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Pandamonium! Book To Be Released In April

New book by Mark McCarter tells story of Trash Pandas’ first season
March 30, 2022

The record-breaking inaugural season of the Rocket City Trash Pandas and the remarkable saga of the team’s arrival in North Alabama has been chronicled in a new book that will be available in April. Written by longtime Alabama sportswriter Mark McCarter and published by August Publications, Pandamonium! tells the story

The record-breaking inaugural season of the Rocket City Trash Pandas and the remarkable saga of the team’s arrival in North Alabama has been chronicled in a new book that will be available in April.

Written by longtime Alabama sportswriter Mark McCarter and published by August Publications, Pandamonium! tells the story of professional baseball’s return to the Rocket City through interviews with Trash Pandas players and staff, as well as behind the scenes stories of the birth of the Trash Pandas’ franchise.

Pandamonium! will be on sale for $19.99 plus tax in-person at both the Trash Pandas Emporium at Bridge Street Town Centre and The Junkyard Team Store at Toyota Field. The book is can also be pre-ordered online by clicking HERE. As part of a special pre-sale, those who order a book online before the end of April will receive a copy signed by author Mark McCarter.

“The 2021 Trash Pandas season was one for the history books, and we are excited that fans will be able to relive their favorite moments in Pandamonium!,” Trash Pandas Executive Vice President and General Manager Garrett Fahrmann said. “Mark McCarter does a great job of showing how the Trash Pandas came to North Alabama and the inside stories from the inaugural season.”

The book records the team’s first season by featuring memorable games and moments as well as up close and personal looks at the players that created those memories from Opening Night pitcher Reid Detmers, the first Trash Pandas player to reach the big leagues, to popular players including Torii Hunter Jr., David MacKinnon, Luis Aviles Jr., and Mitch Nay.

Pandamonium! also offers behind-the-scenes stories of the team’s acquisition, how the name Trash Pandas was selected, the team behind the creation of Trash Pandas mascot Sprocket, and the challenges that the Trash Pandas front office encountered during the cancelled 2020 season.

A four-time Alabama Sportswriter of the Year whose work has appeared in such publications including Sports Illustrated, Fortune, The Sporting News, and USA Today, McCarter will be inducted into the Alabama Sports Writers Association Hall of Fame in June.

McCarter, now Assistant Athletic Director for External Operations at the University of Alabama in Huntsville, has written two other books, The Racetracks Book published by The Sporting News and Never A Bad Game: 50 Years of the Southern League, printed by August Publications in 2014.