The Mighty Roman is a baseball book for today, a funny, freewheeling novel about modern American manhood. It’s a modern Mutiny On The Bounty with baseball bats and pranks. Our Captain Bligh is Roman Meister, a blustery, insecure giant who manages an independent-league baseball team near the California-Mexico border. Commanding but confused, endearing but scary, Roman pushes his multicultural young players to win the championship he needs to advance in pro ball--and validate his very existence, it seems. Roman reveres the fading America of Ted Williams, struggles with the burden of...