Ron Kaplan's Baseball Bookshelf
If it fits on a bookshelf, it fits here.
From the category archives:
Happy birthday to Shufflin’ Phil Douglas, born this date in 1890. Douglas, who was expelled from baseball for “gambling issue,” pitched for nine years, primarily for the Cubs and Giants and was the subject of the 1978 bio One Last Round for the Shuffler, by Tom Clark. Also celebrating, “Super Joe” Charboneau, 55, one of […]
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Ron LeFlore turns 62 today. The speedy Tiger presented an interesting story of getting that “one in a million” chance while in prison to try out for the Detroit team, which he turned into a book with Jim Hawkins with One in a Million: The Ron LeFlore Story. The two collaborated on Breakout: From Prison […]
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Several former Major Leaguers share a birthday today, including: Wade Boggs Boggs!The Techniques of Modern Hitting Billy Williams Billy Williams: My Sweet-Swinging Lifetime With the Cubs Babe Dahlgren Rumor in Town: A Grandson’s Promise to Right a Wrong
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The former catcher who played 15 years — mostly for the Toronto Blue Jays — turns 58 today. He published Catch: A Major League Life, co-written with Greg Cable, in 1989.
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to Bobby Murcer, who would have been 64 today. He published Yankee for Life: My 40-Year Journey in Pinstripes, written with Glen Waggoner, shortly before his death. Also born this date, in 1921, “Prince” Hal Newhouser, subject of A Tiger in His Time: Hal Newhouser and the Burden of Wartime Ball, written by David M. […]
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This top baseball books, according to Amazon.com as of Friday, May 14. Title Rank General The Baseball Codes: Beanballs, Sign Stealing, and Bench-Clearing Brawls: The Unwritten Rules of America’s Pastime, by Jason Turbow and Michael Duca 1 The Bullpen Gospels: Major League Dreams of a Minor League Veteran, by Dirk Hayhurst 2 Moneyball: The Art […]
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Milt Pappas (1939). From the Baseball-Reference “Bullpen”: Milt Pappas came one batter short of throwing a perfect game for the Chicago Cubs on September 2, 1972. He had 2 balls and 2 strikes on hitter #27, Larry Stahl, and his last two pitches were ruled balls. He settled for the no-hitter, but he never forgave […]
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to Willie Mays, who turned 79 yesterday.
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to Dick Williams, born this date in 1929. Williams published a memoir/autobio No More Mr. Nice Guy: A Life in Hardball (with Bill Plashcke) in 1990. He was also one of the baseball personalities interviewed in Fay Vincent’s latest collection, It’s What’s Inside the Lines That Counts : Baseball Stars of the 1970s and 1980s […]
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The Hall of Fame pitcher passed away today at the age of 83. Roberts was still in the majors when I was coming to the game. I can picture one his last baseball cards in my mind (and here on the page). One of the things I always admired about him — especially in this […]
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Rogers Hornsby 1896 Enos “Country” Slaughter 1916
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This week’s best-selling baseball books, according to Amazon.com as of Saturday, January 16. Title Rank General Baseball Prospectus 2010 1 2010 Baseball Forecaster (Ron Shandler’s Baseball Forecaster) 2 Baseball America 2010 Prospect Handbook: The Comprehensive Guide to Rising Stars from the Definitive Source on Prospects (Baseball America Prospect Handbook) 3 Moneyball: The Art of Winning […]
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Actually, most are not exactly new, but re-released in paper back editions. But I guess they’re all new if you haven’t read them yet (this sounds like one of those “if a tree falls in the woods…” bits). The only one that might qualify is A Game of Inches: The Stories Behind the Innovations That […]
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This week in baseball books, featuring the best-sellers according to Amazon.com on Friday, December 18. Title Rank General The Yankee Years, by Joe Torre and Tom Verducci 1 The Machine: A Hot Team, a Legendary Season, and a Heart-stopping World Series: The Story of the 1975 Cincinnati Reds, by Joe Posnanski 2 Moneyball: The Art […]
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Including: ◊ Game Six: Cincinnati, Boston, and the 1975 World Series: The Triumph of America’s Pastime, by Mark Frost. Unabridged (13:56), narrated by Andrew Garman. Hear a sample: ◊ Sixty Feet, Six Inches: A Hall of Fame Pitcher and a Hall of Fame Hitter Talk about How the Game Is Played , by Bob Gibson, […]
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This week in baseball books, featuring the best-sellers according to Amazon.com on Friday, December 11. Title Rank General The Yankee Years, by Joe Torre and Tom Verducci (448) 1 The Machine: A Hot Team, a Legendary Season, and a Heart-stopping World Series: The Story of the 1975 Cincinnati Reds, by Joe Posnanski (649) 2 Sixty […]
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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.
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
* I double-dog dare you
January 24, 2010
Mark, I dare you to show yourself enough respect to offer the real story to your fans. I dare you to do what Canseco did to get this whole dog-and-pony show started in the first place and write your own book. Put down the truth. Put down YOUR truth, whatever it might be. Subject yourself […]
Tagged as: Jose Canseco, Mark McGwire, PED, steroids
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