rs hang up their spikes for good after their time in the major or minor leagues. Don August chose a different path. In 1989, August was the Milwaukee Brewers Opening Day starting pitcher. The year before, he went 13-7 and finished fourth in the balloting for American League Rookie of the Year. He was the Brewers' Ace--and then, suddenly, he wasn't.

By 1992, August was a free agent looking for an opportunity that no big league team was willing to offer. After playing winter ball in Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic, he signed to play in Mexico. After refusing to be a replacement player during the Major League Baseball lockout in 1994, he continued his career in Taiwan, learning new languages, earning multiple awards, making game show experiences, and surviving earthquakes, gambling scandals and a hurricane. After five years, August left Taiwan, and ended up in Europe, pitching his team to the Italian League title. This book is the complete autobiography of a singular baseball player, with a storied international career to which few players can lay claim.