NEW RELEASE
Now Available
What the Hell Was That, Cleveland?:
The St. Patrick's Day Meteor of 2026
Includes original era-inspired illustrations
March 17, 2026. St. Patrick's Day. A seven-ton rock from space exploded over Northeast Ohio at 8:57 a.m. Houses shook from Lorain to Akron. A guy on a Cleveland sidewalk wondered if it was the end of time. A bar in Valley City declared nothing was going to hamper St. Patrick's Day. This is the community story of the most memorable morning in Northeast Ohio history — the boom, the confusion, the Reddit chaos, the Browns blaming Myles Garrett, the meteorite hunters who drove in from Connecticut and South Carolina, and the region that responded the only way it knows how: with humor, stubbornness, and a cold green beer. The first book in the Infamous Moments in Cleveland History series.
March 17, 2026
The day a meteor crashed St. Patrick's Day
Northeast Ohio
Three million people heard the boom
Sharon Center
Where the meteorite hunters gathered
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The Night Baseball Lost Control
Some moments define cities. Some moments define sports. And some moments — the truly infamous ones — define what happens when ambition, chaos, and thousands of witnesses collide. This is Infamous Moments: narrative nonfiction that gives sports history's most unforgettable nights the full story they deserve.
Beyond the Headlines, Beyond Wikipedia
The Series
Infamous Moments tells the full stories behind the nights that shaped franchises, broke hearts, and became legend.
Every sports city has them — the moments that live in collective memory, passed down through generations of fans. The crushing defeats. The chaotic spectacles. The nights when everything went wrong in the most spectacular way possible.
These stories deserve more than a box score or a highlight reel. They deserve context, characters, and the kind of narrative depth that brings you back to the stadium, back to that exact moment when history tilted sideways.
Infamous Moments begins with Cleveland — a city that knows heartbreak better than most — but this is just the beginning. Every franchise has its defining disasters. Every city has its infamous nights. This series will tell those stories, one unforgettable moment at a time.
Book One
Now Available
Ten Cent Beer Night: The Night Baseball Lost Its Mind in Cleveland
Includes 45 original era-inspired illustrations
June 4, 1974. Cleveland Municipal Stadium. What started as a desperate promotional gimmick — ten-cent beers, unlimited refills — ended as one of the most chaotic nights in baseball history. Fans stormed the field. Players grabbed bats for self-defense. The umpires forfeited the game. And the baseball world watched in disbelief as Cleveland became synonymous with everything that could go wrong.
This is the full story of that night: the front-office desperation that led to the promotion, the escalating tension between Cleveland and Texas, the moment the crowd became a mob, and the aftermath that still echoes fifty years later. It's a story about a struggling franchise, a divided city, and the thin line between fandom and chaos.
June 4, 1974
The date Cleveland baseball became infamous
Cleveland Municipal Stadium
Where 25,000 fans witnessed chaos
Indians vs. Rangers
A rivalry that exploded into a riot
About the Author
William Trowbridge is a Westlake, Ohio–based author and lifelong Cleveland sports fan. He is the author of nine books in the Infamous Moments in Cleveland Sports series — the complete narrative history of Cleveland's most painful, chaotic, and unforgettable sports moments. His work combines meticulous research with compelling storytelling, bringing readers back to the stadiums, the tension, and the heartbreak that defined these nights. Infamous Moments begins with Cleveland, but every great sports city has its defining disasters — and this series will tell those stories, one unforgettable moment at a time.
For Media & Press
A Story Worth Covering
Local Author, National Story
William Trowbridge is a Westlake, Ohio-based author documenting Cleveland's most infamous sports moments with narrative depth and historical rigor.
50th Anniversary Relevance
June 4, 2024 marked fifty years since Ten Cent Beer Night — a milestone that reignited national interest in one of baseball's wildest nights.
Series Concept
Infamous Moments is launching as a multi-book series exploring the sports moments that defined cities, franchises, and fan identities.
Review copies available upon request. For interview requests, media inquiries, or review copies, contact press@infamousmoments.com.
The Complete Cleveland Series — All 9 Books Now Available
Nine books. One city. The complete narrative history of Cleveland's most infamous sports moments.
Ten Cent Beer Night — June 4, 1974. Unlimited ten-cent beers. 25,000 fans. One of the most chaotic nights in baseball history.
Red Right 88 — January 4, 1981. A frozen field. Brian Sipe's fateful interception. The playoff game Cleveland still can't forget.
The Drive — January 11, 1987. John Elway. 98 yards. The AFC Championship moment that crushed Cleveland's Super Bowl dreams.
The Fumble — January 17, 1988. Earnest Byner, one yard from glory. Another year. Another heartbreak.
The Shot — May 7, 1989. Michael Jordan over Craig Ehlo. One second. One image. A city's nightmare.
The Move — November 1995. Art Modell. Baltimore. The night Cleveland lost its team and its identity.
The Mesa — October 26, 1997. Game 7. One out away. Jose Mesa on the mound.
The Decision — July 8, 2010. LeBron James. "I'm taking my talents..." The betrayal that defined a generation.
Cursed No More — The complete arc. 1974 through 2016. Every infamous moment, one narrative, one city's journey from heartbreak to redemption. The flagship title of the series.
What's Next
Cleveland was just the beginning. Every great sports city has its infamous moments — the nights that broke hearts, defined franchises, and became legend. The Infamous Moments series is expanding. New cities are coming in 2026. Join the mailing list to be the first to know.
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Ready to Dive In?
For Readers
Start with Ten Cent Beer Night — the story that launched the series and captured one of baseball's most chaotic nights.
For Media
The book combines detailed historical research with 45 original illustrations that bring the night to life for modern readers. Ideal for anniversary coverage, Cleveland sports retrospectives, and baseball history features.

Interested in covering the series, interviewing the author, or requesting a review copy? We'd love to hear from you.
Infamous Moments — Because some stories are too good to stay buried in box scores.