Table of Contents Acknowledgments ix Preface 1 PART I--BEFORE THE DODGERS 1. Born to Play Baseball 7 2. A Minor League Sensation 13 3. The Guy to Take Babe Ruth's Place 20 4. The Lost Years 30 5. Radical Surgery and a Career Revived 38 6. The Most Unpopular Man in Detroit 47 PART II--THE DODGERS 7. "All I knew about Brooklyn was that it was some strange outer world" 57 8.

The People's Choice 67 9. An Almost Perfect Team 79 10. A Pennant and a World Series 90 11. The 1942 Dodgers Look to Repeat 99 12. "Men, you are going to lose this pennant" 106 13. The War Begins to Affect Baseball 114 14. The 1944 National League Batting Champion 123 15. "The most beloved baseball player of recent years" 134 16.

The War Ends and the Battle with the Cardinals Resumes 144 17. Playoffs, Pensions, and a Promotion 156 18. "It was the dumbest thing I did in all my life" 166 19. Jackie Robinson Joins the Dodgers 177 20. Dixie and Jackie Bring a Pennant to Brooklyn 186 PART III--AFTER THE DODGERS 21. "The place doesn't look the same since you've gone, Dixie" 199 22. Managing in the Minor Leagues 208 23. Ending His Career in Dodger Blue 219 24.

Was Dixie Walker a Racist? 227 Chapter Notes 233 Bibliography 249 Index 255.