Eric C. Gray

Who am I, and why should you read my books?  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 my books.  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 these books!

These are books 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 my books 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.  That resulted in Bases to Bleachers: A Collection of Personal Baseball Stories from the Stands and Beyond, 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 250 for the first book, leaving many book-worthy stories (and entire chapters) for the next volume.  And I continued to collect more stories as I traveled around the country doing readings from Bases to Bleachers and meeting so many new people.

In July 2022 I published my second book, Backyards to Ballparks: More Personal Baseball Stories from the Stands and Beyond. This book includes many new chapters, including "My First Game." [I often ask myself why this wasn't a chapter in my first book...a mystery], as well as some core chapters that were part of the first book on the themes 'what baseball means to me' and 'family and baseball'. More amazing heartfelt stories for your enjoyment!

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.  I am always soliciting more stories, so if my books bring 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 collecting 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.

I was interviewed by Marty Lurie on KNBR about the second book on September 23, 2023.  Here is that link: Second interview with Marty Lurie

Here is my first  interview on Marty Lurie's Pre-game show in August 2019:  Interview with Marty Lurie 

Recent Appearances/Events