From the category archives:

2013 title

If you’ve been a reader of this blog for awhile you know I’m all about the process. I love back-story and deconstruction. I want to know, like any reader, how authors come up with ideas, who their inspirations were. So it was with a sense of serendipity that I came across this yesterday at my […]

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Congratulations to Sasha G. of Cooperstown, NY, winner of Claudia Williams’ Ted Williams, My Father: A Memoir. Just an an aside, Sasha runs Extra Innings, a baseball memorabilia shop across the street from the Hall of Fame. By the way, I picked up a copy of Frozen: A True Story — My Journey into the […]

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From Ed Lucas in the Jersey Journal in a piece about what to get the baseball-loving dad in your life: Dad also had a passion for baseball. Luckily, there were — and still are now — hundreds of books released every year covering the subject. And 2014 is no exception. Ron Kaplan’s “501 Baseball Books […]

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Note: Just like Chuck Lorre’s “vanity cards” at the end of The Big Bang Theory, you should read these list stories to their conclusion; the end is always changing, even though the theme is basically the same, finishing up with a self-promotional message. On with the show… The top ten baseball books as per Amazon.com, […]

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The top ten baseball books as per Amazon.com. Caveat 1: Print editions only (at least for now); because I’m old school. Caveat 2: Since the rankings are updated every hour, these lists might not longer be 100 percent accurate by the time you read them. But it’ll be close enough for government work. Caveat 3: […]

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The top ten baseball books as per Amazon.com. Caveat 1: Print editions only (at least for now); because I’m old school. Caveat 2: Since the rankings are updated every hour, these lists might not longer be 100 percent accurate by the time you read them. But it’ll be close enough for government work. Caveat 3: […]

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Every now and then I get a bit antsy about the state of 501 Baseball Books Fans Must Read before They Die. I check the Amazon rankings more than I should and am (relatively) happy when it rises, sad when it falls. Fluctuations are constant. It’s been as high as 9,005 and as low as […]

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The top ten baseball books as per Amazon.com. Caveat 1: Print editions only (at least for now); I’m old fashioned that way. Caveat 2: Since the rankings are updated every hour, these lists might not longer be 100 percent accurate by the time you read it. But it’ll be close enough for government work. Caveat […]

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First of all, congratulations to Josh R. of Madison, NJ, winner of last week’s book, Doc: A Memoir, by Dwight Gooden and Ellis Henican. This week’s offering is (another copy of) Stars and Strikes, Dan Epstein’s critically-acclaimed look at the national pastime at the nation’s bicentennial. Changing up the “rules” a bit: This will henceforth […]

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Review roundup, May 12

May 12, 2014

Dan Epstein’s Star and Strikes from the Dallas Morning News and the Tulsa World. Bill Littlefield, host of WBUR’s Only a Game, includes Alan Klein’s Dominican Baseball in this brief trio of sports reviews for the Boston Globe. The Baptist Press offers this one on Double Play, by Ben and Julianna Zobrist.    

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First of all, congratulations to Micheal A. of Cherry Hill, NJ, winner of last week’s book, The Kid: The Immortal Life of Ted Williams, by Ben Bradlees Jr. And thanks all for the comments. This week’s offering is Dwight Gooden’s 2013 memoir, Doc, written with Ellis Henican. A reminder about the rules: The fifth person […]

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Looks like no one was interested enough in A Nice Little Place on the North Side to warrant the requisite five comments. Oh well. Let’s try it again with a copy of The Kid: The Immortal Life to Ted Williams, by Ben Bradlee Jr. A reminder about the rules: The fifth person to post a […]

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Because you can keep your tablet and/or smartphone on a bookshelf. It’s not enough that he’s got several best-selling books out, now he’s expanding into the realm of apps? Dirk Hayhurst, who has more titles in print than years played in the majors (four to two), just released Bush League, described as “essentially a baseball […]

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A chance to look over the overlooked. * Not exactly “Throwback Thursday,” but this piece on the Peoria Journal Star website is an appreciation for The Bronx Zoo, published by relief pitcher Sparky Lyle (then with the NY Yankees) and Peter Golenbock. * And another one from PJS about Double Play, a memoir written by […]

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The top-ten baseball books as per Amazon.com. Caveat 1: Print editions only (at least for now); I’m old fashioned that way. Caveat 2: Since the rankings are updated every hour, these lists might not longer be 100 percent accurate by the time you read it. But it’ll be close enough for government work. Caveat 3: […]

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First of all, congratulations to Ken W. of Charlotte, NC, winner of last week’s book, You Gotta Have Balls, by Brandon Steiner.  Thank you all for your comments. This week’s offering is the paperback edition of Long Shot, by Mike Piazza and Lonnie Wheeler. Here’s my review of the book, which appeared on Bookreporter.com. A […]

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It’s that time of year when publications — both print and on-line — put out their lists of hot new baseball titles, either from a staff writer or guest contributor. One of the reasons publishers get their lists out so far in advance is that the general media (i.e., not the sports sections) “celebrates” the […]

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Brad Mangin, who published a collection of his Baseball Instagrams last year, has a new slideshow of some of his 2014 spring training work on the Sports Illustrated site. Here’s my conversation with Mangin, conducted last September, about his somewhat unorthodox approach.

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Congrats, Herschel Cobb

March 14, 2014

Herschel Cobb (right) accepts the Casey Award, presented annually by Spitball magazine for the best baseball book of the year. Cobb is the author of Heart of a Tiger: Growing Up With My Grandfather, Ty Cobb. Presenting the award at the March 9 banquet in Cincinnati is Mike Shannon, editor of Spitball. Also in attendance […]

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I used to do this awhile ago: Every Friday (or as every Friday as I can), I’ll post the top-ten baseball books as per Amazon.com. The only caveat: print editions only (at least for now). Actually, another caveat: as the rankings are updated every hour, these lists might not longer be 100 percent accurate by […]

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