Product Description
Do you remember your first glove? Or the one that meant the most to you? Almost everyone does.

Bernie Williams does. So does Greg Maddux. Hall of Famers Dave Winfield and Jim Palmer do as well. Indeed, just above every major leaguer remembers his first glove. Some, such as Doug Rader, who won five straight Gold Gloves at third base with the Houston Astros, even wore the same glove from sandlot games all the way to the pros.

Glove Affairs: The Romance, History, and Tradition of Baseball Glove will help you recall your fist glove as it shares similar memories from the game's greats. Glove Affairs also provides informative and surprising details about the history of the glove, its evolution, and its place in American culture.

More than just an ode to the glove, however, Glove Affairs serves as a practical guide to purchasing, breaking in, maintaining, and repairing a glove. Dozens of current and former major leaguers offer their battle-tested advice about getting the most out of a glove. They also share countless stories, from the passionate to the hilarious, about the glove and their relationship to it, including their superstitions and rituals, some of which are downright bizarre.

Whether you're a little leaguer seeking tips about buying and caring for your first glove or just a little leaguer at heart hoping to revisit fond memories, Glove Affairs will educate you, illuminate you - and stir your emotions. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (12)

great book on the history of the glove
If you were ever interested in how the baseball glove evolved this is the book.

3 1/2 stars ...... Interesting book, with one flaw
This is an interesting book to be sure.It's full of baseball glove lore, history, and stories from the majors.You'll pick up some helpful tips on glove break-in and repair, and stories about specific players' relationships with their gloves.

My gripe?The book relies almost entirely on secondary sources.It appears the author went online or to the library and searched for any existing interviews of major leaguers who mentioned their gloves, then strung these snippets together for the book. It makes for splintered writing, as if the author's only goal were to make it to the next snippet.There appear to be no primary or first hand player interviews, no trip to the Baseball Hall of Fame to research the history of baseball gloves or interview the curators there, no direct contact with Rawlings or Wilson for input from the companies, etc.For these reasons I felt the book was a little flat and could have been improved.

Still, a nice book on a subject lacking coverage elsewhere.

Going Back, Running Hard...It's a Great Catch
This is a fun book for anybody who loves baseball, and especially for those who love the feel of a baseball glove fitting just right on their hand and hearing the 'pop' of a ball as it smacks into the pocket.Liberman gives a well researched and well illustrated history of the development of baseball gloves, along with many stories and testimonials from both professionals and regular folks.He provides chapters on breaking in, maintaining, and restoring (with careful attention to a good sequence for complete re-lacing) baseball gloves.This book is a great catch, and you will be glad to have it in your hands.

Amazing Book
Christmas gift. Haven't read a really good baseball book like this in a long time. Tired of obscure histories and sappy bios. This one took me back to my own experiences on the diamond. Lots of fun.

A Glovely CASEY Award Finalist
This book received many nominations for the 2003 CASEY Award. Amazingly, it is the first book on its subject. Nominators obviously thought it is a very fun book to read and have. What will the CASEY judges think? ... Read more

Product Description
The definitive biography of the baseball legend who broke Babe Ruth's single-season home-run record—the natural way—and withstood a firestorm of media criticism to become one of his era's preeminent players.

ROGER MARIS may be the greatest ballplayer no one really knows. In 1961, the soft-spoken man from the frozen plains of North Dakota enjoyed one of the most amazing seasons in baseball history, when he outslugged his teammate Mickey Mantle to become the game's natural home-run king. It was Mantle himself who said, "Roger was as good a man and as good a ballplayer as there ever was." Yet Maris was vilified by fans and the press and has never received his due from biographers—until now.

Tom Clavin and Danny Peary trace the dramatic arc of Maris's life, from his boyhood in Fargo through his early pro career in the Cleveland Indians farm program, to his World Series championship years in New York and beyond. At the center is the exciting story of the 1961 season and the ordeal Maris endured as an outsider in Yankee pinstripes, unloved by fans who compared him unfavorably to their heroes Ruth and Mantle, relentlessly attacked by an aggressive press corps who found him cold and inaccessible, and treated miserably by the organization. After the tremendous challenge of breaking Ruth's record was behind him, Maris ultimately regained his love of baseball as a member of the world champion St. Louis Cardinals. And over time, he gained redemption in the eyes of the Yankee faithful.

With research drawn from more than 130 interviews with Maris's teammates, opponents, family, and friends, as well as 16 pages of photos, some of which have never before been seen, this timely and poignant biography sheds light on an iconic figure from baseball's golden era—and establishes the importance of his role in the game's history. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (18)

No Truer Yankee Than This
"Roger Maris: Baseball's Reluctant Hero" is the complete Roger Maris biography.And, because Maris was a private person who shared very few personal details with writers of the day, the book holds surprises even for those who witnessed the pressure-packed 1961 season and believe they already know the Roger Maris story. Few, for instance, are likely to know that Maris was not born in North Dakota as he claimed or that "Maris" is not the original spelling of his surname - or about the dysfunctional family dynamic that caused the spelling to be changed.

The biography, however, rightfully focuses on the way New York sportswriters and broadcasters conspired to ruin a good man's reputation and to make him miserable during what could have been the best year of his life.Old-school writers, in particular, hated to see Babe Ruth's home run record fall and, if it had to be broken at all, the last thing they wanted to see was someone like Roger Maris do the breaking.Because they did not consider Roger Maris to be a "true Yankee," this unethical group of writers trashed his reputation on a daily basis.They portrayed him as surly and unappreciative, a man who refused to play through his injuries the way Mantle played through his own.They even covered for Mantle's drinking problems and resulting lack of hustle while attacking Maris for not going full out even when ordered to play at a slower pace (to protect an injury) by his manager.And it worked - fans in every American League city hated Maris and never failed to boo or jeer him, even in his home ballpark.

That was bad enough.But just as bad was the unethical wayCommissioner Ford Frick decided to protect the home run record of Babe Ruth, a friend of his, by hanging the infamous "asterisk" on Maris, insisting that Ruth was still the single season champion for a 154-game schedule and that Maris was only the champion for a less impressive 162-game schedule (even though Ruth had three more overall at-bats than Maris).But it gets still worse because, later in his Yankee career, the full extent of a hand injury was kept from Maris by the Yankee front office and his manager, Ralph Houk, a decision that all but ensured he would never fully regain the grip in that hand or be able to pull a ball like he did when it was healthy.This is the same front office that failed to protect Maris from the rabid press in 1961 or even to promote his continuing chase to catch Ruth after the 154th game of the season, the same people who would send him off to St. Louis without ever recognizing what a great Yankee player he actually had been.

Understandably, Roger Maris hated the Yankee organization and Yankee fans by the time he was traded to St. Louis in an underhanded deal that turned out to be the biggest blessing of his career.That he would be able to reconcile with the Yankee organization, thanks to the efforts of George Steinbrenner, and that he would learn to love baseball again because of his experiences with the St. Louis Cardinals, is the best part of the Roger Maris story.When he died at age 51, still in the prime of life, baseball lost one of its all time greats, a man that, in my opinion, deserves to be in the Baseball Hall of Fame despite the successful efforts of a group of despicable writers to keep him out of it.

"Roger Maris: Baseball's Reluctant Hero" is not just a book for baseball fans because Roger Maris is a true American hero, a man whose story will be an inspiration to anyone who reads this revealing biography.

A biography every baseball fan should read
Although authors Tom Clavin and Danny Peary subtitle their biography of Roger Maris--"Baseball's Reluctant Hero"--many fans and sportswriters rejected Maris as a hero.He was one of the most unpopular and vilified athletes in 1961 as he chased Babe Ruth's single season home run record.

New York sportswriters painted Maris as a "surly, money-hungry ingrate."They treated him as an outsider (he had arrived in New York in 1960), favored Mickey Mantle over him and belittled his feat of 61 homers in 162 games.

Maris was never cut out to be, nor did he want to be, a hero.He just wanted to do his job and be left alone.He wasn't flashy and didn't like to talk about himself.He was serious, quiet, shy and thin skinned.The press, however, wanted him to be dynamic, garrulous and bigger than life.When he disappointed them (which he usually did), he paid the price.

Maris always felt embarrassed about discussing his accomplishments because of the misfortunes of his older brother, Rudy Jr., who was the better athlete until he contracted polio.Maris felt that it was his brother who really deserved to be the hero.

During the 1961 season, Maris was constantly hounded by the media, completely unprotected by the Yankees front office.Writer Maury Allen said Maris faced "the most pressure of any athlete in 55 years" he covered sports.Mantle, who finished with 54 homers in 1961, termed Maris' 61 homers as "the greatest feat in sports history."The Yankees, however, did nothing to recognize the achievement.

Hard to believe, but the fans and press were even harder on Maris in 1962.Mantle said, "The fans gave Maris the worst beating any ballplayer ever took."Playing 157 games, Maris led the Yankees with 33 homers (5th in the AL) and 100 RBI.Mantle, who played 123 games, was voted the American League MVP with 30 homers and 89 RBI. Incredulously, Maris did not receive one single vote for league MVP.Instead, UPI named him Flop of the Year.

Plagued by injuries, Maris' production fell the next four seasons.Although the Yankees promised him that they wouldn't trade him after the 1966 season, they sent him to the St. Louis Cardinals for an unknown player, Charlie Smith.That left a bitter taste in Maris' mouth.

He was, however, cheered and appreciated by the St. Louis fans and readily accepted by his Cardinal teammates.He earned high praise for his clutch hitting and all-round play.He helped lead the Cardinals to the World Series in 1967 and 1968.Maris appeared in more World Series in the 1960s (seven) than any other player.In two seasons with the Cardinals, he hit just 14 home runs.

Maris retired after the 1968 season.In retirement, Maris, who was awarded a valuable beer distributorship by the Busch family, mellowed and reconciled with the Yankees, thanks mainly to the efforts of George Steinbrenner.

In the end, Maris was able to say, "The game was good to me.The good outweighed the bad."He died in 1985 at the age of 51.

The authors did a great job of covering Maris' early years growing up and his career with the Cleveland Indians and Kansas City Athletics before coming to the Yankees.This is a biography that all baseball fans should read.

Home Run King!
After reading this book I have even more respect for Roger Maris than ever. This is a man who deserves Hall of Fame admission.
If you want an excellent read, well crafted and filled with observations from witnesses to the events, this is your book!

Roger Maris
I was aware of all the crap that Roger Maris had to put up with during the 1961 season and the ensuing years with the Yankees, which will always amaze me.A very underrated player.He is the true single-season home run record holder, and not the frauds, like "Big Head" Barry Bonds, Sammy "I Don't Speak English" Sosa, or Mark "He Touched My Heart" McGwire, who cheated Maris, Ruth and Aaron, among others.

I liked this book alot because it takes place in the era when I first came to love the game of baseball, and also because I'm a huge Yankees fan.My only quibble is that I could have done without all the Maras/Maris family history.It was confusing and boring to me.Thankfully, most of the book focuses, as it should, on its subject.For those who have friends or family who are Yankees' fans, this would make a great gift.
Recommended

Hall of Fame Player -- Hall of Fame Book
Very nice book, about a very mis-understood, but very nice man, and great ballplayer.How the press kept him out of the Hall of Fame is one of the biggest crimes perpetrated by the frustrated pundits.Though the book drags a bit with the family tree stuff, you do get a solid appreciation for a guy who has unfortuantely passed for over 25 years.The description of his two MVP seasons in '60 and '61 is very good, as are his two Cardinal years.The book focuses on more than his home runs, but the complete ballplayer he was.His bond with Mickey Mantle is well told also.The last 15 or so pages will tug at your heart, as it describes his last days, as well as his bonds with some of the special people in his life (including Mantle).I re-watched "61", the Billy Crystal movie immediately after reading this.If there is a just God, Roger gets his day in the sun at Cooperstown someday.I hope every voter on the Veterens Committee reads this in the future -- its a crime he's not in there with them.Class book on a class guy. ... Read more

Product Description
In the late 1850s organized baseball was a club-based fraternal sport thriving in the cultures of respectable artisans, clerks and shopkeepers, and middle-class sportsmen. Two decades later it had become an entertainment business run by owners and managers, depending on gate receipts and the increasingly disciplined labor of skilled player-employees. Playing for Keeps is an insightful, in-depth account of the game that became America's premier spectator sport for nearly a century. Reconstructing the culture and experience of early baseball through a careful reading of the sporting press, baseball guides, and the correspondence of the player-manager Harry Wright, Warren Goldstein discovers the origins of many modern controversies during the game's earliest decades. The 20th Anniversary Edition of Goldstein's classic includes information about the changes that have occurred in the history of the sport since the 1980s and an account of his experience as a scholarly consultant during the production of Ken Burns's Baseball. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (4)

A walk, not a hit
In baseball terms, Warren Goldstein's book is a walk, not a hit.It's good, but you always feel there was a more satisfying way to get to first base.As a fan of baseball and an avid reader of history, this book seemed like a natural fit for me, but while decent, there was also something missing.

Covering the history of baseball up to 1876 (when the National League came into being), The History of Early Baseball follows the development of the sport from an amateur recreation to a professional competition.In the beginning (in the 1850s), the early versions of baseball were played by clubs who would occasionally compete with each other.There wasn't much rhyme or reason to which teams played each other or even the exact rules.The people who played were from all walks of life, and it was strictly a part-time activity.

Eventually, however, the game got refined.Players started playing specific positions and the best players started representing the clubs.Eventually, to guarantee that such players wouldn't defect, money got into the equation.The transition from amateur recreation to professional sport was gradual but inevitable.

The principal flaw with the book is that Goldstein writes as a historian, and this subject may be better covered by a sports writer.Goldstein is interested in the changing economics of the game and the struggle between the management and the players.This is a fine subject, but the result is that we lose some sense of the sport itself.We don't read much about particular players or teams or games; in addition, the different rules of the 19th century game are not discussed in depth (with the exception of the "fly-ball rule").Every baseball era has its stars, from Cap Anson to Ty Cobb to Babe Ruth to Ted Williams to Hank Aaron; certainly the early baseball era should have a couple, too, but Goldstein really doesn't discuss these people.

Overall, I enjoyed this book, and many baseball fans will too.The problem I mentioned does not keep the book from being an interesting read, but it does prevent it from getting a five star rating.Nonetheless, this is a recommended read for fans of the game.

Informative
A nicely written book regarding the beginings of base ball from 1857 - 1876.A great book for the baseball historian.

Informative
A nicely written book regarding the beginings of base ball from 1857 - 1876.A great book for the baseball historian.

Precise and to the point.
Warren Goldstein has written a extensive book on the early beginnings of baseball as a national past-time.He begins with the formation of base ball clubs during the 1850's and takes the history through the formation of the National League in 1876.During this time he highlights the transformation from a game played for fun and recreation to one played as a business.His insight into the history of the post-Civil War Era and the Industrial Revolution add to the social aspect of why baseball emerged into the professional sport which it became.He uses primary sources and footnotes them readily throughout the book.This is a must book for any fan of the game who wants to know the social evolution of the game as well as the famous participants and teams. ... Read more

Product Description
Many are aware that baseball's European ancestry stretches back centuries, but few realize just how extensive the modern game's history is on the Continent and British Isles. Baseball as we recognize it has been played there since the 1870s, and in several countries the players and devoted followers have included royalty, Hall of Famers from the U.S. major leagues, and captains of industry. Organized by country, this heavily researched book delves into the history of baseball in 40 nations, describing not only the efforts to spread the game but also the culture of baseball unique to Europe. Appendices cover topics from major leaguers who have played in European domestic leagues to a glossary of baseball terms in seven European languages. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Realy good book
This book is realy intresting and giveslot of information about baseball in Europe. For everyone who is intrested in baseball a must

comprehensive, well illustrated and documented, up-to-date
Author Chetwynd, a former pro ballplayer in Britain and Sweden, hits a home run with this well researched tome on baseball's past and present in Europe. Book is meticulously researched, as we expect from McFarland. Snappy illustrations e.g. a ticket from a baseball game at the 1936 Berlin Olympics; posters and programs from here there and everywhere; and an image proving that Italy's fashion sense in baseball uniforms was as bad as ours during the 1970s.

Great cultural contrasts, e.g. learn where the intentional walk is considered unmanly, and in which Euro-baseball powerhouse the fans would certainly never consider booing. Book takes a country-by-country approach, with vivid stories like the Italian grave diggers who learned the game from WWII GI's, not far from the beaches of Anzio. There are also several incidents of U.S. ballplayers retarding the international growth of the game by making less than diplomatic comments to the press.

Loads of statistical appendices and footnotes, plus a fun glossary on baseball terms in seven languages. Don't get thrown out of the game by the Schiedsrichter in Germany! In Italy a "doppio gioco" turns out to be a double play, not the team mascot. And who else but the French could convey the grace of a slider, or "glissante"?

A fun read for ball fans around the world, and a must buy for sports libraries. ... Read more

Product Description

Customer Reviews (2)

Minnesota Twins History
The book was a gift and the person receiving it opened it and did not put it down.He read 25 pages right away and wanted to read more.But it was his Birthday party and he needed to be with us.

It was a great Book

Brings back memories
As a Twins fan for over 40 years, I found this book to be a ride in the "way back machine" as it brought back some great memories.In addition this book also provides a behind the scenes look at the stories behind the stories.It is a good bet for any Twins fan. ... Read more

Product Description
“Football is force and fanatics, basketball is beauty and bounce. Baseball is everything: action, grace, the seasons of our lives. George Vecsey’s book proves it, without wasting a word.”
–Lee Eisenberg, author of The Number

In Baseball, one of the great bards of America’s Grand Old Game gives a rousing account of the sport, from its pre-Republic roots to the present day. George Vecsey casts a fresh eye on the game, illuminates its foibles and triumphs, and performs a marvelous feat: making a classic story seem refreshingly new.
Baseball is a narrative of America’s can-do spirit, in which stalwart immigrants such as Henry Chadwick could transplant cricket and rounders into the fertile American culture and in which die-hard unionist baseballers such as Charles Comiskey and Connie Mack could eventually become the tightfisted avatars of the game’s big-money establishment. It’s a celebration of such underdogs as a rag-armed catcher turned owner named Branch Rickey and a sure-handed fielder named Curt Flood, both of whom flourished as true great men of history. But most of all, Baseball is a testament to the unbreakable bond between our nation’s pastime and the fans, who’ve remained loyal through the fifty-year-long interdict on black athletes, the Black Sox scandal, franchise relocation, and the use of performance-enhancing drugs by some major stars.

Reverent, playful, and filled with Vecsey’s charm, Baseball begs to be read in the span of a rain-delayed doubleheader, and so enjoyable that, like a favorite team’s championship run, one hopes it never ends.

“Vecsey possesses a journalist’s eye for detail and a historian’s feel for the sweep of action. His research is scrupulous and his writing crisp. This book is an instant classic——a highly readable guide to America’s great enduring pastime.”— The Louisville Courier Journal



From the Hardcover edition. ... Read more

Product Description

Customer Reviews (9)

Solid Baseball Narrative
This informative and engaging book covers the state of baseball in a key year.In 1939 Lou Gherig retired due to a tragic illness, Bob Feller emerged to win 24 games, Ted Williams arrived in Boston, and the Hall of Fame and Little League World Series began.That was the year the last holdouts (Dodgers, Giants, Yankees) began radio broadcasts, night baseball increased, and television was even used experimentally.Readers learn about broadcaster Red Barber of Brooklyn, the thriving Negro Leagues, and increasing editorials for ending baseball's color barrier.There is also a look at umpire Bill Klem, and Cincinnati's "Deacon" Bill McKechnie, who'se intellect and patience were (and remain) a rarity among managers.Author Talmage Boston provides us with an 12 documented andeasy-reading chapters.The result is an informative, enjoyable read for old-timers, and anybody else interested in the game.

Best baseball book yet!
Hats off to Talmage!Being an avid baseball fan, I have read many baseball books.I discovered many new significant factual nuggets and saw a great number of photographs that I'd not seen before.Obviously written by someone with a great passion for the game of baseball.Can not wait for his next book.

Great Baseball Book!
I've been a baseball fan for over 50 years and I have a library full of baseball books. I've even done some free-lance baseball writng of my own. So I don't give out praise lightly. This is a wonderful book and I would have to rank it on my list of Top 10 All-Time Favorites. It is more than just a baseball book...it covers a slice of Americana that all students of American history should find of interest.

The author has done a compelling job developing his premise that 1939 was a extremely important year in the history of baseball and in the history of the United States. The book is actually a collection of twelve essays coveringpivotal events and dominant personalities from the baseball world of 1939. Other reviewers have covered these topics, which include notables such as Joe DiMaggio, Ted Williams, Lou Gerhig, Leo Durocher, and the great broadcaster Red Barber. I found each essay to be well written and highly informative. Mr Boston has certainly done his research on the selected subjects and he writes in an engaging, highly enjoyable style that kept me turning the pages.

Even though most of the material was familiar territory to an old basball fan like me, I found that I learned something from each essay. Leo Durocher is my favorite character in baseball, and I've studied him intently. And yet I found the chapter devoted to him to be delightful and contained a lot of information that I was not familiar with. Likewise, the chapter on the Reds' great manager Bill McKechnie - one of the lesser known personalities that the author covers - was actually my favorite; and Mr.Boston has convinced me that Bill McKechnie is one of the most underrated managers in the history of the game.Other essays, such as the ones on the Negro Leagues, the founding of Cooperstown, and the advent of televison in baseball were also well done.

If you are a baseball fan as I am - or just a fan of American history - doyourself a favor and read "1939: Baseball's Tipping Point." Trust me...you won't regret it.

1939 Great Defining Baseball Work
Assemble baseball historians over their favorite adult beverages with the topic "most important," "most pivotal," "most famous" baseball season and the conversation heatedly rolls.
Strong cases can be made for several seasons from baseball's past.In my pomposity I always insisted 1947 the most pivotal because of Branch Rickey's breaking of the game's color code with Jackie Robinson.There's no argument, 1947 was a strong and very important year for the game and for society.
My friend and Dallas-lawyer-baseball historian-writer Talmage Boston has changed my mind with his work "1939 Baseball's Tippping Point." So much import was packed that year into a six month baseball season.
Over two years before U.S. involvement in World War II, young up and coming stars outfielder Ted Williams and pitcher Bob Feller had begun showing the stuff that would lead to the Hall of Fame.That year, neither had become jaundiced due to what both thought was an excessive amount of career time lost due to the war effort.Yankees outfielder Joe DiMaggio began defining his career as elite that year.
In 1939 Brooklyn Dodgers General Manager Larry McPhail began dragging a lowly franchise out of the doldrums.By hiring fiery Leo Durocher to manage the club, McPhail served notice to his players and other clubs that wins were expected in Brooklyn.By wisely breaking a very silly, sophomoric ban on radio broadcasts, McPhail with the hiring of southerner Red Barber to call Dodgers games, took soap operas away from New York women and gave them the game.In doing so, the Dodgers created a completely new, educated genre of fan--females.That year, Barber also broadcast baseball's first televised game.
If 1947 marked the official end to appartheid in baseball, 1939 represented the time when newspaper editors both black and white began screaming for social change.Bigotry stories abounded.One of the most famous was a Daughters of American Revolution attempted ban on black singer Marion Anderson's appearance on the steps of the Lincoln Monument.Press coverage beat the ban.
While the Baseball Hall of Fame opened its doors in 1939 to its first class including Babe Ruth and Walter Johnson, in Cooperstown,New York, historians began refuting claims that native Cooperstown son Abner Doubleday invented the game.
Little League Baseball began operations in 1939, giving youngsters ages 8-12 their first shot at an organized style of play.
But perhaps the most famous historical item coming out of '39 was Yankees slugger Lou Gehrig's demise. Gehrig that year had been diagnosed with Amyotropic Lateral Sclerosis, a form of polio, now known as Lou Gehrig's disease.As Gehrig stepped out of the playing field limelight, he gave his famous, "Luckiest Man on the Face of the Earth," speech to a sold out Yankee Stadium.
To me, "1939 Baseball's Tipping Point," went one step further.It is a missive that should be read and re-read by baseball fans as one more poignant reminder how this grand game became that way.

Great baseball book
This is an excellent baseball book -- about the unique baseball happenings in 1939.Each chapter is devoted to a special story ... Ted Williams rookie season with the Bosox, the Yankee team after Gehrig retired and other interesting stories.There is a lot of great background regarding each story -- and is very well written.

This would be a great gift for Christmas or birthday

Greg Langdon ... Read more

Product Description
Louisville and baseball share a long and strong bond that also happens to be one rollicking tale. From scandals and superstars, to Louisville Slugger® bats and beyond, Baseball in Louisville explores the ups, downs, eccentricities, and historic elements that define America's great pastime in Louisville. With names like Honus Wagner, Fred Clarke, Earle Combs, Pee Wee Reese, Adam Dunn, and Chris Burke in the line-up, this volume delivers a substantial and entertaining overview of baseball's past and present. ... Read more

Product Description
Featuring hundreds of full-color photographs and illustrations of every Major League ballpark, famous stadiums from the past, and dozens of Minor and Negro league parks, Take Me Out to the Ballpark has surely earned its place as one of the most beloved baseball books. New stadiums in this completely revised and updated edition include Citizens Bank Ballpark (Philadelphia), PETCO Park (San Diego), and the newly renovated RFK Stadium (Washington, D.C.) home to the Washington Nationals.

Crammed with the statistics baseball fans love, Take Me Out to the Ballpark will hit a home run with legions of new readers this fall. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (31)

Great Book
My son and I visit ballparks and this is a valuable resource when remembering where we've been and where we're going next.Great pictures and information.It's something I leave out for others to see as well.

baseball book
this is a great book of visits to many baseball fields
we will be visiting many of them and will be it as a guide book
its inthe shape of a park.

Take Me Out to the Ball Park
Don't be put off by the appearance or shape of the book. This is a fantastic reference for any baseball history enthusiast!

Stadium Book
Very nice book, Just what I wanted Very nice to display great gift for any baseball fan.

Stadium-shaped coffee-table book
"Stadium-shaped" coffee-table book of baseball stadiums, short on history, whose only fault is it isn't long enough, and doesn't have enough pictures and history of the old parks no longer in existence.Once thing this book puts in stark contrast is that just as the 70s were a bad time for car makers in contrast to a more glorious past, it was a bad time for stadium designers too.

The good news for both industries is that the good old days are now, as stadiums are better (not necessarily bigger, fancier, or high-tech, just better) in every dimension. ... Read more

Product Description
Featuring hundreds of full-color photographs and illustrations of every Major League ballpark, famous stadiums from the past, and dozens of Minor and Negro league parks, Take Me Out to the Ballpark has surely earned its place as one of the most beloved baseball books. New stadiums in this completely revised and updated edition include Citizens Bank Ballpark (Philadelphia), PETCO Park (San Diego), and the newly renovated RFK Stadium (Washington, D.C.) home to the Washington Nationals.

Crammed with the statistics baseball fans love, Take Me Out to the Ballpark will hit a home run with legions of new readers this fall. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (31)

Great Book
My son and I visit ballparks and this is a valuable resource when remembering where we've been and where we're going next.Great pictures and information.It's something I leave out for others to see as well.

baseball book
this is a great book of visits to many baseball fields
we will be visiting many of them and will be it as a guide book
its inthe shape of a park.

Take Me Out to the Ball Park
Don't be put off by the appearance or shape of the book. This is a fantastic reference for any baseball history enthusiast!

Stadium Book
Very nice book, Just what I wanted Very nice to display great gift for any baseball fan.

Stadium-shaped coffee-table book
"Stadium-shaped" coffee-table book of baseball stadiums, short on history, whose only fault is it isn't long enough, and doesn't have enough pictures and history of the old parks no longer in existence.Once thing this book puts in stark contrast is that just as the 70s were a bad time for car makers in contrast to a more glorious past, it was a bad time for stadium designers too.

The good news for both industries is that the good old days are now, as stadiums are better (not necessarily bigger, fancier, or high-tech, just better) in every dimension. ... Read more

Product Description

Customer Reviews (3)

This Side of Cooperstown
"This Side of Cooperstown" is the lively and highly enjoyable oral history of seventeen of major league baseball's most influential yet forgotten players.Informative, fascinating, and often humorous, the book focuses on recreating America's pastime during an era of unprecedented social change, when baseball was vital to the spirit of the nation.Moffi's adept and comprehensive writing assembles a vast array of anecdotes, both sweet and sour, while preserving the authenticity of voices and the integrity of the storytellers.Yet even more so than the actual histories, the dynamic voices of the seventeen players engage the reader.Because of these animated characters, "This Side of Cooperstown" is a great read for both baseball fanatics and causal fans alike.

Listening Well To Capture the Soul of the Sport
These oral histories capture the careers of players who were not always at the heart of the order or rotation but who made a remarkable impact on their teams' success and, unwittingly, on the sport itself. Capturing the speech patterns and story lines of 17 stalwart players after their careers were over, This Side of Cooperstown depicts what it was like to be a ballplayer in the 1950s as baseball was beginning to be transformed from the all-white, low-budget pastime to the current era of big contracts, diversity, Moneyball statistics, and jet travel. The players depicted - from Vic Power and Alex Grammas to Carl Erskine and Tito Francona - are as colorful and more real than any described by Jim Bouton in a later era.

Author Larry Moffi, a baseball historian and critic (see The Conscience of the Game and Crossing the Line) comes through with a clutch performance, capturing the nuances of the arc of each player's career - and character. You'll learn what baseball was like for black and Latino players who broke through barriers or to be a college-educated player among the hayseeds. Whatever team you followed or from whatever era in which you started paying attention, This Side of Cooperstown offers something unique - the soul of the game as witnessed by its under-adulated stars who did not get the big bucks or the glory but who distinguished themselves on the field and in these pages.


Sheppard Ranbom

In the Cooperstown of Baseball Books
"This Side of Cooperstown" is a delight from start to finish. I loved watching these guys play (I'm showing my age, I realize) and reading this book brings them -- and my baseball-crazed youth -- back to vibrant life. Thanks so much, Mr. Moffi! Anyone from my era will enjoy the volume -- and so will younger fans, who will gain exciting and moving insights into the game's rich history. My one complaint is that "This Side" is only 288 pages long; had it been three times the length, I'd have devoured it practically nonstop. ... Read more

Product Description

Baseball was different in earlier days—tougher, rawer, more intimate—when giants like Babe Ruth and Ty Cobb ran the bases. In the monumental classic The Glory of Their Times, the golden era of our national pastime comes alive through the vibrant words of those who played and lived the game.

Customer Reviews (84)

The Glory of Their Times - Simply Wonderful
Mickey Mantle said he never understood why grown men idolized him and why they would cry at times when they met him. I'm sure he knew why. Because baseball, the game of our youth, and the men who played it, take us back to that wonderful, simple time like nothing else. As our lives fly by baseball can always instantly transport us back to those carefree days. The Glory of Their Times does that with every page and every character. If you love baseball this is a must read. A simple pleasure that will make you smile, put a tear in your eye and let a sense of calm and nostalgia envelop you.

The best baseball book ever ....
Any and every true baseball fan deserves to know and read this book of 1st hand reminiscences from players in the early days of baseball. This book is a "bridge" to the 19th century, and anyone who harbors a belief that today's players are tougher, stronger, smarter or throw harder and faster than their earliest forebears is strongly advised to read this book carefully. Also strongly recommended -- the tape or CD collection of the actual interviews recorded in the early 60's by Lawrence Ritter and produced for audio release by Henry W. Thomas (grandson of Walter Johnson, the best and hardest-throwing pitcher of all time). This book is highly enjoyable.

Great baseball book
This is a great book for anyone interested in the early years of baseball. It is based on interviews with the actual players which took place in the 1960's. These were the days (1890's to 1930's) before televised sports, huge contracts, and inflated egos. It's a must read for anyone interested in early baseball lore.

Names & stats brought to life
Lawrence Ritter has taken names & statistics off dusty old pages of forgotten books and turned them into real, breathing men. I was struck by how normal, how completely human these men where. My favorite passage was Fred Snodgrass' explanation of Fred Merkle's actions in a game that was, and still is, widely misunderstood, and was the basis for the unfortunate man's (Merkle) name becoming something of a maladiction. My favorite picture - in a book full of great one's - was the casual shot of Walter Johnson sitting with his arm playfully draped around the neck of his teammate and friend Clyde Milan. It could have been shot yesterday.

If you love baseball, you have to read this book.

Glad I chose this book

I gave this book as a gift to my grandson..he was happy to have the book about ball players from th past..he is a big baseball fan . ... Read more

Product Description

From the perspective of 2007, the unintentional irony of Chance's boast is manifest—these days, the question is when will the Cubs ever win a game they have to have. In October 1908, though, no one would have laughed: The Cubs were, without doubt, baseball's greatest team—the first dynasty of the 20th century.

Customer Reviews (68)

Mediocre book about a great topic.
I had heard about these teams before and was even vaguely familiar with the story-line.The writing was easy to follow, but not very insightful.I know that Honus Wagner was a great player that year, but the book did not give me an appreciation for what made him so special.

Lively, well-written history
Not much to add to the other positive reviews only that all baseball history were so well researched and written. This is a marvelous read from front to back - serious scholarship with a light touch and wicked sense of the absurd. Highly recommended.

I Loved It!
The central story, the 1908 baseball season, is fascinating and fun to read for a true baseball fan like myself.But it is the numerous individual stories and anecdotes that make this stand out, not just as a baseball book, but as a history of America.The stories bring the world of 1908 back to life.Cait Murphy portrays an amazing cast of characters, in an un-politically correct world; characters that are heroic, and characters that are scoundrels, and everyone in between, all revealed in an unapologetic way.

Murphy shows how the 1908 season was the season that baseball grew up, and became entrenched in American life, as America was shifting away from rural life and becoming an urban society.An example, the first concrete and iron stadium was built this year, the same year that Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid were killed.

I believe this is a fine work of American history, and without doubt a book that every baseball fan should read.

A Look Into A Gem of a Season
Crazy '08 is a look into the 1908 baseball season and the crazy events that took place within it. It focuses not only on the players and managers, but the owners, fans, and everyone else involved with the sport. You'll get some biographical information on the figures and the sport in general. It isn't tied just to the 1908 season, but how baseball got to that point and what happened to many of the pivotal figures of that time. As a big baseball fan, there was a lot I learned about the sport that is so popular today.

Perhaps the greatest asset this book has is its readability. It doesn't get too bogged down in details and flows well. It reads almost like a novel as opposed to a historical book. My only gripe is the author tends to get a little too cheesey at times and goes a little overboard on the jargon and cliches. In fact, there are a few that I've never heard of that are used throughout the book.

When Baseball Ruled
Great read. For the real baseball fan, not just the casual or fair-weather variety. Great look back at the wonderful history of this game. When the Cubs were definitely NOT a laughing-stock! ... Read more

Product Description
He was the winner of 511 major league baseball games,nearly a hundred more than any other pitcher. He threw threeno-hitters, including the first perfect game in the new AmericanLeague. He was among the original twelve players inducted intobaseball's Hall of Fame, and his name is now attached to the game'smost prestigious pitching award. Yet for all his accomplishments, CyYoung remains to most baseball fans a legendary but little knownfigure.

In this book, Reed Browning re-creates the life of Denton True"Cyclone" Young and places his story in the context of a rapidlychanging turn-of-the-century America. Born in rural Ohio, the son of aCivil War veteran, Young learned his trade at a time when onlyunderhand pitching was permitted. When he began his professionalcareer in 1890, pitchers wore no gloves and stood five feet closer tothe batter than they do today. By the time he retired in 1911, thegame of baseball had evolved into its modern form and claimedunquestioned status as America's "national pastime."

As Browning shows, Young's extraordinary mastery of his craft owedmuch to his ability to adapt to the changing nature of thegame. Endowed with an exceptional fastball, he gradually developed awide array of deliveries and pitches-all of which he could throw withastonishing control. Yet his success can also be attributed, at leastin part, to the rustic values of loyalty, hard work, and fair playthat he embraced and embodied, and for which he became renowned amongbaseball fans of his day. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (17)

The Greatest
Cy young won more games than any other pitcher ever has, or ever will. The award for best pitcher in each league is named for him. This is the story of his life and career.

To love the sport of baseball is to love history. The players' performances always are being compared to their own previous years and to other players', even from a century ago. Reading about these early Hall of Fame players provides information about how the game was played decades ago, and how it has changed.

The author of this book is adulatory, as is to be expected. This is information without a lot of analysis, but well worth the read.

Do you know Cy Young?
This book is for baseball fans.It answers the question of Who was Cy Young?Every year Major League Baseball gives an award in both leagues and I doubt that the vast majority of baseball fans can write two sentences about Cy Young.I found his accomplishments stunning in an era when pitchers started every third day, the good ones threw more than 400 innings a year and finished their own games.

Baseball was clearly not the game then that it is today.This tells how it has changed.For example, in Young's day, fans were called "cranks."I think this is an apt description of even today's fans!It was common to call the police to settle on-field arguments!Wow!Read this before the season starts if you are a fan.If you aren't a baseball fan...why not?

Jim

Baseball history
We are very interested in baseball's history, so this book is a welcome addtion to our library.

An excellent biography of a very respectable player
Cy Young spent most of his life in a small Ohio village. He left in 1890 to play baseball for the Cleveland Spiders, and returned in 1912 after racking up a truly impressive pitching career: 511 wins, pitched the first perfect game, won more than 30 games a season five times.

This modern biography (written in 2000) is equally impressive for focusing on his baseball career instead of making spurious accusations about his psychological makeup and personal life. It also gives an excellent historical background and explanation of the rule changes during the period, and touches on a few personal areas without going into excessive detail; his life from 1867-1890 and 1912-1955 is covered in just two chapters.

Of the six baseball biographies I've read recently it truly stands out. The author did a great job of explaining how baseball worked back then, both in terms of the game itself and the teams/managers--and, as you can imagine, professional baseball was more than a wee bit different in 1890 than it is today. He uses copious references and footnotes, and makes it clear when he's speculating rather than writing based on fact. (In particular we don't know for sure what player salaries were like during the time. He has a helpful appendix explaining his reasoning.)

If you have any interest in baseball history pre-1920, or are just curious, it's well worth reading. It's one of the best modern biographies I've read.

The best baseball bio available
Reed Browning set the model for baseball bios, and it's too bad the scores of works that have come out since this volume have not been up to the mark set. Mr. Browning is a history professor, but other professors who have written about their favorite players have been less accurate and unbiased. Browning has done his homework thoroughly and with no errors. Of course, with Cy Young it's easier to be unbiased and still show him to be among the greatest of all time.
Browning has the perfect combination: all the detail about Cy Young's personal life he could get and keep the book flowing; all the baseball anecdotes worth telling; a fine writing style; and all the live action game and year by year stats and events you can want. ... Read more

Product Description
From the ballpark to the backyard and beyond, this book captures all the action, fun, and excitement of America's favorite pastime. You'll learn everything you ever wanted to know about:

• The history of baseball
• Your favorite American and National League teams
• Stats and records
• Ballparks around the country
• Baseball legends and current players
• How to play like a pro
• Fantasy baseball teams

Product Description
The true, unknown, and wonderfully entertaining story of baseball's origins in the 19th century, as revealed by the game's preeminent historian. ... Read more

Product Description
Celebrating African America's contribution to our great national pastime, this comprehensive, lively history combines vivid narrative, visual impact, and a unique statistical component, to recreate the excitement and passion of the Negro Leagues. Packed with stories, biographical essays, scores of archival photographs and other evocative artifacts, it is an important contribution to sports history and a wonderful tribute to the players and teams who wrote a unique chapter in the annals of baseball and American culture.


National Geographic is proud to present this compelling volume, compiled by a who's who of authorities on the subject. Drawing on years of research, Shades of Glory traces the history of black baseball from the 19th century to the first great teams, such as the Cuban Giants, and on to the era of the vibrant barnstorming teams from the East Coast, Chicago, and Cuba. The unparalleled Rube Foster started the first Negro League in 1920, with such dominant teams as the Chicago American Giants and the Kansas City Monarchs. Pittsburgh soon produced two of the greatest teams of all time, the Homestead Grays and the Pittsburgh Crawfords, featuring such stars as Satchel Paige, John Gibson, Cool Papa Bell, and many more. Their superb brand of baseball rivaled the best of the major leagues until the historic signing of Jackie Robinson by the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1947. Shades of Glory chronicles a bygone era of black baseball and the stars who were shadowed by racial prejudice, but now shine forth in all their sparkling brilliance. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (4)

False advertising by National Geographic
This book is not "by" Lawrence Hogan, who wrote only two of the seven chapters.The large number of other authors who contributed material and wrote the other chapters of this book have been needlessly slighted.

Shades of greatness
It's fantastic to finally find a thorough and well written history book on African American Baseball. After all these years there's still so little to read about all the games and all the players that were such an important part of Black history and of the great sport of baseball

Hogan does an amazing job at presenting detailed stories of most of the more important actors (players, owners, managers, journalists, and even fans). I especially appreciated the information on nineteenth century's teams and early twentieth century

The amount of information on some of the greatest ball players that were never given the opportunity to play in the big leagues is simply amazing

My only problem with the book is that although it is written in chronological order, there are some times were the stories jump from age to age -- for example, after describing how one of the leagues collapsed in the late 20s and started to tell about baseball in the early 30s, it suddenly jumps to another story in the early 20s

All in all, a great read and a must for all serious baseball fans -- and not just African American Baseball fans or Negro League buffs...

Excellent History
There have been only a few books written about the history of black baseball, a glaring error which Shades of Glory helps to correct. Before I read this book, I had no idea of the number of various independent black baseball teams that existed in the late 19th century. Nor did I know of various players who stood out in Black baseball over the decades it existed. Yes of course I knew of Satchel Paige (who I got to see pitch when I was a young teenager), Cool Papa Bell, Buck O'Neill, Josh Gibson, but I learned about so many others through sidebars this book provides. It also provides a detailed history of the few blacks who played in organized baseball before the color line became so rigid. The history provided in this book is very good and details the independent teams that came and went in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, the attempts to organize and maintain leagues, how Jackie Robinson's breaking the color barrier affected black baseball, and how his doing this effectively put an end to black baseball (which I'm sure was at the same time exciting and bittersweet to all Negro league ballplayers). I also enjoyed reading about the migration of blacks from the south to Northern cities like Chicago and how that helped further along black baseball in the Windy City.

The stats of various black baseball stars at the back of the book were pretty good, considering that league statistics, standings and even box scores of Negro league games were not always available and remain difficult to track decades later.

One small disappointment I had was there was no mention of black baseball on the West Coast. There were several West Coast black semi pro teams that barnstormed through the first part of the 20th century. There was even a West Coast Negro League (West Coast Baseball Association) that played in 1946. The league champion Oakland Larks later barnstormed after the league folded. I was surprised that there was not even a cursory mention of this team in the book, since one of their pitchers (Lionel Wilson) later became a judge and then mayor of Oakland, California.

Other than this minor issue, I felt this book very well described the "rise and fall" of black baseball.

A Good Narrative
Shades of Glory is a very good narrative history of Black Baseball. It includes pre-segregation players such as Moses Fleetwood Walker, the Heyday of the Negro leagues and the teams that continued to play after the color barrier was broken. The book is thorough and I think will help people understand baseball's place in Black society of the time. I found only one weakness - For the real sports statistician, the book is disappointing for its only brief section on players stats. ... Read more