About 10 years or so ago, I was driving up Ten Rod Road in North Kingstown, Rhode Island when I spotted a beautiful item at a yard sale. A mint condition, Martin Acoustic Guitar, right there in the yard sale lineup with lamps, posters, chairs, a motorcycle, and other household non-wanteds. As I was heading north, I made an illegal U-Turn (quite okay in small town USA types like NK) and parked in front of the yard sale house, hoping to land a Martin guitar for my household. The homeowner came out to greet me. “Is that Martin for sale,” I inquired. “Heck no, I’m just working on a few songs while waiting for yard sale shoppers to arrive.” ‘Oh dang,’ I thought and peeled off the Martin to find two items which caught my eye. A cardboard street sign that read “Sesame Street” and a framed poster of four legendary Boston Red Sox players. The framed poster’s title read “Teammates.”

Those two items have traveled with me through 2 homes, 2 states, and are two of the first things I think about when I consider my favorite wall coverings. Lost on me all these years was the meaning behind the “Teammates” title, although the 4 players in the poster were not lost on me. Ted Williams, Bobby Doerr, Dominic DiMaggio, Johnny Pesky are the four Boston Red Sox legends in the poster. And just this holiday season, I gifted myself one of the greatest books I have ever read about sports, friendship, and yes, being a good teammate. The book – “The Teammates, A Portrait of a Friendship” by acclaimed author David Halberstam.

First off, David Halberstam is in a class by himself. His writing is pure joy to my eyes and his storytelling is just off the charts excellent. “The Teammates” goes from present to past to the beginnings of each player in the teammate group. How did Bobby Doerr and Ted Williams meet? Where did Johnny Pesky come from? How did the brother of one of the greatest Yankees of all time wind up patrolling centerfield for the Boston Red Sox? How were the players interwoven as teammates in Boston, then as teammates working to make each other’s lives better in retirement? Did anyone ever win an argument against Ted Williams? How did fishing tie the teammates together in an incredible bond outside of the baseball diamond? All of the answers to these questions and many more you might have are in this book.

I love black and white photos. I actually prefer period photography to be in a more natural state – whether that is unfiltered color or simple black and white. “The Teammates” has a ton of great black and white photos of the players’ early days, their Red Sox days, some military photos, and so much more. The photos just added to the writing in such a special way. Some of my favorite are of the guys at the Louisville Slugger bat factory. Who knew back then that those photos would have any significance? How awesome that they wound up in this book.

So what is the key focus of “The Teammates?” The central focus is the story of 3 men who traveled to Florida to say good-bye, perhaps for the last time, to a very dear old friend. Teammates, looking to cheer up a fallen friend who was on hard times physically, near death, looking to make his day just one more time. Sacrificing their personal time to make someone else’s day better, albeit via a 3 day drive from Massachusetts to Florida without turning on the radio. And themselves not the exact pictures of health. No problem, we will get through it as a team, as teammates. Just as we did in the 1940s for the Boston Red Sox, and now later on in life as lifelong friends. The portrait of a friendship – sacrifice yourself and your time to make a friend’s day better. How beautiful and a lesson so needed in society today!

I highly recommend “The Teammates” and cannot say enough kind words about its subject matter, its author, its photography, and its impact on me as a person. It is remarkable that 4 families remained so close for so many years, despite personality differences, divorces, and widening physical distances between them. Bobby Doerr, Ted Williams, Johnny Pesky, and Dominic DiMaggio – you will always have my respect and admiration for being The benchmark for the word “Teammates.”