Dave Winfield’s Touching All the Bases offers a thoughtful, surprisingly even‑tempered look back at his decade with the New York Yankees and his complicated relationship with George Steinbrenner. Fans of 1980s baseball will appreciate the mix of on‑field history, personal reflection, and behind‑the‑scenes intrigue.
Title/Author:
“Touching All the Bases: A Story of Power, Purpose and
Surviving the Bronx” by Dave Winfield with Alan Maimon
Rating:
5 of 5 stars (excellent)
Review:
Dave Winfield was one of the most gifted multi‑sport
athletes of his era, drafted by professional teams in baseball, basketball, and
football after his standout career at the University of Minnesota. Choosing
baseball proved the right call—he built a Hall of Fame résumé that stretched
across two decades and several franchises. While Touching All the Bases
covers his full life and career, the heart of the memoir is his ten seasons
with the New York Yankees and the complicated, often contentious relationship
he had with owner George Steinbrenner.
Winfield began his major league career in San Diego,
starring on some difficult Padres teams and establishing himself as one of the
sport’s premier players. His performance earned him what was then the largest
contract in baseball history when he signed with the Yankees in December 1980.
But after New York lost the 1981 World Series, the relationship between
Winfield and Steinbrenner deteriorated. Winfield accused Steinbrenner of
failing to meet a contractual obligation to support the Winfield Foundation, the
charitable organization he had launched in San Diego and expanded in New York.
Steinbrenner responded not only with public criticism of
Winfield’s play but with a disastrous decision: he paid Howard Spira, a known
gambler, $150,000 to dig up damaging information about the foundation. The
scandal ultimately led to Steinbrenner’s suspension from baseball in
1990—initially a lifetime ban, later reduced to two years.
Given all this history, one might expect Winfield’s memoir
to be fueled by anger or score‑settling. It isn’t. Winfield writes with
restraint, perspective, and even generosity; at one point he states plainly
that he didn’t believe Steinbrenner was a bad person. While he acknowledges
moments of frustration—his on‑field slumps, the prolonged legal dispute with a
former girlfriend who falsely claimed a common‑law marriage—the overall tone is
reflective rather than bitter. More than anything, Winfield emphasizes
gratitude: for his career, for the people who supported him, and for the life
he built in and beyond baseball.
With its blend of baseball history, personal insight, and
the kind of behind‑the‑scenes drama that defined the Yankees of the 1980s, Touching
All the Bases is a memoir I thoroughly enjoyed. Fans of that era—and of
Winfield himself—will find plenty to appreciate in this thoughtful look back
from one of the decade’s defining players.
I wish to thank BenBella Books for providing a copy of the
book via NetGalley. The opinions expressed in this review are strictly my own.
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