Ron Kaplan's Baseball Bookshelf
If it fits on a bookshelf, it fits here.
From the category archives:
Or Johan, or David, or Gary? I don’t get it: when the Yankees lose their season opener — a night game that ends late; nice big picture of Granderson after his first home run in the pinstripes — they make the front page. When the Mets win — an impressive afternoon affair — they don’t […]
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The 1969 Cy Young winner died at the age of 72. Here’s his obit from The New York Times and a couple from the Baltimore Sun, where the Cuban pitcher had his gloey days in the lates 1960s to early 1970s: Orioles pitching great Mike Cuellar dies at 72 George Diaz’s column, “Mike Cuellar’s legacy […]
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to borrow a title from the eminent baseball columnist, Thomas Boswell. Here’s his column from the Washington Post’s Baseball Preview. The main item, as is increasingly becoming the case, centers around how defense is the new offense. That is, sexy. In addition to a feature on love for the glove, the Post‘s supplement (at least […]
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That seems to be theme in most of these Daily News “baseball cards” shots of the Mets and Yankees. In another marketing ploy, the Daily News will be publishing its baseball preview on Thursday, rather than the usual Sunday before Opening Day. I’m guessing they realize people buy the Sunday paper regardless of content, but […]
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Bill Gallo, the veteran sports cartoonist for the New York Daily News, published this review/personal remembrance of Mays as per the Hircsh bio. I used to collect his work — along with another DN cartoonist name of Bill(?) Stark — in one of my many scrapbooks. In 1969, as the Mets were marching towards the […]
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Had to get a tire replaced this morning. While sitting in the waiting room, I picked up a recent copy of The Sporting News which carried feature about the questionnaires the publication would hand out to players each year in preparation for the defunct Baseball Register. This article included reproductions of the forms from Willie […]
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This week’s best-selling baseball books, according to Amazon.com as of Friday, Feb. 12. 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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It’s been way to long since a “serious” biography about Willie Mays was published. That’s about to be remedied with Willie Mays: The Life, The Legend by James S. Hirsch, to be published this month by Scribner. Bruce Weber, author of As They See’ Em, wrote this piece for the Sunday Times. Perhaps it’s because […]
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Thanks to a comment by Robert Loy, I had a “Homer Simpson” moment for totally forgetting about a crucial Salinger/baseball connection. Loy wrote, “What I want to know is why the ever-litigious Salinger didn’t sue Bill Kinsella over being included in ‘Shoeless Joe.’ And if he was okay with it why did they change it […]
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Newsday’s Mark Herrmann tries to make a literary one between the author of the seminal Ball Four with Juiced and Vindicated. I agree with his observation that both former ballplayers (actually Bouton came out with his book while he was still in the Majors) were considered ” pariah[s] among baseball people for having taken aim […]
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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 […]
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There’s been a lot of talk about what to do with the statistics from the Steroids Era. Some want them expunged from the record books. Others, like Tony Kornheiser, want a special note on any Hall of Fame plaque, bringing into account the possibility (probability?) that said honored player partook of PED. My take is: […]
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Was anyone else bothered by this story on Johnny Damon in today’s New York Times? Damon, one of the heroes of the 2009 World Series, is currently unemployed. A free agent, the Yankees have displayed little interest in resigning him and at the moment, there are no other takers as teams have filled their high-profile […]
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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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Here’s another good analysis of what should (and should not) go into the thought processes of those voting for the Hall of Fame, by Tyler Kepner. It should be noted that The New York Times does not allow its staffers to participate in such elections.
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Sorry, almost done with this catching up business, so bear with me. For those of you who haven’t seen it, here’s my take on the November session of Yankees Fantasy Camp in the Dec, 17 issue of the New Jersey Jewish News. In addition, My teammate Ira Jaskoll wrote this piece for the Jewish Magazine […]
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In this insightful piece from yesterday’s Wall Street Journal, David Biderman takes a look at new trends in ballpark food. Not the kind for you and me — we can go to nutritional hell — but for the players. Rather than unhealthy and heavy fried foods, players now have healthier options: fruits, low-sugar snacks, etc. […]
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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
* Ruth, Maris, and Greenberg?
March 21, 2010 · 1 comment
There are a couple of books out this year that deal with athletes — Roger Maris and Hank Aaron– who were vilified by the press and the public for the audacity in approaching the home run numbers put up by Hall of Famer Babe Ruth, albeit for different reasons. Maris, who broke the single season […]
Tagged as: Babe Ruth, Hank Greenberg, home runs, Howard Megdal
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