Bit and pieces

The good news: More than half way to the goal of 501 books.

The bad news: it takes me away from the blog. Oh well, hang around. It will be worth it in the end.

In the meantime, here are a few items for your consideration:

Out of Left Field, Rebecca Alpert’s history of Jewish involvement in the Negro Leagues, is reviewed in the Forward. Personally, I see no reason for the Derek Jeter intro, which basically says “see what this guy did. And he’s got African-American blood!” That is how the press used to refer to players — via their ethnicity — but that hasn’t been the case for about 50 years.
Staying with the Forward for a minute, they’re offering an installment of a serialized baseball fiction story every week. Here’s the first “chapter.”
James Bailey published this review of Phil Pepe’s 1961*: The Inside Story of the Maris-Mantle Home Run Chase in Baseball America. Upshot: “While Yankees fans are prolific readers, at least judging by the volume of books written each year on their pinstriped heroes, timing in publishing, as in baseball, is vital. Fifty years may be a nice, round number, but “1961*” would have been better served comign out a couple of years ago. Clavin and Peary told the story of Maris’s pursuit better last year, and Leavy’s Mantle bio was the top baseball release of 2010. That ought to have satiated all but the most diehard fanatics of the M&M Boys.”
Remember the recent entry about the top baseball books as per Sports Illustrated‘s 2002 list? Here’s another, this time the top 100 books, courtesy of a LibraryThing patron.
From the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel site, this review on Beyond DiMaggio. Special local connections: Lou Perini, who moved the Braves from Boston to Milwaukee in 1953, and “Mark Attanasio, who bought the Brewers in 2005 and invested substantially in the roster, helping the Brewers return to competitive status, and to the playoffs in 2008.”
From The Yankee Analysts blog, this mini-review of Moneyball. Upshot: “If you like baseball and you like a good story, pick up a copy of Moneyball; it took me a long time to finally read it, but it was well worth the wait.”
The Honolulu Star-Advertiser published this profile on Aaron Pribble, author of Pitching in the Promised Land. Local angle: Pribble attended the University of Hawaii.