From the category archives:

2014 title

don’t know where, don’t know when… Taking off tomorrow for a little vacation. Not sure of the accessibility/availability issues, so trying to squeeze in a few so my mailbox won’t be so full when I get back. There have been at least a couple of baseball mysteries with the title Strike Three, You’re Dead, one […]

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Have to rearrange the schedule a bit between last holiday weekend and next weekend’s vacation to California. So… 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, […]

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Trying to clear out the old mail box before the holiday: MLB historian John Thorn posted this photo on Facebook of a joint 1969 publication, ostensibly by Pete Rose and Denny McLain: At the time, Rose and McLain were the best in the game. Dayn Perry, author of a couple of baseball books of his […]

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Blood Sport: Alex Rodriguez, Biogenesis, and the Quest to End Baseball’s Steroid Era, by Tim Elfrink and Gus Garcia-Roberts, is set to come out next Tuesday. Needless to say, it’s already getting some buzz. Unlike books by, say Joe Torre, Mariano Rivera, Mookie Wilson, or even Selena Roberts’ 2009 release, A-Rod: The Many Lives of Alex Rodriguez, there’s […]

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The former general manager Baltimore Orioles and New York Mets passed away yesterday at the age of 88. Cashen, who was hugely successful with both franchises, was scheduled to release a new memoir, Winning in Both Leagues: Reflections from Baseball’s Front Office, in September. Richard Goldstein wrote the obituary for The New York Times.

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It took almost half the baseball season, but The New York Times finally published a couple of baseball reviews in its Sunday book section. And the honors go to: The Devil’s Snake Curve, by Josh Ostergaard A Nice Little Place on the North Side, by George F. Will Both titles get the full-page treatment, which […]

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Jayson Stark, the long-time columnist for the Philadelphia Inquirer, is a senior writer for ESPN.com. In addition to his writing, he appears on radio and television, including SportsCenter, ESPNews, Baseball Tonight, and a weekly segment during baseball season with WHB 810 in Kansas City. He is another in a pool of veteran scribes who has […]

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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… Here are the top ten baseball books as […]

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Like any tool, social media can be a force for good if used properly. Case in point, it’s allowed me to “meet” some really cool people, including Dan Epstein, whose book tour for Stars and Strikes: Baseball and America in the Bicentennial Summer of ’76 brought him to the Bergino Baseball Clubhouse last night. I […]

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Sorry to miss this one

June 25, 2014

But I have a softball playoff game scheduled for tonight. And sorry for the late posting, but if you’re in NYC tonight, The Museum of the City of New York is hosting… New Yorkers and Baseball: A Book Talk Wednesday, June 25 at 6:30 pm Join noted authors and baseball fans George Vecsey, Kevin Baker, […]

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On the horizon…

June 20, 2014

Made one of my occasional visits to Amazon for the purpose of seeing what new and exciting baseball titles or coming in the next several months. Here’s a sampling of some, excluding, as usual —  although with one major exception — books for younger readers. In nor particular order… * Baseball Explained. Phillip Mahoney, McFarland, […]

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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… Here are the top ten baseball books as […]

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Bits and pieces, June 19

June 19, 2014

You gotta give credit to some authors. All authors, actually, but some more. For a writer to take a subject like Boots Poffenberger, a pitcher who appeared in just 57 games over and three-year Major League career which ended before he was 25, and turn it into a full-blown biography is an accomplishment. Here’s a […]

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The New York Times publishes what I would call a commentary piece/short feature (as opposed to the regular sports news) in its Sunday edition. That’s where I found this piece by John Oudens on “A Baseball Binge Woven From Dreams.” Basically, we’re talking about visiting five ballparks in five days, something many fans would love […]

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One of my favorite movie quotes comes from Men in Black when Agent K (Tommy Lee Jones) is trying to convince police officer Edwards (Will Smith) to join the elite extraterrestrial monitoring organization: Fifteen hundred years ago everybody knew the Earth was the center of the universe. Five hundred years ago, everybody knew the Earth […]

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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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One of my favorite movie quotes comes from Men in Black when Agent K (Tommy Lee Jones) is trying to recruit police officer Edwards (Will Smith): Fifteen hundred years ago everybody knew the Earth was the center of the universe. Five hundred years ago, everybody knew the Earth was flat, and fifteen minutes ago, you […]

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Congratulations to Aron L. of Springfield, NJ, winner of Jonah Keri’s Up, Up, and Away: The Kid, the Hawk, Rock, Vladi, Pedro, le Grand Orange, Youppi!, the Crazy Business of Baseball, and the Ill-fated but Unforgettable Montreal Expos. The next book up is Claudia Williams’ memoir about growing up as the daughter of The Splendid […]

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Looking over the overlooked in baseball book (etc.) news… Wow, so much for the free exchange of ideas. Tried to access three items about baseball author appearances, book news, etc. but was blocked from each one because I’m not a paid subscriber. Bummer, man. Anyway… The Boston Globe ran this review of I Don’t Care […]

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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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