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Module 10: Brothers at Bat


Summary: Families always enjoy playing games and sports with each other, because they bring family members closer together. But being able to play for fun is one thing but to do it at the professional level is a remarkable feat. There have been many siblings who have played various professional sports together, whether it was the Ripkens and Griffeys in the MLB or the Wilkens and Grants in the NBA.  But no family has ever been able to field an entire team, that is until the Acerra family.  We learn about the brothers love for the game of baseball, their various individual accomplishments, and more amazingly the numerous family   achievements. Vernick gives us an amusing true account of the family being able to field a professional baseball playing in many leagues for a number of years bringing joy to many baseball fans and families alike.
 
Reference: Vernick, A. (2012). Brothers at bat: The true story of an amazing all-brother baseball team. New York, NY. Haughton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.

Impressions: My father half-jokingly told my mother that he wanted to have five boys, so that he could one day field his own basketball team. Unfortunately, my father died of cancer when he was 36 years-old and was never able to see his crazy dream come to true.  Though there were only three of us, my two older brothers played as many sports together as often as we could. So, to see the Acerra brothers accomplish my father's task, and with a baseball team no less, only brings nostalgia and admiration of how they were able to attain this feat, while at the same time to the delight of many fans.  Vernick does a great job of conveying the Acerra family's story alongside Steven Salerno's illustrations.  The drawings compliment the story and capture the feel of the time period. It's a great homage to the family, to sports, and to the love of baseball. I enjoyed this book from the moment I started reading it.

Professional Review:  "I was lucky to play in the big leagues with my brother as a teammate and my dad as our manager. It was a very special time. The story of the Acerra brothers brought those memories back. It is a wonderful illustration of what a great game baseball is and how it brings families together on many different levels. BROTHERS AT BAT is a story any baseball fan will enjoy and one that we all should know."  
Ripken, C.(unknown year) [Review of Brothers at bat: The true story of an amazing all-brother baseball team]. Audreyvernick.com. Retrieved from  http://www.audreyvernick.com/BrothersAtBat.html.

 Library Use: We recently started baseball season her in El Paso with our AAA baseball team, the Chihuahuas.  The city was all abuzz with baseball fever. Right across El Paso St. from the stadium is the city's downtown Main Library. As you enter the library, you find a display case of baseball books to commemorate the inaugural baseball season and announcing a specific night to celebrate it in the library.  I don't think you could have asked for a better way to introduce Brothers at Bat to baseball fans, both young and old. 

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