Douglas J. Gladstone, who has previously written for The Father Life, has written a book. I had the privilege of reading it before it was made available to the public on April 5th. The book, A Bitter Cup of Coffee; How MLB & The Players Association Threw 874 Retirees A Curve is the story of the business side of professional sports that the general public usually hears nothing about.
With a foreward written by former ABC News Nightline and original ESPN baseball tonight anchor Dave Marash, this is an insider’s look at the darker world of baseball and the attempts to finally shine a light on it.
Hundreds of retired players are being denied the pensions they deserve due to a flaw in the requirements for eligibility to players in 1980. Previously, players had to play for four years to earn a yearly pension and medical benefits. Nowadays, players only need to play in the big leagues for one day to get health insurance and forty-three to receive a pension.
Gladstone tells the story of the efforts to correct this terrible error with heartfelt intensity. You can tell that this wasn’t just a book for him, but a mission to right an injustice that can change the landscape of how retired professional athletes are treated.
For more information on the book, excerpts and where to buy it visit: http://www.abittercupofcoffee.com/ 
The opinions expressed in this review are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Father Life, Inc., or its owners. “A Bitter Cup of Coffee” purchased short term advertising with The Father Life, Inc., but did not pay for this review.
30 year old freelance writer and The Father Life‘s resident beer columnist and sports editor. He also writes about fine beverages for drinkingmadeeasy.com and Chilled Magazine. On top of that, he writes about college and professional lacrosse for insidelacrosse.com. He’s also written for Genesee Valley Parenting Magazine, the Democrat and Chronicle Newspaper and ESPN.com. “Osburn on Tap” appears monthly in THE FATHER LIFE. For questions, comments, or if you have a story idea for Chris, throw him an email cosburn@thefatherlife.com. Also, follow him on twitter http://www.twitter.com/chrisosburn