Author Chats Over 'A Bitter Cup of Coffee'

Greeted by friends, fans—and a college instructor who asked if the author would address his sport's history course—Douglas J. Gladstone, author of the self-published A Bitter Cup of Coffee: How MLB and the Players Association Threw 874 Retirees a Curve hosted book signing at Bronxville's Womrath Bookshop on Saturday afternoon.

The premise behind Gladstone's debut makes a compelling case against Major League Baseball's pension system. During an interview with former Chicago Cubs outfielder Jimmy Qualls, perhaps best known as the wrench in Tom Seaver's "Imperfect Game" at Shea Stadium in 1969, Gladstone stumbled upon an MLB technicality that prohibits ballplayers with less than four years of service credit between 1969 and 1979 from eligibility for health insurance and pension monies.

"I didn't understand why the mass media hadn't picked up on this story," said Gladstone, an Albany-based journalist. "There are very few people who have picked up on this issue, [except for and] most notably Dave Anderson [of the New York Times]. I saw a gaping hole and a need that I was fortunate enough to fill."

In 1980, health insurance was granted to players whose names appeared on an MLB roster for just one day. The same ballplayers were eligible for a pension annuity after 43 days of service credit. A Bitter Cup of Coffee–a nod to a league phrase of the same name referring to month-long Major League stints of players in the Minors–chronicles the struggles of 874 baseball retirees in hopes of attaining vesting requirements that weren't retroactively amended by the league.

"We've all felt the sting of victimization at some point," said Gladstone. "I'm just trying to tip the scales a bit."

According to Gladstone, there are proposals, including possible amendments to the annuity plans, being discussed. He said, "[using] an arbitrary number like $10,000 a year, the league [would pay them] just $8.72 million, which is chump change for a $6.3 billion dollar industry."

Gladstone, a journalist by training who has spent the majority of his professional career to public sector work, attributes his change of course to the birth of his daughter in September 2008.

"You tend to become reflective," said Gladstone. "I thought 'I'm going to tell my daughter she can achieve anything she wants in life', until I realized that in 15 or 16 years, she'd call me out for giving up on my journalism career."

Six months later, Gladstone managed to rise from e-zine assignments to bylines in national publications like the Chicago Sun-Times and Baseball Digest, where the abovementioned interview with Qualls first appeared.

Soon after meeting Qualls, Gladstone embarked on a gruesome routine that consisted of full workdays, a brief dinner with his wife and infant daughter, and five hours of nightly research, including frequent phone conversations with former players, union members, and league officials.

Gladstone says the resulting 40,000-word publication can also be credited to "a very supportive wife" and thirty former pension-less ballplayers that offered their help and time.

In addition to myriad television and radio appearances–including a 70-second segment on national radio program CBS Radio World News Roundup–Gladstone organized a 12 state book tour, where he can reach readers personally and educate a wider audience.

"I will not rest until this injustice is rectified," said Gladstone. "I think I owe it to them. I've had many profound friendships develop with these ballplayers as a result [of the book]. I'm on the phone talking to David Clyde, who I grew up watching. You can't trade those type of memories."

For a synopsis, tour dates, and purchasing information, visit www.abittercupofcoffee.com.