Prospect — Bill Littlefield

PROSPECT is a "gentle, big-hearted" (Kirkus Reviews) novel steeped in the lore and mythology of baseball. At its center stands Pete Estey, a lifelong baseball scout who finds himself divorced, retired, and prematurely consigned to a retirement home, where his only diversions are the nightly ballgame on the radio, his memories, and his droll observations of his fellow pensioners. When an attendant at the home presents him with one last prospect for the major leagues, though, Pete discovers it to be the most important of his career.