Ron Kaplan's Baseball Bookshelf
If it fits on a bookshelf, it fits here.
From the category archives:
December 22, 2016
If I had the wherewithal, I think I’d be doing something like Jon Leonouakis‘ streaming TV show, The Sweet Spot: A Treasury of Baseball Stories. I mean, he interviews people, I interview people. But as the saying goes, “Show me, don’t tell me,” and as a veteran filmmaker, he’s the man behind several well-crafted baseball […]
Tagged as: baseball documentary, Jon Leonoudakis
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December 5, 2016
What’s wrong with the national pastime? Seems like everyone has an opinion, but some strike me as more informed than others. That’s the feeling I came away with after reading Lincoln Mitchell‘s new book, Will Big League Baseball Survive?: Globalization, the End of Television, Youth Sports, and the Future of Major League Baseball. I can […]
Tagged as: baseball broadcasting, how to fix baseball, Lincoln Mitchell
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November 21, 2016
The warm feelings about the Chicago Cubs’ first world championship since 1908 has also had an impact on the world of baseball literature. To be fair, the Cubs have always been right up there when it comes to books about a team, comparable to the Yankees, Dodgers, and Red Sox, but almost for the opposite […]
Tagged as: Al Yellon, Chicago Cubs, World Series
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August 22, 2016
There have been dozens of guys like Jimmie Reese, Birdie Tebbets, and many others who are known as “baseball lifers.” They spend their entire professional career in the game perhaps starting out as a player before moving into scouting or coaching/managing, or the front office. I have found there are baseball lifers among authors as well. […]
Tagged as: baseball writers, Peter Golenbock
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July 18, 2016
Once in awhile a book will come along purporting to be “the next big thing” in how people perceive, discuss, and/or enjoy the national pastime. These are usually written by someone in the broadcasting industry, which makes sense. After all, these people have seen hundreds of games a year; who better to offer insight with […]
Tagged as: Brian Kenny
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July 8, 2016
NOTE: I have been posting these things long enough now that a few have commented that the introductory section isn’t necessary anymore. But I’m leaving it in because, to paraphrase Joe DiMaggio when asked why he played so hard all the time, there may be people who’ve never read the best-seller entries before. So on […]
Tagged as: Bernard Malamud, Brian Kenny, independent leagues, instructionals, Lenny Dykstra, managing, Michael Lewis, Mike Mathany, Moneyball, Oakland Athletics, Pitching, St. Louis Cardinals, Tim Kurkjian
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June 24, 2016
NOTE: I have been posting these things long enough now that a few have commented that the introductory section isn’t necessary anymore. But I’m leaving it in because, to paraphrase Joe DiMaggio when asked why he played so hard all the time, there may be people who’ve never read the best-seller entries before. So on […]
Tagged as: amateur baseball, baseball analysis, baseball fiction, Bernard Malamud, ESPN, H.A. Dorfman, instructionals, Los Angeles Dodgers, Michel Lewis, Mike Matheny, Oakland Athletics, Pitching, Shoeless Joe Jackson, St. Louis Cardinals, Tim Kurkjian
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June 21, 2016
You can read the introduction to Part One here. The sentiment remains the same. http://www.ronkaplansbaseballbookshelf.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/06/Bookshelf-Michael-Leahy-Part-Two.mp3Podcast: Play in new window | DownloadSubscribe: Apple Podcasts | RSS
Tagged as: Los Angeles Dodgers, Michael Leahy, Sandy Koufax, Vietnam War
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June 17, 2016
NOTE: I have been posting these things long enough now that a few have commented that the introductory section isn’t necessary anymore. But I’m leaving it in because, to paraphrase Joe DiMaggio when asked why he played so hard all the time, there may be people who’ve never read the best-seller entries before. So on […]
Tagged as: baseball analysis, ESPN, Frank "Big Hurt" Thomas, Jim Palmer, Michel Lewis, Mike Matheny, New York Mets, Oakland Athletics, Pitching, Ron Darling, St. Louis Cardinals, Tim Kurkjian, Ty Cobb, World Series
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June 13, 2016
If you’re lucky, once in a while on your literary travels, you will come across a book that will be unlike anything you’ve read before. This is especially true if you concentrate on a specific genre or theme like mystery novels, biographies about your favorite personality or, oh, I don’t know, let’s just say baseball […]
Tagged as: Dick Trazcewski, Jeff Torborg, Los Angeles Dodgers, Lou Johnson, Michael Leahy, Sandy Koufax, Tommy Davis, Wes Parker
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June 10, 2016
NOTE: I have been posting these things long enough now that a few have commented that the introductory section isn’t necessary anymore. But I’m leaving it in because, to paraphrase Joe DiMaggio when asked why he played so hard all the time, there may be people who’ve never read the best-seller entries before. So on […]
Tagged as: baseball analysis, ESPN, instructionals, Jim Palmer, Los Angeles Dodgers, Michel Lewis, Mike Matheny, Milwaukee Brewers, Oakland Athletics, Pitching, St. Louis Cardinals, Ted Williams, Tim Kurkjian, Ty Cobb
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June 6, 2016
Many of us play Strat-o-matic or some other fantasy version of the game. Robert Coover wrote the classic baseball fiction, The Universal Baseball Association, Inc., J. Henry Waugh, Prop. Well, Coover has company in Jeff Polman, who recently released Twinbill: Further Immersions in Historical Baseball Fiction — his fourth book — which includes a speculative […]
Tagged as: Hank Greenberg, Jeff Polman
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May 27, 2016
NOTE: I have been posting these things long enough now that a few have commented that the introductory section isn’t necessary anymore. But I’m leaving it in because, to paraphrase Joe DiMaggio when asked why he played so hard all the time, there may be people who’ve never read the best-seller entries before. So on […]
Tagged as: baseball analysis, ESPN, instructionals, Jackie Robinson, Los Angeles Dodgers, Michel Lewis, Mike Matheny, New York Mets, Oakland Athletics, Pitching, Ron Darling, St. Louis Cardinals, Ted Williams, Tim Kurkjian, Ty Cobb, Washington Nationals, World Series
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May 20, 2016
NOTE: I have been posting these things long enough now that a few have commented that the introductory section isn’t necessary anymore. But I’m leaving it in because, to paraphrase Joe DiMaggio when asked why he played so hard all the time, there may be people who’ve never read the best-seller entries before. So on […]
Tagged as: baseball analysis, baseball statistics, ESPN, instructionals, Jackie Robinson, Los Angele Dodgers, Michel Lewis, Mike Matheny, Oakland Athletics, Pitching, St. Louis Cardinals, Ted Williams, Tim Kurkjian, Ty Cobb, Washington Nationals, World Series
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May 13, 2016 · 1 comment
NOTE: I have been posting these things long enough now that a few have commented that the introductory section isn’t necessary anymore. But I’m leaving it in because, to paraphrase Joe DiMaggio when asked why he played so hard all the time, there may be people who’ve never read the best-seller entries before. So on […]
Tagged as: baseball analysis, baseball statistics, ESPN, instructionals, Jackie Robinson, Michel Lewis, Mike Matheny, New York Mets, Oakland Athletics, Pitching, Ron Darling, St. Louis Cardinals, Ted Williams, Tim Kurkjian, Ty Cobb, Washington Nationals, World Series
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April 25, 2016
Full disclosure: Howard Megdal and I go back a fair piece. I did a story on him when he published The Baseball Talmud: The Definitive Position-by-Position Ranking of Baseball’s Chosen Players and we’ve kept in touch over the years. In a sense, I consider him my “rabbi,” the consigliere type as opposed to than something […]
Tagged as: Excelle Sports, Howard Megdal, New York Mets, St. Louis Cardinals
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April 18, 2016
You can pretty much count on a new book or two about the Yankees of Mets every year. But 2016 has a bonanza with titles covering not only the latter’s success in 2015, but the 30th anniversary of the World Championship 1986 squad. On of these comes from Erik Sherman, who worked with Mookie Wilson’s […]
Tagged as: Erik Sherman, New York Mets
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March 8, 2016
Often imitated, never equaled, the author of the book that “started it all” turns 77 today. “Bulldog” was kind enough to share his thoughts with an incarnation of the Bookshelf Conversation in 2010. You can listen to all three parts here.
Tagged as: Jim Bouton
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February 4, 2016
Since I posted the first of these on a Thursday, which is known on social media as a time of reflection, I thought to make it a regular thing under this rubric. These are kind of fun; it’s like a box of chocolates — you never know what you’re gonna get. (Actually, I never understood […]
Tagged as: Arnold Hano, Baseball Cards, Bill James, David Simon, Dock Ellis, ESPN, John Grisham, Jon Leonoudakis, Mark Ulriksen, NPR, Ray Negron, Sports Illustrated, Trouble With the Curve, Zack Hample
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January 27, 2016
The last time I spoke with Jon Leonoudakis for a Bookshelf Conversation, it was to discuss his 2012 project Not Exactly Cooperstown, a documentary about The Baseball Reliquary, a “nonprofit, educational organization dedicated to fostering an appreciation of American art and culture through the context of baseball history and to exploring the national pastime’s unparalleled […]
Tagged as: Arnold Hano, Jon Leonoudakis
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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
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