When Denver Post non-sports writer Alan Gottlieb set out to cover the inaugural season of Denver's first Major League Baseball franchise, his instructions were simple: don't write a typical sports story.

He didn't. This cheerfully sardonic book provides an outsider's look inside the world of big-time professional sports. It contains enough inside dirt to appeal to the hardcore fan. But it also casts a skeptical eye on this mega-business masquerading as the national pastime, and as such will appeal to readers who could care less about batting averages and on base percentages. It's a rollicking, fun read.