Peter SchmuckAward-winning baseball writer Peter Schmuck has written more than 10,000 stories over his career with the Orange County Register, the Baltimore Sun, Baseball America, The Sporting News and others. But this is his first book. "The thing that surprisedme most was the teamwork involved in producing this book," he said. "From the total cooperation of Mark Trumbo, his wife, his parents and his close friends, to the collaboration with Back Story Publishing on interviews, photo assignments and the structure of the actual book, it has been a great experience. "Mark is generally a very quiet guy, but he really opened up for this book. There are moments in the book that are exhilarating, others that are heartbreaking and many more that are instructive for the young readership. I very much enjoyed spending hours with Mark going through every phase of his life." Having covered baseball for more than 40 years, Schmuck had exactly the right background to understand the twists and turns of Trumbo's journey from Little League in Orange County, California to the minors and finally to the big leagues. Born in Southern California, he attended Cal State Fullerton and spent 13 years as a beat reporter for the Register, covering both the Dodgers and the Angels from 1977-90. From there, he moved across the country to the Sun, covering the Orioles and graduating to the paper's national baseball writer and then to writing the lead sports column, "The Schmuck Stops Here." He also hosts a weekly radio show on WBAL 1090 in Baltimore. He has contributed to other books, including a multi-author picture book on Hall of Fame pitcher Nolan Ryan and as a co-author on the 2001 biography, Cal: Celebrating the Career of a Baseball Legend, about Orioles Hall of Famer Cal Ripken. He's also been witness to some of the greatest moments in sports as a reporter on 25 World Series, seven Super Bowls, the NBA Finals, the Olympic Games and many others. He was part of the U.S. delegation that helped organize the historic 1999 home-and-home goodwill series between the Orioles and a Cuban All-Star team, the first cooperative contact between Major League Baseball and Cuba in nearly 40 years. Schmuck has been recognized by his peers for his excellent work, including six selections as the Maryland Sportswriter of the Year by the National Sports Media Association. He served as president of the Baseball Writers Association of America in 2006. Read More Read Less