Playing Through the Pain: Ken Caminiti and the Steroids Confession That Changed Baseball Forever
- Downloads：4611
- Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
- Create Date：2022-05-30 06:19:36
- Update Date：2025-09-06
- Status：finish
- Author：Dan Good
- ISBN：1419753630
- Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle
Reviews
Kyle
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Honest exploration of the highs and lows of the life and career of Ken Caminiti。 Most readers likely already know about the steroid use and complicated man that Caminiti was， yet this book does a great job of amplifying the why behind the steroid use。 The author does not make excuses for Caminiti， but rather takes the facts and insight from 400+ interviews to piece together the whole picture， for better or worse。 The book also reinforces the notion that not only was the use of steroids rampant i Honest exploration of the highs and lows of the life and career of Ken Caminiti。 Most readers likely already know about the steroid use and complicated man that Caminiti was， yet this book does a great job of amplifying the why behind the steroid use。 The author does not make excuses for Caminiti， but rather takes the facts and insight from 400+ interviews to piece together the whole picture， for better or worse。 The book also reinforces the notion that not only was the use of steroids rampant in MLB， but it was also not a well-kept secret。 Many denials are extinguished by the sources in this book， and some context of the why is provided as well。 The book succeeded by not just highlighting the salacious aspects of Caminiti and offering insight into his motivations， struggles， and personality。I received an ARC of this book via NetGalley in exchange for my honest review。 。。。more
Kerry
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Thanks to Netgalley for the Advance Reader Copy for an honest reviewBaseball， what is it about this sport that seems to invite and reward the cheaters。 I’ve been around and watched baseball a long time and I’ve been told there is a saying in the game dugouts; “if you aren’t cheating， you aren’t trying。” Perhaps it happens to some extent in every sport but baseball seems to be always looking at new and better ways to get an edge。 tThis is a special book but I am not as sure it is a unique story。 Thanks to Netgalley for the Advance Reader Copy for an honest reviewBaseball， what is it about this sport that seems to invite and reward the cheaters。 I’ve been around and watched baseball a long time and I’ve been told there is a saying in the game dugouts; “if you aren’t cheating， you aren’t trying。” Perhaps it happens to some extent in every sport but baseball seems to be always looking at new and better ways to get an edge。 tThis is a special book but I am not as sure it is a unique story。 I haven’t read many other sport’s figure biographies， so I don’t have much to compare this to。 This book covers the athletic career of Ken Caminiti from his early youth to his death at the age of 41。 I am a baseball fan and grew up loving the game but am not a big follower of individual players。 Caminiti， an outstanding 3rd baseman， is known primarily for his playing days with the Houston Astros and the San Diego Padres。 I live in Southern California and was most aware of the unlikely run of the Padres to the 1998 World Series and had only a passing remembrance of Caminiti also known affectionately as Cammy as part of that team。tI found this a quite difficult book to read due to its painful subject matter。 It begins with Caminiti’s death due to a drug overdose in the Bronx in 2004。 Beginning with this ending one knows this is a tragedy from the earliest pages。 Perhaps anyone who knows this player’s story these first few pages are not a surprise。 I was not aware of these facts and immediately felt the tone of the book to be quite sad。 I imagine the idea was to draw one into finding out what events could lead to this outcome。tThe author circles back to Caminiti’s youth and growing up in San Jose California。 His family life and early success as a player。 He is shown as a youth who lives and plays hard， is driven to succeed but looking back there is an indications of self-doubt and a tendency to push at boundaries both on the field and in life。 The author is scrupulous in backing up every chapter with interviews with family members， close friends， teammates， coaches and prior printed material in giving a genuine picture of this man， both in his early days and his professional career。 tCaminiti makes a name for himself with his web gems at 3rd base and his hard drinking and drug use off the field。 Yet underneath we get to see a man who was well liked by almost all who knew him， went far out of his way for rookie players and wanted and craved respect from his fellow players。 A portion of this story covers the 1980’s and 1990’s in baseball when steroids were widely used and were changing the game。 Caminiti was one of the initial players who discussed in the media the rampant steroid and amphetamines in baseball。 His use of steroids （performance enhancing drugs） is a big part of the later chapters of this book and gives a close look at how and why they gained popularity and at times a seemed to become necessity to excel in these times。 tI think what I loved about this book was how it gave a close look at the difficult road to becoming an outstanding player in a professional sport and the toll it takes on one’s body and mind to maintain that level。 Caminiti had a physical prowess that made his accomplishments and play amazing but throughout this book we get to see him more as a man。 A man who struggled with addictions and personal “demons” as the author describes them and never was able to find his way when his playing career ended。 I think this a struggle for all athletes to some extent， but especially so for the players who find a way to the top of their game。 Sports are a game of highs and lows。 Satchel Paige said it best， “Don’t look back。 Something might be gaining on you。”tSports is a game of youth and even the best players have a life after and both will define who they are。 This was a very difficult book to read but it is very well done and I’m so glad to have read it。 Very hard to give it a rating。 Thanks to the author for the advanced reader copy。 。。。more
Muneer Uddin
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This book is a powerful book about a complicated man。 I highly recommend it to all baseball fans。Ken Caminiti is presented fairly and objectlively in the book。 It's obvious that Dan Good and the interviewees have a lot of love for Ken Caminiti。 There are countless recountings of all the kindness and empathy Ken showed to others。 But Good doesn't shy away from recounting Ken's bad behavior。 We're told about the unreliable and erratic person Ken became when he backslid into his addictions。 The las This book is a powerful book about a complicated man。 I highly recommend it to all baseball fans。Ken Caminiti is presented fairly and objectlively in the book。 It's obvious that Dan Good and the interviewees have a lot of love for Ken Caminiti。 There are countless recountings of all the kindness and empathy Ken showed to others。 But Good doesn't shy away from recounting Ken's bad behavior。 We're told about the unreliable and erratic person Ken became when he backslid into his addictions。 The last 2 chapters didn't sugar coat how far from the right path Ken had strayed towards the end of life。The book is very engaging。 Some biographies make the mistake of providing endless anecdotes about the same topic。 Good has a deft touch in fleshing out Ken as a person， but not over telling the anecdotes。 By the end of the book， I felt like Ken was an old friend。 He's definitely someone I'd have liked to meet。If you grew up watching baseball in 1980s and 1990s， this book will bring up a lot of memories。 Pick it up now。 。。。more
Lance
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If there is one “a-ha” moment when steroid use could no longer be a dirty little secret within Major League Baseball， it was when Sports Illustrated published an interview with Ken Caminiti in 2002 when he disclosed that he used steroids through much of his career， including when he was the National League MVP in 1996 while playing for the San Diego Padres。 This book by Dan Good is a terrific look at Caminiti’s life and career that has many highlights as well as many demons beyond just using ste If there is one “a-ha” moment when steroid use could no longer be a dirty little secret within Major League Baseball， it was when Sports Illustrated published an interview with Ken Caminiti in 2002 when he disclosed that he used steroids through much of his career， including when he was the National League MVP in 1996 while playing for the San Diego Padres。 This book by Dan Good is a terrific look at Caminiti’s life and career that has many highlights as well as many demons beyond just using steroids。While outstanding in many ways， what may be the most impressive aspect of the book is how many people Good interviewed to paint a complete picture of Caminiti。 Over 400 people talked on the record to good and it wasn’t just the usual collection of former teammates， family members and business acquaintances。 The people who shared their thoughts on him ranged from Ken’s girlfriends in middle school to his physical therapist when he was rehabbing from injury to his parole officer after one of his multiple arrests on drug possession。 All of these people， plus the extensive research by Good help to paint a complete and very complex picture of Caminiti。 On the field， he was both consumed with perfection and competition。 He was going to make sure that he always performed at his best， opponents or injuries be dammed。 While he was fiercely competitive， as are most athletes， he was always quick to help other players improve。 This included players who he felt might be taking away his job。 Many of the people interviewed would mention how he was always willing to help others。But despite this， the demons of alcoholism and drug addiction， including cocaine， were the worst enemies for Caminiti。 They not only helped in his decline as a player， but they were also detrimental to his friendships and his marriage。 Good describes his ex-wife Nancy in almost saintly terms on how she held together their family while Ken was in and out of substance abuse treatment several times。The passages about his play on the diamond were very good as well。 There isn’t a lot of play-by-play analysis or extensive reviews of his seasons， including his best ones with the Houston Astros （two separate tours） and the Padres。 Caminiti also tried to salvage his career in 2002 with the Texas Rangers （I thought Good’s frequent reference to Alex Rodriguez with that team as the “$252 million man” was funny） and Atlanta Braves。 No matter what team he was with and whatever his level of ability was at， he was always remembered fondly by teammates， especially Hall of Fame second baseman Craig Biggio from the Astros。Of course， one of the main questions that readers will have when selecting this book will be about steroids。 Good’s passages about this， from the acquisition of the drugs by friend Dave Moretti to Ken’s inner demons on why he needed to use them to the two interviews by Jules Roberson-Bailey and later Tom Verducci that were used in the bombshell Sports Illustrated article on his use。 Throughout the book， Caminiti is portrayed by many who， when not under the influence of any drug or alcohol and is thinking clearly， will speak in a matter-of-fact tone and that is how he is portrayed in giving these interviews。 Good should also be credited with being open minded about steroid use by Caminiti。 If there is any bias， Ken does come across as a person with whom one can sympathize， but even that is tempered and the reader is left to come up with their own conclusions。Every baseball fan who watched the game during the era of steroid use when statistics were altered， bodies of players changed and the sport enjoyed a rebound of popularity after the 1994-95 strike should add this book to their reading list。 It doesn’t matter whether one liked Caminiti or even never heard of him， it is a great read about a very complex man。 I wish to thank Abrams Press for providing a copy of the book in exchange for an honest review。https://sportsbookguy。blogspot。com/20。。。 。。。more
Sue
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Ken Caminiti was the brilliant third baseman for the Houston Astros and the San Diego Padres。 He was also an addict。 This book takes a look at his life and the circumstances that led to his drinking （starting in middle school）， drug problem， steroid use， and death。This is a well-researched， well-written biography of a flawed man who couldn't escape the vicious cycle he was in。 A combination of personal trauma， ultra-competitive personality， and a league that turned a blind eye to performance enh Ken Caminiti was the brilliant third baseman for the Houston Astros and the San Diego Padres。 He was also an addict。 This book takes a look at his life and the circumstances that led to his drinking （starting in middle school）， drug problem， steroid use， and death。This is a well-researched， well-written biography of a flawed man who couldn't escape the vicious cycle he was in。 A combination of personal trauma， ultra-competitive personality， and a league that turned a blind eye to performance enhancing drugs was the perfect storm for him。 This is a cautionary tale for parents， athletes， and those with addictive personality traits。It is heartbreaking to read of the many times he tried and failed to get his life together。 Numerous friends and family members intervened。 He was an adult and was responsible for his choices， but he could not overcome them on his own， and he refused help。If this is you， please get help。 Don't let your life waste away out of pride or shame。 Life is precious， and Ken Caminiti is a reminder of what happens when you don't treat it that way。Not family friendly due to language， drug/alcohol use， and adult themes。Thanks to Netgalley for a copy of the book。 My opinion is my own。 。。。more
Jake
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