From the category archives:

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Book Review: Fantasyland

January 12, 2008

From sox1fan.com. The book’s official site.

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“Stray questions for: Buzz Bissnger,” Jan. 11, 2008. Bissinger, of course, is the author of 3 Nights in August, an in-depth look at the managerial style of St. Louis Cardinals skipper Tony LaRussa.

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Haven’t seen too many reviews on this one, which is statistics/ computer-oriented, so I thought to include it for those who are into this genre. From Blogcritics.org. In fact, most of the book seems to be available online, thanks to Google Books.

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The Casey Award

January 10, 2008

The CASEY Award was inaugurated in 1983 by Mike Shannon and W.J. Harrison, the editors and co-founders of Spitball: The Literary Baseball Magazine, to honor the authors and publishers of outstanding baseball books, a heretofore unrealized notion. Seven books were named as finalists for the first CASEY: Baseball’s Greatest Experiment, The Celebrant, Hoopla, Invisible Men, […]

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Happy birthday, Alvin Dark

January 7, 2008

The fiery manager whom Orlando Cepeda basically called anti-Hispanic for not letting Latin players speak their native language in the clubhouse and dugout, turns 86. Dark played for the Braves, Giants, Cardinals, Cubs, Phillies and Braves again in a 14-year career that spanned from 1946-60. As a manager, he led the Giants to a 1962 […]

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According to a story in the Chicago Sun Times, the Cubs have received permission from the City Council to add 70 “premium-priced ‘bullpen box seats’ along the third base line at Wrigley Field — and install new signage — to wring more revenue out of the 93-year-old ballpark.” City Hall approved the changes because “landmark […]

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According to The Motley Fool Web site, Jimmy Buffett, baseball’s richest fan, takes his from a classic baseball title One key factor for Buffett’s success is his keen instinct to go only for investments where all the stars align; the no-brainer situations Buffett refers to as “the fat pitch.” Buffett has a simple explanation for […]

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David Halberstam

December 31, 2007

Although this piece from the NY Times Sunday Magazine is not baseball related, per se, David Halberstam, produced several well-received books on the game (with additional titles about other sports), including: October 1964 Summer of ’49 The Teammates: A Portrait of a Friendship It’s rare to find such a well-rounded writer, who can be so […]

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Every time the High Holidays come around, you can be sure you’ll be reading stories about Sandy Koufax and Hank Greenberg, the two greatest Jewish baseball players of all time. Both refused to compromise their religious beliefs to play on Yom Kippur, the holiest day of the year for Jews — Edgar Guest even penned […]

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Happy birthday, Bill Lee

December 28, 2007

The Spaceman turns 61 today. Books by or about Lee include: Baseball Eccentrics: The Most Entertaining, Outrageous, and Unforgettable Characters in the Game, with Jim Prime (Triumph, 2007) The Wrong Stuff, with Richard Lally (Paperback edition by Three Rivers Press, 2006) Have Glove, Will Travel: The Adventures of a Baseball Vagabond, with Richard Lally (Paperback […]

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McFarland Publishers has a unique place in the world of baseball literature. Known for their eclectic academic work in the arts, sciences, humanities, etc. they also specialize in topics that might be considered extremely narrow in interest within the national pastime. In fact, it seems comfortable to say that if it were not for this […]

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Clemens reports he will also appar on 60 Minutes after the New Year. One might be more likely to believe players had not Pete Rose been so adamant in his denials about his gambling on baseball games. The Amazon Report: The Rocket: Baseball Legend Roger Clemens Rocket Man: The Roger Clemens Story

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Authors thank Mitchell Report

December 18, 2007

As could be expected, the release of the Mitchell Report has nudged publisher Gotham/Dutton to rev up the press for a new run of Game of Shadows, by Mark Fainaru-Wada and Lance Williams. Read the Publishers Weekly item. Gotham publicist Beth Parker said the authors will team up to do a radio satellite book tour… […]

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Bits and Pieces

December 12, 2007

Trying to clean up a lot of backlog here: *** From the Brooklyn-based Jewish Press, this review of Dana Brands’ Mets Fan. *** Charles C. Alexander, author of biographies on Ty Cobb, John McGraw, and Rogers Hornsby, as well as a treatise on baseball during the Depression, recently released his studious account on Tris Speaker. […]

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Is it still funny, Joe?

December 12, 2007

Whatever happened to Joe Garagiola? or a time back in the late 1970s-early 80s he seemed to be all over the place: baseball color man, game show host, the Today Show. Where’s he been for the last 15-20 years? Working on a new book, it seems, a follow up to his successful Baseball is a […]

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Alas, poor Marvin…

December 10, 2007

As almost all fans know by now, Marvin Miller did not make it into the Hall of Fame … again. Some sports columnists and pundits believe those on the selection committee are punishing Miller for his role in establishing a strong players’ union. For crying out loud, Barney Dreyfuss was voted in and he’s been […]

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More auction news

November 28, 2007

In addition to the Black Sox papers that mysteriously resurfaced recently, another piece of baseball history is heading to auction. Memory Lane, Inc, a Tustin, Calif. sports collectible enterprise, will be offering Christy Mathewson‘s rookie contract, dated 1900. “Vintage baseball contracts have become more sought after in recent years by collectors, and that demand has […]

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Bits and pieces

November 26, 2007

Perhaps jumping on the drug bandwagon/confessional, Otis Nixon, a former outfielder for the Atlanta Braves and other teams, is reportedly working on a book that describes his battle with drugs. *** Actress Laraine Day passed away Nov. 10. She was dubbed the “first lady of baseball” for her marriage to Leo Durocher, then the manager […]

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Don’t you just love the Internet? It’s filled with all sorts of treasure. The latest nugget I’ve found is from Manybooks.net, a site for free e-books, available via download for several platforms, which include some rare baseball titles: The High School Pitcher, by H. Irving Hancock The Red Headed Outfield and Other Stories (1920) and […]

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Regardless of the success a professional sports team achieves, they always come up short when compared to the standard set by the 1927 New York Yankees, who won 110 of 154 games and swept the Pittsburgh Pirates in the World Series. Dartmouth University professor Harvey Frommer takes a fresh look at the model in Five […]

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