As much as I love listening to interview with authors, it gets to a point where they’re pretty much the same. I don’t know whether that’s a function of publicists sending out “talking points,” ostensibly to make the hosts’ jobs easier. I don’t know if the interviewers actually read all the stuff they get in […]
This is how I start off my review of Seeing Home: The Ed Lucas Story: A Blind Broadcaster’s Story of Overcoming Life’s Greatest Obstacles, by Ed Lucas and his son, Chris: “These days, the word ‘inspirational’ is tossed around a lot for things that really aren’t. But in the case of Ed Lucas, it somehow […]
Tagged as:
Christopher Lucas,
Ed Lucas,
Joe DiMagio,
Mickey Mantle,
New York Yankees,
Phil Rizzuto,
Sportswriting
This is a wonderful age we live in. A decade ago, I never would have been able to meet someone like Gary Cieradkowski, the artist who created The Infinite Baseball Card set and author of the newly-published The League of Outsider Baseball: An Illustrated History of Baseball’s Forgotten Heroes. I’ve known Cieradkowski for several years […]
Tagged as:
baseball art,
Gary Cieradkowski,
infinite baseball card set
NEW STUFF: 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… […]
Tagged as:
baseball business,
baseball instructionals,
Billy Martin,
Boston Red Sox,
Derek Jeter,
H.A. Dorfman,
Jim Kaat,
Michael Lewis,
New York Yankees,
Oakland As,
Pedro Martinez,
Ted Williams,
Ty Cobb
I was listening to a Leonard Lopate interview with Greg Proops, a comic featured on the popular TV show Whose Line Is It Anyway, host of The Smartest Man in the World podcast, and, most recently, author of The Smartest Book in the World: A Lexicon of Literacy, A Rancorous Reportage, A Concise Curriculum of […]
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Greg Proops,
Leonard Lopate
Happy Cinco de Mayo, everyone. Trying clear out the old new links box (as opposed to the old old links I post on Thursdays now). ‘Tis the season when reviews, excerpts, lists, and author appearance are sprouting like flowers. * From Men’s Journal, this list of “The 10 Baseball Books Every Fan Should Read.” (Hmm, […]
Tagged as:
Allen Barra,
Ball Four,
Jim Bouton,
Michael Lewis,
Moneyball,
Mookie Wilson,
New York Mets,
Pittsburgh Pirates,
Robert Coover,
Roger Kahn,
Sandy Alderson,
Steve Kettmann
Been a bit slow lately in the conversation portion of our program, so I’m cheating a bit and posting this conversation I had as a guest of Ralph Tyko on his podcast, “In the Zone.” Honored to be included among such previous guests, Marty Appel, Peter Golenbock, and Matthew Silverman, among others. You can hear […]
NEW STUFF: 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… […]
Tagged as:
baseball history,
Baseball instruction,
Bill Pennington,
Billy Martin,
Boston Red Sox,
Derek Jeter,
H.A. Dorfman,
Jim Kaat,
John Feinstein,
Michael Lewis,
minor leagues,
Moneyball,
New York Yankees,
Oakland As,
Pedro Martinez,
San Francisco Giants,
Ted Williams,
Triumph Publishing
“No one to talk with, all by myself…” Didn’t post a Bookshelf Conversation last week, and won’t have one this week either. That’s a shame because I enjoy a good chat with creative people, getting to know what their process is, how they go to this point in their work, etc. As a sneak preview, […]
Tagged as:
Gary Cieradkowski,
Jeff Katz,
Jennifer Ring
The “poet laureate”/PA announcer for the Red Sox was the guest for the “Not My Job” segment of last week’s Wait Wait Don’t Tell Me, which was broadcast from the Wang Theater in the City Performing Arts Center in Boston. You can read the transcript or listen to Flavin — along with host Peter Sagal, […]
Tagged as:
Boston Red Sox,
Dick Flavin,
NPR,
Peter Sagal,
Wait Wait Don't Tell Me
The Yogi Berra Museum in Little Falls, NJ, will host an appearance by Steve Kettmann, author of Baseball Maverick, tomorrow (April 18) at 2 p.m. Joining Kettmann will be Sandy Alderson, the subject of the book. The program begins at 2 p.m. Cost is $30 and includes admission to the museum for you and one […]
Tagged as:
Bill Pennington,
Jeff Katz,
Jennifer Ring,
Jim Kaat,
Steve Kettmann,
Steve Steinberg
NEW STUFF: 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… […]
Tagged as:
Billy Martin,
Derek Jeter,
Fantasy baseball,
John Feinstein,
Michael Lewis,
Moneyball,
New York Mets,
New York Yankees,
Oakland As,
San Francisco Giants,
Sandy Alderson,
Steve Kettmann,
Ted Williams
Books about the business and businesspeople of baseball are becoming more available these days; I devote a whole chapter on the topic in 501 Baseball Books. I think fans tend to forget that the people who run baseball aren’t born to the position. Just like everybody, they grow into the job, based on years of […]
Tagged as:
New York Mets,
Oakland As,
San Diego Padres,
Sandy Alderson,
Steve Kettmann
As Humphrey Bogart famously said, “A hot dog at the ball park is better than steak at the Ritz.” Certainly one of the most important off-field enticements these days is the food, so when teams design their new homes, they make sure there are plenty of places to get a bite that offer more than […]
Tagged as:
ballpark food
One of my understated heroes turns 93 today. I had the pleasure of doing a Bookshelf Conversation with Hano a couple of years ago. But Jon Leonoudakis — whose previous works include Not Exactly Cooperstown and 5:05 P.M. (about the “Earthquake World Series”) — goes even farther with a documentary about the author of the […]
Tagged as:
A Day in the Bleachers,
Arnold Hano,
Jon Leonoudakis
Dr. Seuss wasn’t considering baseball fans when he published his best-selling book Oh, The Places You’ll Go. He left that for Josh Pahigian to deal with. Pahigian first published 101 Baseball Places to See Before You Strike Out in 2010, following his joint venture with Kevin O’Connell, Ultimate Baseball Road Trip: A Fan’s Guide To Major […]
Tagged as:
baseball museums,
baseball places,
Josh Pahigian
Ain’t Facebook wonderful? It gives one the chance to find so many interesting people. One of the things that never ceases to amaze me is the number of current and former athletes who are social networking and how “just plain folks” they are. Case in point, Ellis Valentine. Just like the rest of us, he […]
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Ellis Valentine