Eric C. Gray

Who am I, and why should you read my book?  Good questions.  I have written poetry and song lyrics mostly for my own amusement and training projects related to my job, but I am guessing THAT is not why you will buy this book.  I wrote for a short-lived on-line baseball magazine and would be happy to share those essays with you, but, again, THAT won’t draw you to this book!

This is a book of stories that everyone can relate to, baseball fan or not, stories that make you remember something from your life, stories that make you wish you had been there.  The inspiration for this book came from a nice afternoon at the ballpark, when I asked my wife, daughter and friend “what is your favorite game that you have been to?”  That question took on a life of its own and changed my life in ways I never could have anticipated.  The result is Bases to Bleachers: A Collection of Personal Baseball Stories from the Stands and Beyond.  It is filled with stories that moved me…to tears, to laughter, to remember my own experiences in greater detail.  These are the stories from people who you and I pass on the street every day, but don’t get a chance to meet, ask them questions, or hear about their experiences.  That’s exactly what I did, for me, for you.  I spent eight years meeting people, making friends, and collecting their stories.  And I got 1250 of them, from more than 700 story contributors.  We all have our favorite memories, and I was the lucky recipient of some amazing ones from people just like you and me.  I gut-wrenchingly narrowed them down to about 300 for this book,

I am originally from Plainview, New York, and earned my BA from SUNY New Paltz.  I came to San Francisco in 1974, where I soon began a 39-year career at the U.S. Department of Labor, administering job training and employment programs for disadvantaged youth, most of that time spent with the Job Corps program.  I met my future wife, Lynn Rhodes, on my first day at the Department of Labor and never moved back to NY. Lynn and I have two adult children, Rachel in San Francisco and David in Washington, D.C.  We are all baseball fans, along with David’s wife, Lisa.  My hobbies include rock and roll, following politics, playing and watching baseball and basketball, hiking, and hanging out with friends and family. This is my first book, but it won’t be my last.  I am already well on my way to a second volume of my baseball book, having saved some amazing stories and chapters for the next one.  I am always soliciting more stories, so if my book brings your own great story to mind and you would like to contribute it for my next book, share it with me at eric.baseballstories@gmail.com. 

As a big music fan, I am also beginning to collect similar personal memories from folks of their experiences at concerts of any music genre, or any other music-related story that you might want to share with readers.  Send these to me at eric.concertstories@gmail.com.

A random question asked at a ballgame in April 2011 became a project which has been a labor of love.  I hope you love these stories as much as I do.

Recent Appearances