Fifty-Six: A New Novel

Take a marginal ballplayer, Vince Donato, in the twilight of a long career, who has been known for his running with Hollywood starlets, racketeers, and barroom brawls. Next, put him on an expansion team near his hometown with an owner who signed him in anticipation of some of Vince's antics drawing fans to the ballpark. When Vince seems to be leading a normal lifestyle, the owner decides to poke the fires and tries to light Vince up into the Vince Donato of his numerous headlines off the field throughout his career. Next, throw in two women in a catfight over Vince, family pressures, and a maniac threatening to kill him who Vince thinks is hired by his eccentric owner, and the heat gets hotter for Vince. With all this going on, Vince finds himself in a hitting streak that hasn't been done since 1941 when Joe DiMaggio hit in fifty-six straight games. As the streak continues, Vince hears from the assassin that when the streak comes to an end, it will be the end of Vince. To stay alive, Vince must continue the hitting streak. As game fifty-six approaches, Vince hears from an old friend involved in the rackets who has promised his cohorts that based on his lifelong friendship with Vince he will throw the game and make out. A sure bet assuring hundreds of thousands of dollars. A packed stadium is on pins and needles to see if the great DiMaggio's record can be tied. You will be too.