Acknowledgements

There is a litany of people I want to thank who have supported and helped me through each evolution of this manuscript over the past few years. I’ll do this in reverse chronological order, beginning with my book’s publication (a very cool phrase to see typed out) and then heading back to my own start in the game of baseball.

Thanks to my publisher, Tim Gordon, my editor, Jane Karchmar, and the rest of the staff at General Store Publishing House for making this dream a reality and navigating me through the many twists and turns (and edits) of publishing a novel.

I would not have found GSPH as a publishing option were it not for the guidance of Morris Dalla Costa and Chip Martin.

Mark Zwolinski and William Humber gave invaluable feedback on early versions of my manuscript and wrote very positive critiques for my query letter. Allan Grozelle offered a multitude of free printing services that was much needed and appreciated. My sister, Malory, provided me with a number of helpful edits and suggestions.

Kate Banks and all of my close friends and family deserve special mention.

This book wouldn’t be possible without my parents, Gord and Susan. I want to thank my dad for convincing me that I had the talent to write a book in the first place. It was his idea to write baseball fiction. I want to thank my mom for always being there for me and backing my desire to pursue a career off the beaten path from a typical nine-to-five job.

Last, I want to thank all of my past teammates and coaches who have inspired the concoction of stories and characters that created 60”6’: Balls, Strikes, and Baseball Mortality, from my humble beginnings in the Oshawa Minor Baseball Association, to my post-secondary career at Queen’s University and Durham College, my summer seasons in the Ontario Senior Baseball Association and the Greater Toronto Baseball League, and finally to the London Majors of the Intercounty Baseball League.