From the category archives:

Broadcasting

Bits and pieces

October 15, 2010

Roy Halladay’s no-hitter in the NLDS naturally brought back memories of Don Larsen perfect game in the 1956 World Series (and forgive a soapbox moment, but I wish they would stop lumping all post-season records together; Halladay’s marvelous game does not make him and Larsen the only pitchers to throw no-hitters in the playoffs, as […]

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Birthday greetings

September 16, 2010

Cover via Amazon A duo of dates. Hall of Famer Robin Yount is 55. Robin Yount: The Legend Lives on All-Star and Cy Young winner Orel Hershier turns 52. Out of the Blue: Orel Hershiser Between the Lines: Nine Things Baseball Taught Me About Life Orel Hershiser: Up Close and Personal Bonus nickname of the […]

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TWIBB: Sept. 2

September 3, 2010

The top baseball books, according to Amazon.com as of Friday, Sept. 2. Title Rank General Moneyball: The Art of Winning an Unfair Game, by Michael Lewis 1 The Baseball Codes: Beanballs, Sign Stealing, and Bench-Clearing Brawls: The Unwritten Rules of America’s Pastime by Jason Turbow and Michael Duca 2 The Natural, by Bernard Malamud 3 […]

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Yesterday, actually (close enough for jazz), that Alfred Hitchcock’s Psycho changed how the movie industry dealt with sex and violence, for better or worse. There are several interesting analyses, including David Thomson’s The Moment of Psycho: How Alfred Hitchcock Taught America to Love Murder, which I’m reading at the moment, as well as this from […]

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The Sultan of Stats

June 17, 2010

Allan Roth did not invent baseball statistics. Henry Chadwick introduced those in the late 1800s, mostly for the benefit of the fans. What Roth did — first for the Brooklyn/Los Angeles Dodgers and later for network television broadcasts — was show how they could be used proactively, rather than as an afterthought published by newspapers […]

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by Mike Greenberg and Mike Golic, with Andrew Chaikivsky. ESPN Books, 2010 A caveat and a confession: While “hate” may be too strong a word, I “intensely dislike” sports-talk radio. The idea of (supposedly) grown men and women getting apoplectic on the air over Oliver Perez or Ron Artest or Bill Belichick, et al…not my […]

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TWIBB: June 4, 2010

June 4, 2010

This top baseball books, according to Amazon.com as of Friday, June 4. Title Rank General Steinbrenner: The Last Lion of  Baseball, by Bill Madden 1 The Baseball Codes: Beanballs, Sign Stealing, and Bench-Clearing Brawls: The Unwritten Rules of America’s Pastime, by Jason Turbow with Michael Duca 2 Moneyball: The Art of Winning an Unfair Game, […]

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TWIBB: May 21, 2010

May 21, 2010

This top baseball books, according to Amazon.com as of Friday, May 21. Title Rank General Steinbrenner: The Last Lion of Baseball, by Bill Madden 1 The Baseball Codes: Beanballs, Sign Stealing, and Bench-Clearing Brawls: The Unwritten Rules of America’s Pastime, by Jason Turbow with Michael Duca 2 The Last Hero: A Life of Henry Aaron, […]

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The cover story features Shaquille O’Neill and the Cavs playoff run. Baseball items include a tribute to Ernie Harwell and his generation of broadcasters by Michael Rosenberg a quick look at Bill Madden’s bio on George Steinbrenner an assessment of the suddenly faltering San Diego Padres and the more successful Tampa Bay Rays

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“Olney make believe…” Sorry, I can never keep that name straight. The natural tendency is to dyslex it into “only.” ESPN baseball writer/broadcaster Buster Olney was the guest on the latest Wait Wait Don’t Tell Me‘s “Not My Job” segment. I felt kind of badly for him. There was zero response to Peter Sagal’s introduction. […]

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This week’s best-selling baseball books, according to Amazon.com as of Friday, April 23. 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 […]

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And Other Tales from the Edge of Baseball Fandom, by Emma Span (Villard, 2010) As much as I love baseball, there are times when I take a step back and wonder, “What am I doing with this nonsense? Surely, there are better ways to spend my time and energies.” And at the risk of being […]

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Baseball is once again a art of the NPR syllabus. Steven Goldman and Jay Jafee of Baseball Prospectus made an appearance of The Brian Lehrer Show on April 2. The same day on Soundcheck, Jonathan Schaefer discussed the connection between baseball and music with Jeff Campbell, whose record label Hungry for Music releases compilations of […]

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* TWIBB — Feb. 19

February 19, 2010

This week’s best-selling baseball books, according to Amazon.com as of Friday, Feb. 19. Title Rank General Baseball Prospectus 2010 1 Willie Mays: The Life, The Legend, by James S. Hirsch 2 Baseball America 2010 Prospect Handbook: The Comprehensive Guide to Rising Stars from the Definitive Source on Prospects 3 2010 Baseball Forecaster (Ron Shandler’s Baseball […]

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The legendary broadcaster was named recipient of the 2010 Ford C. Frick Award by the National baseball Hall of Fame. The Frick Award is voted upon annually and is named in memory of the sportswriter, radio broadcaster, National League president, and Baseball commissioner. From the official press release: Miller, who has spent parts of five […]

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* Let me be Curt

January 25, 2010

Baseballisms.com ran this audio interview and profile of the prolific author Curt Smith, whose latest book, Pull Up A Chair: The Vin Scully Story, is a must-read for those fascinated by the veteran broadcaster.

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* Don't quit your day job

January 22, 2010

Or perhaps “Youk Ought to Be in Pictures,” (with apologies to Dana Suesse and Edward Heyman). Anyway, this item comes from Boston.com: Youk on screen He plays first base, he plays third base, and he also acts. All-purpose All-Star Kevin Youkilis is on his way to New York to shoot a scene for the indie […]

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* Everybody's an expert

January 19, 2010

Former ballplayers and managers. Commissioners and broadcasters. Groundskeepers and concessionaires. Seems like everyone knows what’s wrong with baseball and how to make it better. Case in point from StudyofSports.com about the new book Hi Anybody!: “Legendary [Kansas City] Royals’ broadcaster Denny Matthews oozes with baseball lore and love.  The subtitle describes perfectly the contents of […]

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The pioneering African-American writer/broadcaster was a favorite around our household in the days of a kinder, gentler sports-talk radio format. Rust, who also appeared on WNBC-TV news programs, died Jan. 12 at the age of 82. From the New York Times‘ obituary by Richard Goldstein: In his 1976 book “Get That Nigger Off the Field!,” […]

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I don’t know what else there is to say about McGwire. Some, like Joe Posnanski (twice) and my literary hero, Tony Kornheiser, are more forgiving. Mr. Tony spoke about the “confessions of Mark McGwire” on both Pardon the Interruption and his eponymous radio program on ESPN 980 in DC. Others, like Ken Rosenthal, are much […]

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