Wrecking Crew

"You never know what's going to save you." After years of dingy nightclubs and drug addiction, John Albert and his hard-luck friends certainly never expected their salvation to arrive in the form of a pastime most often associated with Mom, God, and apple pie. Wrecking Crew -- a highly unusual chronicle of recovery and redemption -- documents the transformation of a group of musicians, struggling screenwriters, and wannabe actors into a competitive band of hardballers. For over a decade, it seemed to be enough: the narcotics, gambling, whores, and aimless rebellion. But as they stumbled into their thirties, the blithe pursuit of self-destruction had simply become exhausting to these battle-scarred denizens of the L.A. counterculture. The romantic squalor of being perpetually broken-down, periodically drug-addled, and irresponsible began to lose its charm. The idea of fielding a baseball team to compete in a hard-knocks amateur league seemed merely the latest in a string of half-hearted stabs at restoring order to their ragged lives. But this escapade was different. When these men donned their team uniforms, the old obsessions started to fade and something incredible began to happen. This is the unforgettable story of the Griffith Park Pirates.

Review :
"A jaggedly beautiful punk-rock sports tale." -- "Kirkus Reviews" "Attention! All junkies! Failures! Dysfunctional L.A. Punk rockers! There is hope! Love! Baseball! And it is hilarious. I loved "Wrecking Crew." It is my story too. John Albert put it all together, he is a great original voice from L.A.'s wasteland." -- Flea, of the Red Hot Chili Peppers "If Red Barber had listened to The Velvet Underground, he might have envisioned this darkly hilarious and strangely inspiring true story of baseball, addiction, cross-dressing and subversive sex. "Wrecking Crew" is a brand new sports classic for the post-punk steroid generation." -- Legs McNeil coauthor of "Please Kill Me" and "The Other Hollywood" "John Albert has crafted an incredible, fine-tuned memoir of heartbreak and triumph infused with sly humor, unexpected innocence, and deviant sex. "Wrecking Crew" slays." -- Evan Wright, author of "Generation Kill" "John Albert is a natural. The savagery, lost soul humor and heart with which he chronicles his team of dime-bag Mickey Mantles and punk-damaged L.A. badasses puts The Wrecking Crew right up there on the Hollywood Hell shelf between "The Day of the Locust" and "Trainspotting." This is the book William Burroughs would have written if he wore cleats and played centerfield on weekends. A fantastic, strangely inspiring read, full of bottom-feeding heroes who swing for the fences. I loved it." -- Jerry Stahl, author of "Permanent Midnight" "Reformed drug addicts, recovering alcoholics, struggling actors, aspiring screenwriters, macho cross-dressers, and the national pastime. The only thing missing is Darryl Strawberry. In "Wrecking Crew, " John Albert shows that the greatest addiction -- and the greatest recovery program -- is baseball. Betty Ford, it's time to field a team." -- Jim Caple, ESPN.com senior writer and author of "The Devil Wears Pinstripes"