Ron Kaplan's Baseball Bookshelf
If it fits on a bookshelf, it fits here.
From the category archives:
April 30, 2009
The Canton (OH) Repository ran this piece on Bob Feller and his eponymous Bob Feller’s Little Blue Book of Baseball Wisdom (not to be confused with his Little Black Book of Baseball Wisdom; what’s the next color in the series? I say red because he frequently expresses anger over the current state of the game).
Tagged as: Bob Feller
{ Comments on this entry are closed }
April 26, 2009
Author of Samurai Shortstop and The Brooklyn Nine, from the Guys LitWire blog.
{ Comments on this entry are closed }
April 26, 2009
Still trying to play catch-up: No one gives much thought to it (and by no one, I probably mean me), but some company has to provide the softeware for all those on-line baseball in-game representations. But here’s why MLB won’t be using a Microsoft program. The Taunton (CT) Daily Gazette ran a piece on homegirl […]
{ Comments on this entry are closed }
April 25, 2009
Fell way behind, so here’s catching up. The nice things about this overall topic is that you can be a little late and the information is still valid (for the most part). From the Deseert News, this review of ’78: The Boston Red Sox, a Historic Game, and a Divided City, by Bill Reynolds The […]
Tagged as: baseball book reviews
{ Comments on this entry are closed }
April 21, 2009
This piece from the McClatchy-Tribune News Service on Alyssa Milano’s new book makes me wonder: what percentage of writers have actually read Safe at Home? Seems they’re more interested in promoting the star than the author. Her book even features a basic glossary of colloquial baseball terms (such as “five-tool player” and “frozen rope”) and […]
Tagged as: Alyssa Milano
{ Comments on this entry are closed }
April 18, 2009
Howard Megdal, he of The Baseball Talmud, was interviewed on the Marc Malusis Show on WFAN. You can here it here: http://rksbaseballbookshelf.wordpress.com/files/2009/04/howardmegdalwfan.mp3Podcast: Play in new window | DownloadSubscribe: Apple Podcasts | RSS
Tagged as: Baseball Talmud, Howard Megdal, Jews and baseball
{ Comments on this entry are closed }
April 14, 2009
It’s been a rough week for baseball fans. Nick Adenhart, Mark Fidrych, and Harry Kalas, all gone. Kalas was one of those “voices of God” that a few are blessed with (Charlton Heston and John Vernon also comes to mind). Whether he was broadcasting the Phillies games or doing the voice-over for NFL Films, Kalas […]
Tagged as: Harry Kalasa
{ Comments on this entry are closed }
April 7, 2009
The Los Angeles Daily New‘s Tom Hoffarth did this profile of Michael D’Antonio, author of Forever Blue: The True Story of Walter O’Malley, Baseball’s Most Controversial Owner and the Dodgers of Brooklyn and New York, in which he claims the team’s move to the West Coast it wasn’t all about the money. Key line: The […]
Tagged as: Brooklyn Dodgers, Michael D'Antonio, Walter O'Malley
{ Comments on this entry are closed }
April 7, 2009
The Stanford (CT) Advocate posted this feature on native son Handrinos, author of The Truth About Ruth and More…Behind Yankees Myths, Legends, and More (Triumph). Handrinos is the author of the 2006 book, The Best New York Sports Arguments. “No player or topic is safe as Handrinos looks to give fans the most complete history […]
Tagged as: New York Yankees
{ Comments on this entry are closed }
April 6, 2009
One source expected, the other more unusual. Pearlman, author of the scathing new Clemens biography, The Rocket Who Fell to Earth, was a guest on WBUR’s Only a Game this weekend. Just as players, I wonder if authors get tired of answering the same questions as they make the rounds. All part of doing business, […]
Tagged as: Jeff Perlman, NPR, Only a Game, Psychology Today, Roger Clemens
{ Comments on this entry are closed }
March 31, 2009
Former Mets’ favorite and current broadcaster Ron Darling humps his new book, The Complete Game: Reflections on Baseball, Pitching, and Life on the Mound, on today’s Brian Lehrer Show. You can hear the segment here http://audio.wnyc.org/bl/bl033109epod.mp3Podcast: Play in new window | DownloadSubscribe: Apple Podcasts | RSS
Tagged as: Brian Lehrer, National Public Radio, New York Mets, Ron Darling
{ Comments on this entry are closed }
March 24, 2009
Gillette, who with Pete Palmer co-edited The Emerald Guide to Baseball 2009, was interviewed by our good friends over at Seamheads.com. The PDF version of the Guide is available at no charge at SABR.org.
Tagged as: Emerald Guide to Baseball, Gary Gillette
{ Comments on this entry are closed }
March 20, 2009
Dodger Blue and umpires, that is. The Leonard Lopate Show on NPR today featured two baseball segments. In the first, Although Walter O’Malley has been dead for nearly 30 years his, the former Brooklyn and Los Angeles Dodgers owner is still one of the most controversial persons ever associated with the sport. Michael D’Antonio’s exhaustive […]
Tagged as: Brooklyn Dodgers, Bruce Weber, Michael D'Antonio, NPR, umpires
{ Comments on this entry are closed }
March 19, 2009
Dickson, author of the third edition of his eponymous Baseball Dictionary, was the subject of this recent interview on NPR’s All Things Considered, which you can hear here. Paul was kind enough to forward the transcript of the program, which appears here for your convenience: COPYR IGHT 2009 All Things Considered® Copyright 2007 NPR. ROBERT […]
Tagged as: National Public Radio, Paul Dickson
{ Comments on this entry are closed }
March 16, 2009
This week’s Only a Game featured a Bill Littlefield interview with Jean Rhodes and Shawn Boburg, authors of Becoming Manny: Inside the Life of Baseball’s Most Enigmatic Slugger. This one is high on my “to read” pile as it seems to go beyond the standard player biography. The segment comes at the 21:58 mark, preceded […]
Tagged as: Manny Ramirez, National Public Radio, Only a Game
{ Comments on this entry are closed }
March 10, 2009
Another over-analysis of the quizzical slugger from The Boston Globe, in the form of a Q&A with co-author Dr. Jean Rhodes.
Tagged as: Manny Ramirez
{ Comments on this entry are closed }
March 3, 2009
A Year on the Mound with a Minor League Misfit, by Matt McCarthy (Viking) When I first read Odd Man Out, I thought it was the best book of its kind I had seen in many years. Too many “flavor of the month,” riding the high from a World Series win at best or a […]
Tagged as: baseball memoirs, Matt McCarthy, Rob Neyer
{ Comments on this entry are closed }
March 1, 2009
The author of such kid’s fiction as The Kid From Tomkinsville, The Kid Comes Back, and Rookie of the Year gets kudos from Tad Richards, writing on Examiner.com.
Tagged as: John R. Tunis, juvenile fiction
{ Comments on this entry are closed }
February 23, 2009
The author of The Complete Guide to Spring Training (August Publications) is featured in this article from The Canadian Press. Reichard uses the opportunity to discuss where the bargains are at spring training venues. He says there are even more opportunities than usual this year for travellers interested in spring training. For one thing, “this […]
Tagged as: Kevin Reichard, Spring Training
{ Comments on this entry are closed }
is available on Amazon.com,
In a former life, I was the sports and features editor for a weekly New Jersey newspaper, where I hosted an award-winning bog about Jews and Sports.
I did a profile piece on the legendary cartoonist Arnold Roth and he was very generous in immortalizing me in this caricature.
In Forbes Magazine re: Baseball Business Books
On Will Carroll’s “Under the Knife” substack
Most recent books read updated 12/21/24:
Charlie Hustle: The Rise and Fall of Pete Rose, and the Last Glory Days of Baseball, by Keith O’Brien
Grade: A. The most in-depth bio to date, focusing on Rose's gambling addiction.
Sometimes You See It Coming, by Kevin Baker
Grade: B. I first read this one when it originally came out some 30 years ago. I must say I don't remember it being so raunchy in spots. Draws on lots of real-life events and characters that real fans will recognize.
The Last of His Kind: Clayton Kershaw and the Burden of Greatness, by Andy McCullough
Grade: A. I usually don't like titles with superlatives, but in this case the author might be right, although there are probably a couple of Kershaw's contemporaries (Verlander and Scherzer) who fit that description.
The Yankee Way: The Untold Inside Story of the Brian Cashman Era, by Andy Martino
Grade: B+. Even this non-Yankee fan found the deep background with its Moneyball-like machinations interesting
The New York Game: Baseball and the Rise of a New City, by Kevin Baker
Grade: A. Well-researched, well-written. What else could you ask for? Baker has a lot of street cred writing about New York as well, both in fiction and non-fiction.
The Body Scout, by Lincoln Michel
Grade: C. Perhaps the ultimate performance enhancers -- interchangeable body parts -- help major leaguers of the future. But, as with all of these things, there's a price to pay.
Cardboard Gods: An All-American Tale Told Through Baseball Cards, by Josh Wilker
Grade: A. Re-read in preparation for a Bookshelf Conversation with the author. Had a deeper meaning than when I first read it more than a decade ago.
The Bookshelf Conversation
Discussions about all things baseball with authors, journalists, filmmakers, musicians, artists, et al
Subscribe to the "Bookshelf Conversations" podcast on iTunes and please leave a rating and/or review. Gracias!
Mike Shannon on "Diamond Classics II" ( video)
Todd Radom, Ellen Linder, and Brian Kong ( video)
Rick Cerrone (Baseball Digest, video)
Kevin Baker (Sometimes You See It Coming, video)
Curtis Pride and Doug Ward (video)
Dan Epstein on James Earl Jones (video)
Jim Gilmore and Tracy Holcomb (video)
"The Lost Tapes": Conversations prior to 2011 (audio)
My article on Sandy Koufax in the 1965 World Series appears in
My article on the later biographies of Babe Ruth appears in
My article on the Mets’ 1969 postseason appears in
Profiles of several Jewish baseball figures appear in
Get smart with the Thesis WordPress Theme from DIYthemes.
* Bruce Weber on National Pastime Radio
April 10, 2009
Bruce Weber is making the rounds for his new book on umpires. This week, it’s Fresh Air. As an added bonus (like a box of cereal), the page comes with an excerpt from his book, As They See ‘Em, which was selected for NPR’s “Books We Like.” More recent baseball items from NPR: Secret Dirt’s […]
Tagged as: Bruce Weber, National Public Radio, umpires
{ Comments on this entry are closed }