Curveball

What if the secret you've been keeping your whole life is the same one that could set you free?

Jess Singer has everything a young pitcher could dream of—a blazing fastball, the most devastating curveball in the minor leagues, and a legendary last name that opens doors before he even throws his first pitch in The Show. His father, Jewish Joe Singer, was a New York Mets star whose career was derailed by scandal. His grandfather Jack, now in his eighties, is still the sharpest man in any room. Three generations of Singer men, each carrying their own secrets, their own wounds, and their own unfinished stories.

But Jess is carrying the heaviest secret of all.

In 2024, no active Major League Baseball player has ever publicly come out as gay. Jess Singer intends to be the first, if he can survive the season, the spotlight, and the weight of everything his family has built and broken before him.

Curveball is the story of one extraordinary season that changes everything. It is a novel about fathers and sons, about the courage it takes to live honestly in a world that rewards silence, about love found in the most unlikely places, and about three generations of a family learning, finally, how to tell each other the truth.

For fans of literary fiction, LGBTQ+ coming of age stories, and anyone who has ever kept a secret too long, Curveball is the book you have been waiting for.

“Fast and fun...This isn’t just a story about baseball. It’s about family and secrets and love, and about what’s passed on from one generation to the next.” — Rajiv Joseph, Pulitzer Prize Finalist in Drama

“A first-rate intergenerational drama as well as a delightful read.” — T.C. Boyle

“Goodman does a fine job depicting the conflicts of a young player…In this knowing, compelling novel.” — George Vecsey, New York Times Sports Columnist

“Don’t leave Goodman’s Curveball off the plate." — Greg Prince, FaithandFearinFlushing.com