifts, from one generation to the next. Through scores of stories from a broad collection of mouths, hearts, and minds, Capps shares the unique stories of Grinders — individuals whose success is measured not necessarily in a box score or a baseball card, but through the abundance of will that possesses not one iota or ounce of quit. Grinders covers every experience of anyone who’s heard the crack of a bat.

Alex Freedman, broadcaster, Oklahoma City Dodgers

“Those who live and breathe baseball do so in part because they truly embrace the daily grind of a long season. It’s what sets apart the game from all the others. To the casual fan, the players in this book are mere footnotes in baseball history. But without these players, the game simply can’t exist. Grinders gives these men their proper due. Every grinder has a great story, and Mike and Chuck bring those stories to the forefront to show what makes these players special and why they are so important to baseball.”

Michael Coffin, broadcaster, Corpus Christi Hooks

“Armed with a lifelong love of baseball and a reporter’s attention to detail, Mike celebrates some of the game’s unsung heroes by telling us their story in his own distinct voice. This is a great read by one of the ultimate grinders.

Josh Suchon, author and Albuquerque Isotopes broadcaster

“The ultimate fictional grinder, Jimmy Dugan, taught us ‘the hard is what makes it great.’ This book is a celebration of that mantra. Baseball is hard. Really hard. Baseball is also great, and the greatness of the sport is reflected in the stories it inspires. I can’t think of a better person to tell these stories than Mike Capps. A grinder himself, with a Rolodex to make us all envious, Capps is a gifted storyteller. These diverse stories will make you laugh, make you smile, inspire you to grind away in your own life, and make notes in your scorebook for players to remember the next time you’re at the ballpark.”

Tim Hagerty, author and broadcaster

“Mike Capps has been a storyteller for decades and he tells inspiring stories in Grinders: Baseball’s Intrepid Infantry. From journeymen players to longtime managers to those who have overcome physical challenges, fans will read about the highs and lows of those who have dedicated their lives to the game.”

Steve Selby, former broadcaster, Memphis Redbirds

“Mike Capps has searched the four corners of the baseball world to put together this unique roster. He calls them ‘Grinders.’ They are people who haven’t been given anything in making baseball their life. How do you know a Grinder when you see one? Cappy is about to tell you, and he ought to know because he is one of them, both in life and in baseball. I saw this personally as we teamed up to broadcast minor league baseball. Sit back and enjoy meeting these contributors to the great game of baseball.”

James Moore, New York Times bestselling author

“No writer who has ever lived has properly captured the glories of America’s great game of baseball. But Mike Capps’ new book on grinders comes real close. He does it by turning his experienced eye away from the superstars and onto players whose love of the game is bigger than the Yankees’ payroll. These are the stories of the “Grinders,” struggling to make The Big Show, never giving up, always doing the hard work, and loving every blessed moment on the diamond. They make baseball what it is, and Capps knows them as well as he knows our great game. You don’t need to love baseball to love this book. Capps has hit a two-out, bottom-of-the-ninth walk-off homer.”

Gilbert D. Martinez, Commissioner of the Rogers Hornsby Chapter (Central Texas) of the Society for American Baseball Research and senior lecturer in the School of Journalism and Mass Communication at Texas State University

“In Grinders, Mike Capps tells some of the stories of players who might play in the shadows and who might not have everyone’s attention. These captivating stories show how essential these everyday players are to the game. Just as his grandfather told nine-year-old Mike about how baseball as we know and love it couldn’t exist without these grinders, Cappy invites us to pull up a chair and learn about these players who changed the games as much as the biggest stars.”

Steve Klauke, broadcaster, Salt Lake Bees

“People always ask me who my favorite players have been in my twenty-seven years as the broadcaster in Salt Lake. I usually give them names like Mike Trout, David Ortiz, and LaTroy Hawkins. I would then let them know a large part of my heart has gone to the guys that gave it their all, but either Triple-A was the end of the road or would have an all too brief stint in the big leagues. They are the Grinders, and Mike has captured their essence in this book.”

Norm Hitzges, author and host at KTCK SportsRadio 1310 The Ticket

“Growing up, I lived and breathed baseball and, when I began working in sports, I remember watching Chuck Hartenstein pitch. He was shaped like a soda straw and, whenever I saw him, I wondered over and over how in the world he kept getting hitters out. After reading this story, I now know how he did it—heart.”

Jim Gilligan, former Lamar University coach, and manager, Salt Lake City Trappers

"Finally, a book that honors the difference makers in the game. I have a thought that 90 percent of all players have the same physical ability. The players that have intangibles that others don't possess, are the ones who become the difference makers. Go Grinders!"