{"product_id":"phenom-the-making-of-bryce-harper-9781250032027","title":"Phenom: The Making of Bryce Harper","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003e\"The remarkable story of Bryce Harper's unforgettable ride from Morse Stadium to the top of the baseball draft\" (Jayson Stark, ESPN.com) updated from the hardcover edition (\u003ci\u003eThe Last Natural) \u003c\/i\u003eto include his Rookie of the Year season!\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003eSporting a fresh cover and a bonus chapter that covers Harper's award-winning rookie season with the Washington Nationals, this expanded edition of \u003ci\u003ePhenom\u003c\/i\u003e (originally published as \u003ci\u003eThe Last Natural\u003c\/i\u003e) gives fans an all-access pass to baseball's newest rising star. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eBefore he famously became a Major League All-Star as a teenager, Harper already had dominated high school competition like Mickey Mantle on the playground and appeared on the cover of \u003ci\u003eSports Illustrated\u003c\/i\u003e, which dubbed him the \"most exciting prodigy since LeBron James.\" Seeking greater tests as a hitter, the precocious star got his GED after his sophomore year and enrolled at the College of Southern Nevada, where he would face future pro pitchers in a difficult wooden-bat league. Sportswriter Rob Miech was \"embedded\" with the team--in the dugout and locker room and on team buses and in motel rooms--to provide a warts-and-all account of a boy among men playing like a man among boys. Amid fascinating personal stories including the dynamics between a veteran coach and Harper's overprotective father, the jealousies of teammates and opponents, and the sudden descent of press armies on a tiny college field, the author chronicles a season-long experiment that culminates in Harper leading the Coyotes to the Junior College World Series and signing a $9.9 million contract negotiated by notorious agent Scott Boras.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAbout the Author\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cp\u003eROB MIECH has won several awards in his twenty-five-year career as a sportswriter, predominantly at the \u003ci\u003ePasadena Star-News\u003c\/i\u003e and \u003ci\u003eLas Vegas Sun\u003c\/i\u003e. His work has appeared in many publications, including \u003ci\u003eUSA Today\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eThe Washington Post\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eCBS SportsLine\u003c\/i\u003e, and MLB.com.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e","brand":"St. Martin's Griffin","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":50492390605074,"sku":"9781250032027","price":18.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0831\/4771\/8930\/files\/img_fc4d1c08-9c0f-4770-8fc6-d64c13a62eed.jpg?v=1730587475","url":"https:\/\/surprise-castle.myshopify.com\/products\/phenom-the-making-of-bryce-harper-9781250032027","provider":"Surprise Castle","version":"1.0","type":"link"}