Growing up in small-town, Depression-era Oklahoma, Mickey Mantle heard the same plea day in and day out from his parents: "Get out of the house and play some baseball!" Sooner than anyone expected, Mantle was a New York Yankee in 1951. Five years later, the switch-hitting phenomenon was on his way to stardom, completing the season with a Triple Crown for the highest batting average and most home runs and RBIs. Hailed as the successor to the great Joe DiMaggio, Mantle felt the pressure of success, and faced difficulties stemming from physical infirmity and, later, alcohol abuse. In "Mickey Mantle", discover how this baseball great came to grips with his addiction, becoming a role model for the clean and sober life, and is now remembered as an American baseball hero.

Growing up in small-town, Depression-era Oklahoma, Mickey Mantle heard the same plea day in and day out from his parents: "Get out of the house and play some baseball!" Sooner than anyone expected, Mantle was a New York Yankee in 1951. Five years later, the switch-hitting phenomenon was on his way to stardom, completing the season with a Triple Crown for the highest batting average and most home runs and RBIs. Hailed as the successor to the great Joe DiMaggio, Mantle felt the pressure of success, and faced difficulties stemming from physical infirmity and, later, alcohol abuse. In "Mickey Mantle", discover how this baseball great came to grips with his addiction, becoming a role model for the clean and sober life, and is now remembered as an American baseball hero.