What’s your favorite childhood sports memory?
LEXINGTON, Ky. (PRWEB) February 10, 2016 -- Memories made during youth sports have a way of remaining vivid throughout a player’s life. “Walk around my neighborhood in the summers of 1950-1960’s and you would hear the distant sounds from a radio, broadcasting a professional baseball game through screen doors,” recalls author Mikel D. Smith. “The game had a rhythm and pace that provided an escape from the problems confronting the world.”
In his new book “The Somerset Ball,” author Mikel D. Smith shares a snapshot of teenage life in the 1960’s. Smith tells the true story of how a small town baseball team from Paducah, Kentucky rose from underdogs to state finalists. At the beginning of their season the Tilghman Tornadoes were not predicted to go far; they were a team with limited experience and a first year coach.
As word spread about the Blue Tornado tryouts, a group of ragtag baseball players gathered at the locker room hoping they would make the cut. Despite their inexperience, a season of inconsistent play and some untimely bad breaks, the team scrambled its way into one of the most interesting Kentucky state baseball tournaments in history.
“This book is a look back to a bygone era,” said Smith. “I hope those who grew up in that time will identify with the stories, the characters and the baseball.”
Author Mikel D. Smith was a 1970 graduate of Paducah Tilghman High School. While sifting through newspaper clippings and photos from his past, Smith realized there was a story that needed to be told. While researching the book, Smith conducted numerous interviews with former players and coaches, and has woven them throughout “The Somerset Ball.”
The photos and newspaper clippings used to track the success of The Blue Tornado’s winning season in 1970, gives readers a real-life feel of growing up and playing baseball in the Midwest.
For more information, visit http://www.thesomersetball.com
The Somerset Ball
By: Mikel D. Smith
ISBN: 978-1-4917-7436-6
Available in softcover, hardcover, e-book
Available on Amazon, Barnes & Noble and iUniverse
About the author
Mikel D. Smith, MD is a Professor of Medicine in the Divison of Cardiology at the University of Kentucky College of Medicine. Smith grew up in Paducah, Kentucky and was a 1970 graduate of Paducah Tilghman High School, where he played baseball his senior year.
**FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE**
For review copies or interview requests, contact:
Megan Hardesty
317.602.7137
mhardesty(at)bohlsengroup(dot)com
Megan Hardesty, Bohlsen Group, +1 812-322-1569, [email protected]
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