Thurman Munson: The Real Deal

"[Munson was] a man who lived a lifestyle that some would characterize as old-fashioned. He was a man who believed in his family and gave all he could to the game." — Ohio State Senator Thomas Walsh, after the death of Thurman Munson in 1979.

Scour the sports section of any library or local book store and you’ll be inundated with books about the New York Yankees. There is certainly no shortage of information from the rich history of the organization to colorful player profiles. But in this day and age of twitter, blogs, and anonymous internet rumors it may be difficult for even the most educated fan to fathom what life was like behind the closed cages of the Bronx Zoo.

Former Yankee PR Director, Marty Appel provides an unprecedented glimpse into the Yankee Universe during this time with his exceptional biography on notoriously contentious Thurman Munson released today. MUNSON: The Life and Death of a Yankee Captain (Doubleday) is an inside account of the days surrounding Munson’s accident and the complex life he left behind.

Appel acknowledges the aspects of Munson’s legacy reach beyond the quintessentially tough, fiercely competitive and endearing Yankee leader that he was on the field. “Heroes can overcome the odds if they work hard and give the game an honest and full effort everyday. Thurman was determined to end the cycle of bad households that had run in his family for generations. He broke that cycle when he embraced his girlfriend’s family and eventually created a family life he had never had himself,” Appel says.

In MUNSON: The Life and Death of a Yankee Captain, fans are reminded once again of all the many factors that ultimately contribute to the type of man the athlete will become off of the field. Thurman Munson was only 32 years old when the private plane he was flying crashed in Canton, Ohio – on that day the great story of the New York Yankees was forever altered.

Nowadays, the media casually tosses around words like gritty, gutsy and tough to describe professional athletes…most of the time, unwarranted. But there can be no disputing that Thurman Munson was the real deal. Not only did he have a tremendous respect for the game but he truly honored the pride and tradition of the team he proudly captained.