Imperfect: An Improbable Life by Jim Abbott (with help from Tim Brown) may be the most inspirational book ever written. There is a reason why he titled his book Imperfect: An Improbable Life. Because he was a pitcher in major league baseball who threw a no-hitter for the New York Yankees with one hand. Abbott pitched in college at the University of Michigan, like Derek Jeter. He is from Michigan, and as he wrote in the book, it was important to him to stay in the state at that point in his life. Can you imagine how difficult it was for Abbott to pitch at a high level?
Imperfect: The Jim Abbott Story
Imperfect: An Improbable Life is an inspirational biography showing anything possible. Abbott was born in 1967, and the book is a story in chronological order from his birth and upbringing in Flint, Michigan, through his years at the University of Michigan, to his Major League baseball career. Abbott was a professional baseball pitcher. He played for the California Angels, New York Yankees, Chicago White Sox, and Milwaukee Brewers from 1989 to 1999. He was mind-blowingly successful at the major league level despite being born without a right hand. He was a lefthander like Jerry Reuss.
The book tells how Abbott won the James E. Sullivan Award as the nation’s best amateur athlete in 1987 and a gold medal in the baseball demonstration event at the 1988 Summer Olympics. He was drafted in the first round of the 1988 MLB draft by the California Angels and was so good he reached the major leagues the next year.
What is really amazing, beyond Abbott’s success as a major league baseball player, is that as a member of the New York Yankees in 1991, he threw a no-hitter against the Cleveland Indians. He retired with a career record of 87 wins and 108 losses. He is now a motivational speaker using the stories told in Imperfect: An Improbable Life to fire audiences up.
Career Statistics
Abbott was a middling pitcher in the major leagues. He was 87-108 for his career with a 4.25 earned run average, but that was not the story. The story was his dexterity in throwing the ball and then putting the glove on his throwing hand. He had the glove tucked under the stump of the arm without a hand. Simply amazing and detailed in the book. That Abbott was able to pitch in the major leagues for 10 seasons and was good enough in college to win the Sullivan Award is flat-out astounding and goes to show where determination can take you.
The Jim Abbott No-Hitter
Jim Abbott threw a no-hitter during his otherwise plain 1993 season. He was just 11-14 that season. He threw his no-hitter on September 4, 1993 against the Cleveland Indians. That magical night is detailed in the sixteenth chapter of his book. What is needed to throw a no-hitter is for your team to play good defense, and that was the case that night.
Conclusion
Imperfect: An Improbable Life is a 294-page book that is so inspirational it should not apply to just baseball fans; it should be of interest to everyone. Players do not stick in the major leagues because of charity. They stick because they are good. Abbott was helped by the fact he threw left-handed. Lefties who can throw strikes, which he did, are valuable and tend to stick around for a long time. He probably could have further extended his career by moving to the bullpen, but clearly, he had the endurance to be a starting pitcher.
