A reminder: The Amazon rankings are updated every hour, so these lists might not be 100 percent accurate by the time you read them (or even by the time I finish posting them). But close enough for government work, as the saying goes.
In addition, occasionally the powers-that-be over there try to pull a fast one by including a book in a category to which it should not be listed (in my opinion). For example, The Book of Why: The New Science of Cause and Effect has appeared on the BBS list. “Why” is a good question. There might be a smattering of the national pastime in it, but not enough to make it a baseball book per se (again, IMO).
Finally, adults only here. That is, no books for younger readers. Also no “adult” books here, that is, no romance/erotic fiction that features baseball as a theme either (although goodness knows there are a bunch of those).
So, with all that said…
The links under the authors’ names will take you to the Bookshelf Conversations I did with them. The asterisk denotes the author is a “member” of the Pandemic Baseball Book Club
PRINT
- The Baseball 100, by Joe Posnanski
- Once Upon a Time in Queens: An Oral History of the 1986 Mets, by Nick Davis *
- Moneyball: The Art of Winning an Unfair Game, by Michael Lewis
- The Cloudbuster Nine: The Untold Story of Ted Williams and the Baseball Team That Helped Win World War II, by Anne R. Keene
- Heads-Up Baseball : Playing the Game One Pitch at a Time, by Tom Hanson
- Ballparks: A Journey Through the Fields of the Past, Present, and Future, by Eric Enders
- The Science of Hitting, by Ted Williams with John Underwood
- Cheated: The Inside Story of the Astros Scandal and a Colorful History of Sign Stealing, by Andy Martino
- Baseball Playbook, by Ron Polk
- The Greatest Baseball Stories Ever Told: Thirty Unforgettable Tales from the Diamond, by Michael Silverman
E-BOOKS
- The Baseball 100
- Moneyball
- Ball Four, by Jim Bouton and Leonard Shecter
- The Last Real Season, by Mike Shropshire
- Wait Till Next Year, by Doris Kearns Goodwin
- The Mental Keys to Hitting, by H.A. Dorfman
- Cheated
- October 1964, by David Halberstam
- Doc: A Memoir, by Dwight Gooden and Ellis Henican
- The Gashouse Gang: How Dizzy Dean, Leo Durocher, Branch Rickey, Pepper Martin, and Their Colorful, Come-from-Behind Ball Club Won the World Series-and America’s Heart-During the Great Depression, by John Heidenry
AUDIOBOOKS
Note: Amazon has changed the way they list audiobooks. No longer under the general category of “biography and memoir,” they are now treated in their own baseball/softball category. Here’s the general link to the section where you will find further links to the individual titles, their reader/narrators, and samples. Note further that these are updated regularly and the top ten list below might no longer be the same.
- Moneyball (unabridged, narrated by Scott Brick)
- The Baseball 100
- Cheated
- The Cubs Way, by John Verducci
- The Matheny Manifesto, by Mike Matheny
- October 1964, by David Halberstam
- The Phenom: Pressure, The Yips, and The Pitch That Changed My Life, by Roger Ankiel
- Stealing Home, by Eric Nussbaum
- Ball Four: The Final Pitch, by Jim Bouton and Leonard Shecter
- The Mental Game of Baseball, by H.A. Dorfman
The Baseball 100 remains on The New York Times list, albeit at #14, down from #5 last week.
Still not in the Amazon top-ten? 501 Baseball Books Fans Must Read before They Die. FYI, right now it ranks at 2,582,296 overall in books; last time, 2,565,349. I think I’ll stop these updates if it sinks below three million; that’s just too depressing. Hank Greenberg in 1938: Hatred and Home Runs in the Shadow of War ranks 800,338; last time, 1,501,095.
Shameless self-promotion: if you’re looking for some good baseball reading during this down time, why not pick up a copy of 501? It’s like the abridged dictionary; it has most of the other books in it.
Now we’ll see who pays attention. Removing the “Super shameless self-promotion” section. Look for some exciting news in the near future.
A reminder: There’s an Excel “checklist” of the books list in 501. If you’re interested in keeping track of how many you have read or own, drop me a line.
If you have read either of my books, thanks, hope you enjoyed it, and please consider writing an Amazon review; it’s never too late.
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