Baseball

by Joel S. Franks (Author)

With the rise of stars such as Hideo Nomo, Ichiro Suzuki, and now Daisuke Matsuzaka, fans today can easily name players from the island country of Japan. Less widely known is that baseball has long been played on other Pacific islands, in pre-statehood Hawaii, for instance, and in Guam, Samoa and the Philippines. For the multiethnic peoples of these U.S. possessions, the learning of baseball was actively encouraged, some would argue as a means to an unabashedly colonialist end.

As early as the deadball era, Pacific Islanders competed against each other and against mainlanders on the diamond, with teams like the Hawaiian Travelers barnstorming the States, winning more than they lost against college, semi-pro, and even professional nines. For those who moved to the mainland, baseball eased the transition, helping Asian Pacific Americans create a sense of community and purpose, cross cultural borders, and--for a few--achieve fame.

Author Biography

Joel S. Franks is an emeritus Professor of Sociology and Interdisciplinary Social Sciences at San Jose State University, and has written several books on Asian American and Pacific Islander sport history. He lives in Washington DC.

by Kenneth M. Jennings (Author)

Impressively researched and well written, this valuable study by a business professor at the Universiy of North Florida. . . traces the erosion of the reserve clause and the rise of arbitration in salary disputes, examining the participants in negotiations--players, owners, managers, agents, even commissoners--and showing the stake each has in the money game. Many striking points are made, i.e., there is no discrimination in salaries of minority players and there is little relationship between pay and performance. Publishers Weekly

Author Biography

KENNETH M. JENNINGS is Professor of Industrial Relations at the University of North Florida. He has spent over twenty years in industrial relations as a practitioner, academic, consultant, and researcher and is the author of three other books.

by Robert K. Fitts (Author)

In November 1934 as the United States and Japan drifted toward war, a team of American League all-stars that included Babe Ruth, Lou Gehrig, Jimmie Foxx, future secret agent Moe Berg, and Connie Mack barnstormed across the Land of the Rising Sun. Hundreds of thousands of fans, many waving Japanese and American flags, welcomed the team with shouts of "Banzai! Banzai, Babe Ruth!" The all-stars stayed for a month, playing 18 games, spawning professional baseball in Japan, and spreading goodwill.
Politicians on both sides of the Pacific hoped that the amity generated by the tour--and the two nations' shared love of the game--could help heal their growing political differences. But the Babe and baseball could not overcome Japan's growing nationalism, as a bloody coup d'état by young army officers and an assassination attempt by the ultranationalist War Gods Society jeopardized the tour's success. A tale of international intrigue, espionage, attempted murder, and, of course, baseball, Banzai Babe Ruth is the first detailed account of the doomed attempt to reconcile the United States and Japan through the 1934 All American baseball tour. Robert K. Fitts provides a wonderful story about baseball, nationalism, and American and Japanese cultural history.

Author Biography

Robert K. Fitts graduated from the University of Pennsylvania and received a PhD from Brown University. Originally trained as an archeologist of colonial America, Fitts left that field to focus on his passion, Japanese baseball. He is also the author of Remembering Japanese Baseball: An Oral History of the Game and Wally Yonamine: The Man Who Changed Japanese Baseball (Nebraska, 2008).

by Michael Benson (Author)

What grandstand collapsed during a game, killing twelve? How high is the Green monster in Fenway? In what park was the outfield fence only 187 feet from home plate?

Ballparks of North America is a comprehensive encyclopedia of the grounds, yards and stadiums used for organized baseball from the invention of the sport in the 1840s to the year 1988. Entries, listed alphabetically by community, cover everything from cornfields to Yankee Stadium. Each entry gives the location of the park, who played there and when, home run dimensions, seating capacity, architectural comments, attendance records, and anecdotes. More than 100 photos and drawings are included, some rare.

Author Biography

Michael Benson is the author of more than 50 books on sports, film, crime and conspiracy. He lives in Brooklyn, New York.

by Allen Lamountain (Author)

by Nicholas R. W. Henning (Author)

The World Baseball Classic (WBC) is the sport's preeminent international tournament, and Australia has been part of it from the first WBC in 2006 to 2017. For decades, baseball fans have wondered who the number-one country in the world is, and until 2006, the answer was debatable because of the absence of the best professional players participating in earlier global contests. The chance to compete against giants of the game was an opportunity that the Aussies had long waited for, and on their day, they were capable of pushing any team. Baseball was by no means a mainstream sport in Australia, yet the Aussies played with passion and determination akin to some of the greatest countries on the planet. They always aimed to win, and even if the scoreboard said otherwise, the pride of the Australians and the respect they earned from more fancied opponents celebrated Australia as a legitimate baseball-playing country. In four tournament appearances, their efforts have defeated long odds, added numerous hard-fought games to their playing history, and built a culture of team camaraderie that few countries can rival. Firsthand recollections from players and a well-founded assessment of the team's campaigns by author Nicholas Henning provide exclusive insights to baseball's highest-calibre international event as it was experienced by the Australian team.

by Louis P. Masur (Author)

A suspenseful account of the glorious days more than a century ago when our national madness began, the first Major League Baseball World Series.

A post-season series of games to establish supremacy in the major leagues was not inevitable in the baseball world. But in 1903 the owner of the Pittsburgh Pirates (in the well-established National League) challenged the Boston Americans (in the upstart American League) to a play-off, which he was sure his team would win. They didn't--and that wasn't the only surprise during what became the first World Series. In Autumn Glory, Louis P. Masur tells the riveting story of two agonizing weeks in which the stars blew it, unknown players stole the show, hysterical fans got into the act, and umpires had to hold on for dear life.

Author Biography

Louis P. Masur, a professor of history at City College of New York and the editor of Reviews in American History, is the author of 1831: Year of Eclipse (H&W, 2001). He lives in New Jersey with his wife and children.

by J. B. Hogan (Author)

Step back in time to the summer of 1940, when professional baseball in Fayetteville, Arkansas met its untimely demise, leaving a void that has never been filled in the decades since. In this enchanting tapestry of history, the remarkable story of a nearly forgotten Class-D minor league unfolds before your eyes-an organization that holds the title of the "smallest league that ever functioned in organized baseball." With every turn of the page, a bittersweet nostalgia permeates the air, drawing you into the world of the Arkansas-Missouri League and the faded glory of the Fayetteville Angels. The raucous symphony of wood meeting horsehide, the exhilaration of triumphant cheers, and the heartwrenching cries of defeat. Each of these once vibrant sounds now exist as mere whispers, floating in the ethereal realm of forgotten history. Angels in the Ozarks brings a bygone era back to life, where dreams soared and the spirit of baseball thrived, forever leaving an indelible mark on the hearts of those who still remember.

by Robert Poll (Author)

STUDY OF HALL OF FAME BASEBALL SIGNATURES FIRST EDITION - 2011 THOUSANDS OF AUTHENTIC SIGNATURE IMAGES! BY FAR THE MOST COMPREHENSIVE SIGNATURE GUIDE ON THE MARKET! IF YOU BUY, SELL OR COLLECT BASEBALL SIGNATURES - YOU NEED THIS GUIDE! The information in this guide will pay for itself over and over! This guide is EXTREMELY in depth. There are 265 signature profiles of the 292 members of the hall. (27 we were not able to include to to extreme rarity, 2011 inductees Alomar and Blyleven were not included). Within each profile, we attempted to get any and all variations of a signature, some profiles will be 1 page, others will be 10 pages. This is the only place this material is available, I am the copyrighted owner. All of the signatures in this guide have been authenticated by JSA or PSA/DNA. HOW THIS GUIDE WILL HELP YOU: 1.) It will educate you on what authentic signatures look like. 2.) You can use this guide to compare autographs when thinking about purchasing a signature. 3.) You will save THOUSANDS of dollars by avoiding forgeries, Clubhouse and Secretarial signatures! 4.) Obscure signatures -there are tons of rare signatures that the common collect has simply never seen! 5.) Piece of Mind- You will feel more confident in your purchases and your collection will be that much better. Plus it's a great reference to have available - you never know what may come available for sale! Each profile will be broken down into the categories below. Some will have more or less detail depend on commonality or rarity of the athletes' signature. Common Signatures Signature Variations Inscriptions Handwriting Clubhouse Signatures Forgeries/Secretarial Signatures Notes Rarity Scale

by Jacques Garin (Author)

"Baby's First Baseball Book" is an engaging and visually stimulating black and white baby book designed to captivate the curiosity of young minds. This unique book is specifically crafted to introduce infants to the world of baseball through high contrast images, fostering early reading skills and visual development.

Featuring captivating illustrations in bold black and white, this book is meticulously designed to capture the attention of babies during their early stages of visual perception. The high contrast images of balls, bats and baseball-related objects provide a mesmerizing experience, encouraging babies to explore and observe the world around them.

As babies engage with the captivating visuals, they develop their cognitive skills, pattern recognition, and visual tracking abilities. This book's carefully chosen black and white images provide the perfect stimuli for their growing minds, stimulating their visual cortex and fostering neural connections.

by Little Press (Author)

Created for boys and girls who love baseball, with a wide variety of baseball themed activity sheets.Suitable for supporters of any team and specially designed for both boys and girls to enjoy.

★ Hours of fun baseball activities with coloring pages, puzzles, counting numbers, maze, matching letters, ABC's, dot-to-dots, tracing, and cool creative educational activities for kids.

★ Filled with cute baseball players

★ Single sided printing to prevent bleed through

★ Original and unique book with a wide variety of activities and perfect for baseball fans

★ For older kids ages 5 and up

★ Perfectly sized at 8.5" x 11".

★ Paperback with a glossy finish.

★ Perfect gifts for your little baseball fanatics!

by Jeff Silverman (Editor)

Before multimillion-dollar salaries, luxury boxes, and player strikes became synonymous with professional sports, there existed the belief in playing simply "for the love of the game." Nothing captures that spirit better than these twenty classic pieces about America's favorite pastime.
Collected here are the writings of Ring Lardner, Zane Grey, the Giants' immortal Christy Mathewson, Grover Cleveland Alexander, Finley Peter Dunne (who for a time was America's most popular humorist after Mark Twain), Burt Standish (creator of that all-American hero, Frank Merriwell), and many more. Baseball's golden era may have long since passed, but in the pages of At the Old Ballgame, you can still sit in the bleachers for a nickel.

Back Jacket

Before multimillion-dollar salaries, luxury boxes, and player strikes there existed the belief in playing simply for the love of the game. Nothing captures that spirit better than these twenty-two classic pieces about America's favorite pastime.Collected here are the writings of such greats as Ring Lardner, Zane Grey, the Giants' immortal Christy Mathewson, Grover Cleveland Alexander, Finley Peter Dunne, Burt Standish, and many more. Baseball's golden era may have long since passed, but in the pages of At the Old Ballgame, you can still sit in the bleachers for a nickel.

Author Biography

Jeff Silverman, a former columnist for the Los Angeles Herald Examiner, has written for The New York Times, the Los Angeles Times, and several national magazines. He is also editor of The Greatest Baseball Stories Ever Told, Lardner on Baseball, The Greatest Golf Stories Ever Told, Classic Golf Stories, Bernard Darwin on Golf, and The Greatest Boxing Stories Ever Told.

by Curveball Velocity Books (Author)

This baseball activity book contains plenty of puzzles and activities to keep your child occupied.

Here are the things you will find- word scrambles, crossword puzzles, Kakuro, a Dot-to-Dot puzzle, mazes, sudoku and more. The book is suitable for kids from Grade 2 and over, or those over 5 years old with parental supervision.

Instructions and answers are provided. If your child struggles with the activities, don't fret- all he/ she needs is a little guidance from you.

This activity book is a suitable gift for your child, nephews, nieces and friends' kids- especially those who are sports fans. Get this for their birthday, special occasions or just whenever you feel like giving a themed present!

by Rob Kasper (Author), Boog Powell (Author), Jim Burger (Photographer)

Since he started smacking long balls for the Baltimore Orioles, John "Boog" Powell has enjoyed the gustatory delights of his adopted hometown. A four-time All-Star and a fixture in two World Series, Boog also knows how to make one heck of a pit beef sandwich. Backyard barbecues at Boog's Baltimore row house were once a post-game tradition for the team. After hanging up his spikes, the former MVP set up his now iconic barbecue operation at Camden Yards. Baltimore author Rob Kasper takes a behind-the-scenes look at the life of this smoky slugger from his Florida boyhood through his rise to major-league glory and beyond. Told in Boog's colorful style, this rollicking journey is spiced with recipes and topped off with interviews from former teammates like Brooks Robinson, Frank Robinson and Jim Palmer.

by Allen Lamountain (Author)

by Julia Rose Chin (Author), Julia Rose Chin (Illustrator), Carlton Chin (Author)

This "Teach to Fish" book introduces concepts of math & baseball to share interesting baseball lore & history, teach math - and develop ratings of all-time great teams & batters. The authors devise games, including a baseball simulation game in the style of Strat-O-Matic & APBA Baseball - complete in this book. The book's foreword, by William Keat, PhD, professor at Union College on Carlton Chin: "The predictive power of mathematics ... along with his joy of competition, underpins his unique professional journey from predicting material behavior as an engineering student at MIT, predicting human behavior as ... nationally known financial analyst, to predicting athletic performance as author and contributor to the New York Times." "An athlete is his own right, numbers and statistics are Carlton's means to a greater understanding of the sports he loves. In my own experience as a teacher of engineering, I know that the converse is also true, that sports can be used to inspire a greater understanding of science and mathematics." Cover illustration: Julia Chin's rendition of Elysian Fields in Hoboken, NJ, the birthplace of organized baseball in the 1840s.

Author Biography

Carlton Chin has been a lifelong Mets fan and has always enjoyed creating sports power ratings. Baseball helped to feed Carlton's love for math, probability, and statistics over the years. Today, he is a quantitatively driven researcher and fund manager specializing in alternative investment strategies. Carlton is a CFA (Chartered Financial Analyst) and holds both undergraduate and graduate degrees from M.I.T. Carlton is also the co-author of "Who Will Win the Big Game? A Psychological & Mathematical Approach" - and has been quoted in the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, SeekingAlpha, and other industry publications.

by David Quentin Voigt (Author)

Organized baseball from the establishment of the National Commission in 1903 to the period of national expansion in the 1950s and 1960s--buffeted by the winds of two world wars and a Great Depression--is chronicled here in colorful detail.

The glories of the Silver Age--Ty Cobb's record-setting, Ed Walsh's pitching innovations, Tinker-to-Evers-to-Chance fielding orchestration--might have been eclipsed by World War I and the 1919 "Black Sox" scandal. Instead, the Roaring Twenties boomed for baseball as well as the stock market. Baseball stars like Babe Ruth rivaled movie stars like Valentino, and baseball managers like Barrow, McGraw, and Mack were as famous as Hollywood directors like DeMille.

Professional baseball weathered the Depression and World War II, partly thanks to the introduction of night games. Electronic communication, first radio and then television, hurt the already crippled minor leagues but helped the majors. The electronic media also magnified the impact of stardom, both in its rewards and in its psychic costs. Branch Rickey was a step ahead of the civil rights movement when he signed Jackie Robinson in 1946, starting a quick influx of black and Hispanic players.

Desegregation brought some strains, as author Voigt recounts, but fewer than did the advent of successful unionization. Growing pains resulted from rapid league expansion into the burgeoning cities of the Far West and South.

Constantly accelerating social and economic change, characteristic of the United States in the 20th century, is mirrored in the history of its National Pastime.

Author Biography

David Quentin Voigt has written five books on baseball history, plus American's Leisure Revolution on the sociology of leisure and sport. After earning an M.A. in American history at Columbia and a Ph.D. in social science at Syracuse, Dr. Voigt returned to his hometown of Reading, PA, as Professor of Sociology and Anthropology at Albright College.

by Mark Lefebvre (Author)

This is a story about a place in time. The place was Leominster, Massachusetts. The time was the early 1970's. 1971-1973 to be precise. This is a story about baseball. Pick-up baseball. Little League baseball. Babe Ruth baseball. And eventually high school and American Legion baseball. But most importantly, this story is about community.

by Matthew a. Werner (Author)

This is the story of a farm boy whose reality exceeded his wildest dreams. Glen Rosenbaum grew up on an Indiana farm on a dirt road in the 1950s. After graduating high school, he expected to be a farmer or a factory worker. While pitching a Sunday beer league baseball game at age 18, the umpire asked if he could call a friend to watch Glen play. The friend scouted for the Chicago White Sox and that conversation led to a 42 year career in Major League Baseball.
A White Sox Life explores Glen's journey from playing catch in the barnyard, learning to throw a curve ball, his first try-out at Comiskey Park, his hiatus from baseball, and the amazing people he worked with over the years. This is the story of Glen Rosenbaum's remarkable baseball life.
Check out the author's other books: Season of Upsets: Farm boys, city kids, Hoosier basketball and the dawn of the 1950s and How Sweet It Is: the 1966 Elston Red Devils.

by Lynn Bluege-Rust (Author), Wilor Bluege (Author)

Ossie Bluege spent eighteen years in the major leagues playing for the Washington Senators. The owner of the team, Clark Griffith, called him "the greatest third baseman of all time" because of his lightning quick reflexes and nothing short of miraculous play handling ability. His exceptional hands and range of movement secured him the "hot corner" around third base. Keen eyesight and intuition gave him a uncanny ability to anticipate the play. The speed of his reflexes, agility, and the accuracy of his arm enabled him to execute plays that no one else could touch. Such skill was sometimes underappreciated by the casual fan, because Bluege made 'impossible' plays look deceptively easy. Luke Sewell quipped, "I can tell you the two greatest infielders of my time... and there he is [pointing to Ossie] ... over there hitting fungoes... He played shortstop and third base at the same time." He played on three pennant winning teams and in three World Series (1924, 1925, and 1933). He played on the 1924 World Series Championship team that beat the New York Yankees in 1924. In 1935, he played on the American League All Star Team.From sandlot baseball, to the big leagues, to the front office of one of the longest enduring family franchises in baseball history, this is the story of a lifelong journey in baseball - a journey that covered an amazing 50 years with the Washington Senators and Minnesota Twins.

by T. J. Lewis (Author)

The tale of a man who made a lifetime contribution to the all American game. How he touched the lives of thousands of young men and friends in their words and memories from high school baseball through the major leagues.The Biography of my dad, Joe "Skippy" Lewis. Interviews with Johnny Pesky, Alan Trammell, Mark "The Bird" Fidrych and More!!!!

by Mark A. Stein (Author)

A League of His Own tells the remarkable story of A.G. Spalding--the pitcher, mogul, and visionary who shaped baseball and the sporting goods empire.

Author Biography

Mark Stein has worked for more than three decades as a reporter and editor at The New York Times, Los Angeles Times, and Bloomberg News, specializing in long-form feature and investigative articles. He shared a 1993 Pulitzer Prize for reporting about 1992 riots in Los Angeles, and then cowrote a book, Understanding the Riots: Los Angeles Before and After the Rodney King Case. He also worked with Anthony Bianco on his 1996 book The Bully of Bentonville: How the High Cost of Wal-Mart's Everyday Low Prices Is Hurting America. Mark was raised in Santa Barbara, California, and has lived in Los Angeles, San Francisco, and London. He currently lives near New York City with his wife and sons.

by Ralph Branca (Author), David Ritz (With)

Ralph Branca is best known for throwing the pitch that resulted in Bobby Thomson's "Shot Heard 'Round the World," the historic home run that capped an incredible comeback and won the pennant for the New York Giants in 1951. Branca was on the losing end of what many consider to be baseball's most thrilling moment, but that notoriety belies a profoundly successful life and career.

Author Biography

Ralph Branca was born in 1926 in Mount Vernon, New York. He was 18 years old when he signed his professional contract with the Brooklyn Dodgers. In 1947, Branca won 21 games and lost 12 with an ERA of 2.67. He appeared in three All-Star games, and was the starting pitcher in the 1947 All-Star Game at the age of 21. Branca made two post-Season Appearances in the 1947 and 1949 World Series. He played professional baseball for twelve seasons, from 1944 to 1956, during which he won 88 games and lost 68, with a career ERA is 3.79 in 1,484 innings pitched. Branca, still active as a Chartered Life Underwriter, is a successful businessman living in Rye, New York, with his wife Ann.

by Joel R. Pace (Author)

"Youngster's Guidebook of How to Play Baseball" 2nd Edition. Clean fonts and simple language for young readers. Good 'how to' book for young new baseball players.
Includes essential Baseball Fundamentals in simple ABC methodology: Hitting, Throwing, Catching, Pitching, Fielding, Diving & Sliding, as well as basics of Baseball: Concepts & Diagrams - Position Awareness, Relays & Coverage - Situational Awareness & Where to Make the Play - Best Approach to the Game - Coach's Notes on a Winning Mindset - Baseball Terms with Wordsearch & Crossword games.

Author Biography

Joel Pace played baseball through college as a pitcher and 3rd baseman. He currently sits as President of the board for his local charter of Little League and has coaches his children's baseball and basketball teams. He lives in Cayucos, California on the Central Coast with his wife and two children.

by Gary Bedingfield (Author)

During the summer of 1940, in contrast to the downwardly spiraling political relationship between Japan and the United States, the Keio University baseball team traveled from Tokyo to the Hawaiian Islands. Aloha and Sayonara tells the story of the last Japanese baseball team to visit the Hawaiian Islands - a tradition that dated back to 1908 - before the infamous attack on Pearl Harbor. With game-by-game, and almost day-by-day coverage, this is a never-before-told insight into the lives of 15 young Japanese college students who came to play baseball, the game they loved, and were soon to be in deadly conflict with their new-found friends. Aloha and Sayonara explores their early years, their time in Hawaii and then follows the young players' journey back to Japan. For some, the journey continues to post-war professional baseball. For others it ends on the battlefields of the Pacific islands. Brought to you by the author of Baseball in Hawaii During World War II and a recognized expert on World War II baseball for over 25 years, this is the first complete account of the 1940 Keio University baseball tour of Hawaii. Featuring photographs that haven't been seen for over 80 years, Aloha and Sayonara takes you back to the summer of 1940, when baseball was the number one game in town.

by Gary J. Gray (Author)

In 1960, a ten-year old boy in Levittown is exhilarated by his hometown heroes--an All Star youth baseball team--as they win 13 consecutive games to become the world champions of Little League baseball. From the distance of more than half a century, Gary Gray relives that idyllic summer and captures the community spirit that propelled the team to the Little League World Series. He recounts the optimism that suffused the instant suburb of Levittown, where young war veterans could afford to buy homes for their families. And he considers how the trajectory of his own life was set by the "Levittown Legacy" of hard work, hope, and confidence exemplified by a talented team of 11- and 12-year old boys.

by Leslie Roberts (Author)

This book walks readers through the experience of going to a major league ball game, describing what the reader will see, hear, and smell, as well as a kid-friendly description of the action on the field. This is coupled with photographs of major league stadiums with an interesting fact about that stadium and an outline map of the U.S. with an arrow pointing to its location. This book aims to show kids- and remind their parents- what fun a trip to the ballpark can be!

About the Author

When Leslie Roberts was very young, she remembers walking home from school and finding her mother watching the Brooklyn Dodgers play in the World Series. She became a lifelong fan of all levels of baseball. Her three sons and their wives organized her 50th wedding anniversary celebrationat a Triple-A baseball game--and she threw out the first pitch!Roberts spent over 30 years as a teacher and a principal and still volunteers regularly as a reading tutor in two local schools.

by Spike Carlsen (Author)

A Splintered History of Wood is a passionate and personal exploration of nature's greatest gift: wood. In the successful tradition of books such as Salt and Cod, writer and carpenter Spike Carlsen explores the history, versatility, and special appeal of something we use everyday--but take for granted--in this comprehensive and dynamic history of wood's global impact and its personal significance to people in all walks of life.

Front Jacket

In a world without wood, we might not be here at all. We wouldn't have had the fire, heat, and shelter that allowed us to expand into the planet's colder regions. If civilization somehow did develop, our daily lives would be vastly different: there would be no violins, baseball bats, chopsticks, or wine corks. The book you are now holding wouldn't exist.

Spike Carlsen's A Splintered History of Wood is a grand celebration of all things wooden and the characters who lovingly shape them--eccentric artisans and passionate enthusiasts who have created some of the world's most beloved musical instruments, feared weapons, dazzling architecture, and bizarre forms of transportation. From champion chainsaw carvers to blind woodworkers, from the Miraculous Staircase to the Lindbergh kidnapping case, here is a passionate, personal, amazingly entertaining exploration of nature's greatest gift.

Back Jacket

In a world without wood, we might not be here at all. We wouldn't have had the fire, heat, and shelter that allowed us to expand into the planet's colder regions. If civilization somehow did develop, our daily lives would be vastly different: there would be no violins, baseball bats, chopsticks, or wine corks. The book you are now holding wouldn't exist.

Spike Carlsen's A Splintered History of Wood is a grand celebration of all things wooden and the characters who lovingly shape them--eccentric artisans and passionate enthusiasts who have created some of the world's most beloved musical instruments, feared weapons, dazzling architecture, and bizarre forms of transportation. From champion chainsaw carvers to blind woodworkers, from the Miraculous Staircase to the Lindbergh kidnapping case, here is a passionate, personal, amazingly entertaining exploration of nature's greatest gift.

by Robert E. Murphy (Author)

By the mid-1950s, New York had been the unrivaled capital of America's national pastime for a century, a place where baseball was followed with truly fanatical fervor. The city's three teams--the New York Yankees, the New York Giants, and the Brooklyn Dodgers--had over the previous decade rewarded their fans' devotion with stellar performances: from 1947 to 1957, one or more of these teams had played in the World Series every year but one. Yet on opening day 1958, the Giants and the Dodgers were gone. Their owners, Walter O'Malley and Horace Stoneham, had ripped them away from their longtime home and from the hearts of millions of devoted and passionate fans and taken the teams to California.

How did it happen? Who was to blame?

The relocation of the Giants and the Dodgers, an event that transcended sports and altered the landscape of New York City, has never been addressed with the depth, detail, and insight offered here by Robert E. Murphy. As informed as it is entertaining, After Many a Summer is rich in baseball lore, civic history, and the wheeling and dealing, alliances and betrayals, and sharp-elbowed machinations of big-city business and politics.

Author Biography

Robert E. Murphy lives in Brooklyn, New York. He has been a senior writer for The New York Times Guide to Essential Knowledge, and his books have focused on New York City history. His articles have appeared in the Village Voice, the New York Times, Brooklyn Magazine, and Travel & Leisure, among other publications.

by Mickey Mantle (Author)

To everyone who truly loves the game, Mickey Mantle epitomizes the golden age of baseball, when the mighty New York Yankees indisputably ruled, appearing in an unprecedented twelve World Series in fourteen years. In this intimate memoir, Mantle recounts the joys and trials of his rise from rural Oklahoma youngster to the pinnacle of baseball greatness.

In All My Octobers, the one and only Mick relives every one of his World Series appearances--from the 1951 battle when he played alongside an aging Joe DiMaggio to his three-home-run performance in the 1964 showdown. In addition to the on-field heroics, Mantle talks candidly about the injuries, the alcohol, the parties and celebrations, and the terrible toll they can take on a young athlete's life. But most of all, it is a remembrance of October greatness, of postseason pyrotechnics . . . and a loving appreciation of a team of titans that achieved something marvelous and unequaled to this day.

Back Jacket

To everyone who truly loves the game, Mickey Mantle epitomizes the golden age of baseball, when the mighty New York Yankees indisputably ruled, appearing in an unprecedented twelve World Series in fourteen years! In this intimate memoir, Mantle recounts the joys and trials of his rise from rural Oklahoma youngster to the pinnacle of baseball greatness.

In All My Octobers, the one and only Mick relives every one of his World Series appearances -- from the 1951 battle when he played alongside an aging Joe DiMaggio to his three-home-run performance in the 1964 showdown. In addition to the on-field heroics, Mantle talks candidly about the injuries, the alcohol, the parties and celebrations, and the terrible toll they can take on a young athlete's life. But most of all, it is a remembrance of October greatness, of postseason pyrotechnics . . . and a loving appreciation of a team of titans that achieved something marvelous and unequaled to this day.

by Patricia I. Brown (Author)

Growing up, Pat Brown had two dreams: to play baseball and to attend college. She was told she couldn't play baseball because she was a girl and couldn't attend college because she had no money, but in spite of the obstacles, she achieved both of these dreams, playing for the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League in 1950 and 1951 and going on to attend college. She is among the few women professional baseball players to be included into the National Baseball Hall of Fame.

"As the only former AAGPBL player to have written about the League," Brown says, "I feel like I have finally pitched my no hit game." This is a memoir of playing baseball on the sandlot, discovering and playing in the AAGPBL, and playing basketball in college. Brown shares her thoughts on the League's history, including what Philip K. Wrigley sought to do by creating the AAGPBL, what happened after Wrigley left to give more attention to the Chicago Cubs, and why the League ended. She also considers the future for women's professional baseball.

Interviews with such former AAGPBL players as Helen Hannah Campbell, Patricia "Pat" Courtney, Madeline "Maddy" English, Lenora "Smokey" Mandella, Jacqueline "Jackie" Matson, Jane Moffet, Mary "Sis" Moore, and Janet "Pee Wee" Wiley are included.

Author Biography

The late Patricia I. Brown was a retired lawyer and associate law librarian at Suffolk University Law Library. She is included in the National Baseball Hall of Fame.

by James A. Vlasich (Author)

The origins of baseball are controversial. James A. Vlasich discusses the debates between two men intimately involved in nineteenth-century baseball, Henry Chadwick and Albert G. Spalding. Abner Graves of the Mills Commission claimed that Abner Doubleday had invented the game and he had done it in Cooperstown, New York. This claim was scrutinized at the time but the myth became etched into baseball history.
Through the years, however, some critics have questioned the Mills Commission report. The problem is that the Baseball Hall of Fame is built on this shaky foundation. The lack of diligence on the part of Spalding's self-appointed committee has led to a credibility gap for the baseball shrine that continues a half century after its dedication. Indeed, the story of the building of the Baseball Hall of Fame is filled with intrigue worthy of a political thriller.

by Gary D'Amato (Author), Paul J. Hoffman (Editor)

Acclaimed sportswriter Gary D'Amato provides a hilarious look at what it was like growing up as a boy in middle class middle America in the 1960s.A three-time Wisconsin sportswriter of the year and member of the Wisconsin State Golf Hall of Fame, D'Amato's ninth book takes us to his roots in suburban Milwaukee as he provides insight into several of his childhood triumphs and traumas, many of which we all can relate to.D'Amato's adventures include such events as: -The time he met a real, live member of The Beatles.-Playing an awkward game of "Spin the Bottle" at his birthday party.-His pet gerbil, Frisky, taking a ride in a homemade rocket.-The most embarrassing moment of his life, which occurred during eighth-grade gym class.-His one and only deer hunting experience.-The guilt and shame of being a fifth-grade thief.-A death-defying scooter ride with his "motorcycle gang."Whatever topic he's writing about, D'Amato employs an easy-to-digest style that he honed through more than 40 years as a sports journalist that informs and entertains as readers gobble up the nostalgic look back to a time before smart phones, VCRs, and cable television.D'Amato has authored or co-authored eight other books, including Mudbaths and Bloodbaths: The Inside Story of the Bears-Packers Rivalry with Cliff Cristl, Alive and Kicking: My Journey Through Football, Addiction and Life with Chester Marcol, and two books on golf.A Perfect Childhood is a series of superbly told coming-of-age stories that will entertain fans of not only the 1960s and nostalgia, but also anyone interested in all the typical experiences of childhood (i.e., trying to fit in, learning to accept responsibility, trying to make our parents proud). Gary D'Amato is an expert in all these topics, and he also is an expert in making his personal experiences of them relatable to readers. You'll cheer his successes and mourn his failures, while recalling your own in a similar light.

by Gary Graf (Author), Jack Zehrt (Photographer)

This book manages to be entertaining and educational, as well as fanciful and inspirational. It draws from the lives of Jesus Christ and Yogi Berra, Joseph of Nazareth and Joe DiMaggio, Moses and Hank Aaron, Saint Peter and Jackie Robinson. And God Said, "Play Ball!" makes the Bible more approachable by relating it to a game loved by both children and adults. It shows that baseball is not only a game, but a never-ending series of lessons about life, as well. And God Said, "Play Ball!" will appeal to Christian Athletes of any denomination.

PDF Samples

• Selected Excerpts

by Patrick Renna (Author), Tommy Parker (Illustrator)

From The Sandlot actor and die-hard baseball fan Patrick Renna comes practical advice full of wit and humor about baseball (and life)--complete with a customizable dedication page for a very special slugger.

Author Biography

Patrick Renna is an actor perhaps best known for his role as Hamilton "Ham" Porter in the 1993 feel-good movie The Sandlot. He is the cofounder of the Hambino Foundation, which supports youth sports organizations in underserved communities throughout the United States. In 2022, he launched Hambino Athletics, a sportswear clothing brand inspired by the character.

by William E. Akin (Author)

In the wake of the 1919 White Sox scandal and the suspension for life of eight players, baseball saw a precipitous decline in popularity, especially among America's youth. To combat this, a group of World War I veterans who were members of the newly formed American Legion created an organization to promote teenage interest in baseball. Led by John L. Griffith, who became the first commissioner of the Big Ten Conference, the Legion undertook the revival of baseball. In the 1920s and through the Great Depression and World War II, Legion baseball grew steadily. By 1950 it had become the principal training ground for major league players, boasting at its peak more than 16,000 teams across the country. Tracing the long history of this uniquely American institution, this work details each year's American Legion World Series and the ups and downs of participation over nearly a century.

Author Biography

William E. Akin is a professor emeritus of history from Ursinus College. His articles have appeared in The Historian, American Quarterly and American Historical Review. He lives in Collegeville, Pennsylvania.

by James Buckley Jr (Author)

Officially licensed with the National Baseball Hall of Fame, A Kids' Guide to the National Baseball Hall of Fame is the young reader's guide to all things baseball.

• Over 200 profiles of Hall of Fame members, organized alphabetically and including players across positions, managers, umpires, commissioners, executives, and broadcasters
• A complete list of the 346 Hall of Famers through the Class of 2024
• Exciting images of each inductee in the Hall of Fame
• Fact boxes highlighting major events and important milestones in baseball history

Author Biography

James Buckley Jr. has been writing sports books for adults and young readers for more than 25 years after working for Sports Illustrated and NFL Publishing. Among his most popular titles are National Baseball Hall of Fame Collection, America's Classic Ballparks, Ballpark Bucket List, Perfect: The Story of Baseball's Perfect Games, Unhittable, Eyewitness Baseball, The Visual Dictionary of Baseball, and Obsessed with Baseball. He is the author of more than 20 sports biographies for young readers, including the graphic nonfiction title Babe Ruth: Baseball's All-Time Best. His company, Shoreline Publishing Group, produces dozens of books each year for major publishers including Penguin, Scholastic, DK, National Geographic Kids, Simon & Schuster/Aladdin, and many others.

by Leslie Roberts (Author)

This book walks readers through the experience of going to a major league ball game, describing what the reader will see, hear, and smell, as well as a kid-friendly description of the action on the field. This is coupled with photographs of major league stadiums with an interesting fact about that stadium and an outline map of the U.S. with an arrow pointing to its location. This book aims to show kids- and remind their parents- what fun a trip to the ballpark can be!

About the Author

When Leslie Roberts was very young, she remembers walking home from school and finding her mother watching the Brooklyn Dodgers play in the World Series. She became a lifelong fan of all levels of baseball. Her three sons and their wives organized her 50th wedding anniversary celebration

at a Triple-A baseball game--and she threw out the first pitch!

Roberts spent over 30 years as a teacher and a principal and still volunteers regularly as a reading tutor in two local schools.

by David Quentin Voigt (Author)

The National Pastime has made big news and big money since its Silver Age (1900-1920), but what old-timer would have dreamed of TV networks bidding tens of millions for camera time, of baseballers getting paid like movie stars, or of all concerned--players, managers, owners, even umpires--having their lives exposed in intimate detail by keyhole journalists? So far the great American game has survived media hype, as this book shows, with the same vitality that brought it through the doldrums of World Wars I and II and the Great Depression and that withstood the shocks of racial integration and union organization. Voigt's overview of American baseball at mid-century shows both major and minor league attendance reaching peaks in 1950, then declining under competition from pro football, basketball, and hockey. Although the minors have steadily lost ground, the majors have held on to profitable turf thanks to westward expansion, night games, TV franchises, and new sources of talent. Black players numbered 100 by 1960 after Jackie Robinson broke the color barrier in 1947, while Hispanic baseballers from the Caribbean and Central America became almost as numerous. About half the big leaguers now hail from university and college teams, and platoons of scouts spot the best talent in high schools and on sandlots. Many of the post-World War II players have become baseball stars, and many have become media superstars.

New owners took charge in the expansion era, men described by the author as "individualistic, competitive, and mercenary--qualities sometimes gentled by altruism." Walter O'Malley of the Dodgers is presented as a representative expansionist, a "throwback to the robber barons," a glory-seeker intent on erasing Branch Rickey's fame, and yet a modern Barnum devoted to giving fans their money's worth. A showdown between owners of this stripe and the players' hard-bargaining Marvin Miller seemed a no-win game for the fans.

Yet, as America enters the 1980s, this book reports, its "vast enthusiasm for major league baseball remains awesome." Despite the modern world's threats to the stability of the National Pastime, the diamond's mythic power justifies cautious optimism.

Author Biography

David Quentin Voigt has written five books on baseball history, plus America's Leisure Revolution on the sociology of leisure and sport. After earning an M.A. in American History at Columbia and a Ph.D. in Social Science at Syracuse, Dr. Voigt returned to his hometown of Reading, PA, as Professor of Sociology and Anthropology at Albright College.

by Larry Ruttman (Author), Martin Abramowitz (Introduction by), Allan H. Selig (Foreword by)

Most fans don't know how far the Jewish presence in baseball extends beyond a few famous players such as Greenberg, Rosen, Koufax, Holtzman, Green, Ausmus, Youkilis, Braun, and Kinsler. In fact, that presence extends to the baseball commissioner Bud Selig, labor leaders Marvin Miller and Don Fehr, owners Jerry Reinsdorf and Stuart Sternberg, officials Theo Epstein and Mark Shapiro, sportswriters Murray Chass, Ross Newhan, Ira Berkow, and Roger Kahn, and even famous Jewish baseball fans like Alan Dershowitz and Barney Frank.

The life stories of these and many others, on and off the field, have been compiled from nearly fifty in-depth interviews and arranged by decade in this edifying and entertaining work of oral and cultural history. In American Jews and America's Game each person talks about growing up Jewish and dealing with Jewish identity, assimilation, intermarriage, future viability, religious observance, anti-Semitism, and Israel. Each tells about being in the midst of the colorful pantheon of players who, over the past seventy-five years or more, have made baseball what it is. Their stories tell, as no previous book has, the history of the larger-than-life role of Jews in America's pastime.

Author Biography

Larry Ruttman, a Fellow of the Massachusetts Historical Society, is the author of Voices of Brookline. He has practiced law in Boston for more than fifty years and produces and hosts a television interview show in his hometown of Brookline, Massachusetts.

by Michael A. Connelly (Author)

CPA Kevin "Rocky" Collins needs his formidable sense of humor more than ever. He's still reeling from the sudden death of his charismatic but demanding and disappointed father, and his caustic wit and quirky Boston Irish personality have cost him his job. They've also sparked dangerous run-ins with a huge Mafia hit man and a biker strongman, and fostered a decided lack of way with women.

Fortunately, Rocky's old friends from the neighborhood-a power-lifting bouncer, an alcoholic Vietnam vet and aspiring author, a struggling gym owner, a philandering salesman, a disappointed ex-professional baseball player, and one pain-in-the-butt, got-it-together business superstar-are as supportive as always as Rocky gains rejuvenation in the gym, on the ball field, and at the bar. But he finds his greatest comfort at a near-palatial summer house on Cape Cod, where there's a wild, summer-long party going on.

To find his own happiness, Rocky knows that he needs maturity, empathy, and perspective. Throw in a new job and a good woman, and he'll be all set. But getting to that point might be the most difficult challenge of all.

An Informal Boston Education humorously explores the Boston singles scene in the seventies, male bonding, the difficult relationship between fathers and sons, and life's endless trade-offs and transitions.

by Felipe Alou (Author), Peter Kerasotis (Author), Pedro Martínez (Foreword by)

Growing up in a tiny shack in the Dominican Republic, Felipe Alou never dreamed he would be the first man born and raised in his country to play and manage in Major League Baseball--and also the first to play in the World Series.

Author Biography

Felipe Alou serves as special assistant to the general manager for the San Francisco Giants. He is an inductee in both the Canadian and the Latino Baseball Hall of Fame and lives with his wife, Lucie, in Boynton Beach, Florida. Peter Kerasotis is an author and journalist who has won ten Associated Press Sports Editor awards, six Football Writers Association of America awards, and seven Florida Sports Writers Association awards. Pedro Martínez is a Hall of Fame pitcher who, like Felipe Alou, is a native of the Dominican Republic. Bruce Bochy is a former Major League Baseball player who managed the Padres for twelve seasons and most recently managed the San Francisco Giants for thirteen seasons, during which he led the Giants to three World Series championships.

by Sue Macy (Author)

Sue Macy presents an engrossing and deeply researched account of women's baseball in A Whole New Ball Game: The Story of the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League.

"Play ball!" yelled the umpires as the teams of the AAGPBL took the field in the tense, war-torn days of 1943. Like all professional baseball players, these athletes scrambled to their positions, tossed balls across diamonds, and filled the air with chatter. But there was something different about them--they all wore skirts, went to charm school, and continually had to answer one question: "What is a woman doing playing baseball?"

Author Biography

Sue Macy, author of A Whole New Ball Game, is a lifelong baseball fan who has written close to 20 award-winning books about sports and women's history. Her book, Wheels of Change: How Women Rode the Bicycle to Freedom (With a Few Flat Tires Along the Way), was a finalist for YALSA's Excellence in Nonfiction for Young Adults award. She lives in Englewood, NJ, and can be reached through her website, suemacy.com.

by Monica Nucciarone (Author), John Thorn (Foreword by)

Alexander Joy Cartwright Jr. (1820-92) was present during the organization of the Knickerbocker Base Ball Club of New York in the mid-1800s. That much is certain. Since that time, Cartwright has been celebrated as the founder of our national pastime, much like Abner Doubleday. As with Doubleday, however, Cartwright's claim to fame has also spawned all sorts of conjecture and controversy. His complex life, not just the mythography surrounding him, comes clearly into focus in Monica Nucciarone's biography of the incomparable Cartwright.
Nucciarone traces Cartwright's path from Elysian Fields in New Jersey to a gold-rush adventure in California, and on to Honolulu, where he became involved in the movement to annex Hawaii to the United States. Beginning with the widely held notion that Cartwright created the game of baseball as we know it today, then spread it across North America to Hawaii like a Johnny Appleseed, Nucciarone's book separates fact from speculation. Although the picture that emerges may not be the Alexander Cartwright of legend, it shows us a man as colorful, complicated, and immense in character as any legend he inspired.

Author Biography

Monica Nucciarone is a professor and faculty counselor advisor at Pierce College Fort Steilacoom in Washington and teaches part-time in the field of social sciences and career development. John Thorn is the official historian for Major League Baseball.

by Steven Travers (Author)

Nineteen sixty-two--it's been called "the end of innocence," as America witnessed the Cuban Missile Crisis and the following year saw the Kennedy assassination and the early stirrings of Vietnam.In baseball, 1962 was a thrilling season. Five years prior the Brooklyn Dodgers and New York Giants had migrated west to Los Angeles and San Francisco, respectively, leaving New York to the Yankees. In 1962, those same Giants and Dodgers faced off to see who would advance to the World Series. Waiting to do battle were the Yankees, who were also battling for allegiance in New York with the Mets' debut. The old Subway Series had gone cross-country.Just as it was the end of innocence, it was an end of an era for the Yankees. Winners of eleven World Series titles in twenty years, they would go fifteen years-- a record for the modern-era Bombers at the time--until their next championship. They appeared in the next two World Series, but by the end of the decade it was those upstart Mets amazin' fans. The Dodgers would break through the following year and again in 1965 while the Giants--convinced they'd be back many times-- have yet to win a title on the West Coast. Mickey Mantle and Whitey Ford, Willie Mays and Willie McCovey, Sandy Koufax and Don Drysdale, Casey Stengel. Steven Travers details Hollywood's adoration of the Dodgers, San Francisco's battle between inferiority and superiority, and New York, rulers of sport and society, experiencing the beginnings of a changing of the guard. Three cities, five teams, and one great year are all here in A Tale of Three Cities.

by Burke Masters (Author), Mike Sweeney (Foreword by)

Burke Masters had the perfect game plan for his life: he was going to become a Major League Baseball player. As a star infielder for Mississippi State with a game-winning grand slam to help his team reach the College World Series, he was well on his way to the career of his dreams. But little did he know that his life-changing call would not be from a recruiter to join the Major Leagues--it would be from God to become a priest.

In this page-turning memoir, Fr. Burke takes readers on an intimate personal journey--from his childhood outside of Chicago, to his success in baseball, to his conversion to Catholicism, and finally, to his acceptance of his vocation. Amid severe doubt and personal loss, he learned to embrace his fundamental identity--not as an athlete, but as a beloved son of God and a spiritual father to God's people. Fr. Burke's story is a powerful reminder that God's plan for us is so much greater than our own; that it fulfills our dreams in ways greater than we could have imagined; and that if we only have the courage to say yes, every moment is an opportunity for a grand slam for God.

Author Biography

Fr. Burke Masters was born and raised in Joliet, Illinois. He became Catholic his senior year in high school. He played college baseball at Mississippi State University, where he played in the College World Series. He was ordained in 2002. He is currently a pastor at a large parish in the Chicago area. He travels widely, speaking to tens of thousands of people, sharing his story, and inspiring them to hear God's call in their own lives.

by Mike Shannon (Author)

An anthology of nine touching and funny stories by the editor of Spitball Magazine, and author of 16 baseball books. The book is filled with characters from all walks of life, all of whom are gripped, one way or another, by the force of that feeling so many of us have for baseball. Among the book's characters are a lottery winner whose dream of owning a baseball team turns into a nightmare; a lonely man who has a blind date among the Bleacher Bums at Wrigley Field; and appearances by Satchel Paige, Jackie Robinson, and the spirit of Pete Rose.

Author Biography

Mike Shannon is the co-founder and current Editor-in-Chief of Spitball, the Literary Baseball Magazine, now in its 34th year of publication. He is the author of sixteen baseball books, including Diamond Classics: Essays on 100 of the Best Baseball Books Ever Published; Baseball: the Writers' Game; Tales From The Dugout: The Greatest True Baseball Stories Ever Told; Tales From The Ballpark: More of the Greatest True Baseball Stories Ever Told; Riverfront Stadium: Home of the Big Red Machine; Everything Happens in Chillicothe: A Summer in the Frontier League with Max McLeary, the One-Eyed Umpire; More Tales from the Dugout; and Willie Mays: Art in the Outfield. Shannon was given the 2009 Tony Salin Memorial Award by The Baseball Reliquary. He lives in Cincinnati, Ohio, with his wife, the former Kathy Dermody, and their five children: Meg, Casey, Mickey, Babe, and Nolan Ryan.

by J. David Herman (Author)

Almost Yankees is a poignant and nostalgic narrative of the lives and travails of Minor League Baseball, focusing on the 1981 championship season of the New York Yankees' Triple-A farm club, the Columbus Clippers. That year was especially notable in the annals of baseball history as the year Major League Baseball went on strike in midseason. When that happened, the Clippers were suddenly the best team in baseball and found themselves the focus of national media attention. Many of these Minor Leaguers sensed this was their last, best chance to make an impression and fulfill their dreams to one day reach the majors.

Author Biography

J. David Herman is a former newspaper sports writer who joined MSNBC.com to assist with coverage of the 2000 Summer Olympics. He stayed on as a news producer and later became a lead editor for Olympics.com during the 2002 Winter Olympics. He has worked at MSN.com in numerous roles over the past sixteen years, including his current position as a senior managing editor for Microsoft News.

by Jim Albert (Author), Benjamin S. Baumer (Author), Max Marchi (Author)

"Our community has continued to grow exponentially, thanks to those who inspire the next generation. And inspiring the next generation is what the authors of Analyzing Baseball Data with R are doing. They are setting the career path for still thousands more. We all need some sort of kickstart to take that first or second step. You may be a beginner R coder, but you need access to baseball data. How do you access this data, how do you manipulate it, how do you analyze it? This is what this book does for you. But it does more, by doing what sabermetrics does best: it asks baseball questions. Throughout the book, baseball questions are asked, some straightforward, and others more thought-provoking."

From the Foreword by Tom Tango

Analyzing Baseball Data with R Third Edition introduces R to sabermetricians, baseball enthusiasts, and students interested in exploring the richness of baseball data. It equips you with the necessary skills and software tools to perform all the analysis steps, from importing the data to transforming them into an appropriate format to visualizing the data via graphs to performing a statistical analysis.

The authors first present an overview of publicly available baseball datasets and a gentle introduction to the type of data structures and exploratory and data management capabilities of R. They also cover the ggplot2 graphics functions and employ a tidyverse-friendly workflow throughout. Much of the book illustrates the use of R through popular sabermetrics topics, including the Pythagorean formula, runs expectancy, catcher framing, career trajectories, simulation of games and seasons, patterns of streaky behavior of players, and launch angles and exit velocities. All the datasets and R code used in the text are available for download online.

New to the third edition is the revised R code to make use of new functions made available through the tidyverse. The third edition introduces three chapters of new material, focusing on communicating results via presentations using the Quarto publishing system, web applications using the Shiny package, and working with large data files. An online version of this book is hosted at https: //beanumber.github.io/abdwr3e/.

Author Biography

Jim Albert is a Distinguished University Professor of Statistics at Bowling Green State University. He has authored or co-authored several books including Curve Ball and Visualizing Baseball and was the editor of the Journal of Quantitative Analysis of Sports. He received the Significant Contributor to Statistics in Sports award in 2003 from the Section of Statistics in Sports of the American Statistical Association.

Ben Baumer is a Professor of Statistical and Data Sciences at Smith College. Previously a statistical analyst for the New York Mets, he is a co-author of The Sabermetric Revolution and Modern Data Science with R. He has received the Waller Education Award from the ASA Section on Statistics and Data Science Education, the Significant Contributor Award from the ASA Section on Statistics in Sports, and the Contemporary Baseball Analysis Award from the Society for American Baseball Research.

Max Marchi is a Baseball Analytics Analyst for the Cleveland Indians. He was a regular contributor to The Hardball Times and Baseball Prospectus websites and previously consulted for other MLB clubs.

by Chris Haft (Author)

Willie McCovey, known as "Stretch," played Major League Baseball from 1959 to 1980, most notably as a member of the San Francisco Giants for nineteen seasons. A fearsome left-handed power hitter, McCovey ranked second only to Babe Ruth in career home runs among left-handed batters and tied for eighth overall with Ted Williams at the time of his retirement. He was a six-time All-Star, three-time National League home run champion, and 1969 league MVP, and he was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1986 in his first year of eligibility. Known as a dead-pull line drive hitter, McCovey was called "the scariest hitter in baseball" by pitcher Bob Gibson.

Author Biography

Chris Haft has spent nearly thirty years covering Major League Baseball, including fourteen seasons on the Giants beat: 2005-6, with the San Jose Mercury News, and 2007-18, for MLB.com. He is the author of If These Walls Could Talk: Stories from the San Francisco Giants Dugout, Locker Room, and Press Box, among other books.