Lest we forget: Bill Gallo update

Lest We Forget

The New York Times saw fit to published their own obituary of Gallo, who died on May 10. The New York Post ran this editorial in honor of the rival Daily News‘ late sports cartoonist. Too bad they still had to insinuate themselves in the piece by mentioning the fact that Gallo’s son had been […]

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Literary (and more) birthday greetings

Asian baseball

John Roseboro, an four-time All-Star catcher for the Dodgers, Twins, and Senators who was gained an extra degree of fame for putting his head in the way of Juan Marichal’s bat during an argument, was born this day in 1933 (died 2002). Roseboro published his memoirs, Glory Days with the Dodgers, and Other Days with […]

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Literary birthday greetings: Yogi

2008 title

The Yankee legend turns 86 today. You can’t have a baseball book about the Yankees post-war dynasty without Berra, who happens to be a nominal neighbor of mine in that we live in the same New Jersey town. One of his books is titled The Yogi Book: “I Really Didn’t Say Everything I Said. “ […]

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Because you can keep a cup of coffee on your bookshelf

Baseball humor

(but not for too long, especially if it’s iced).

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TSN-SABR Baseball Research Awards announced

"Ripped from today's headlines..."

The Sporting News-SABR Baseball Research Award, which recognizes outstanding baseball research in areas other than history and biography, has been awarded for the following books published in 2010: Satch, Dizzy, and Rapid Robert: The Wild Saga of Interracial Baseball Before Jackie Robinson, by Timothy M. Gay (Simon & Schuster) Evaluating Baseball’s Managers: A History and […]

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Literary birthday greetings: The Mechanical Man and Milt Pappas

Birthday greetings

Hall of Fame second baseman Charlie Gehringer was born this date in 1903. He earned the nickname “Mechanical Man” for his steady play for the Detroit Tigers, with whom he spent his entire 19-year career, earning the MVP award in 1937 and six All-Star berths. Charlie Gehringer: A Biography of the Hall of Fame Tigers […]

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Lest we forget: Bill Gallo

Baseball art

I have a special affinity for cartoonists and artists. My father was a pretty good  art hobbyist who worked on the cheap, using the backs of discarded poster, cardboard, whatever he could scrounge up. Maybe that has something to do with it. Anyway, today we mourn the passing of Bill Gallo, long time cartoonist for […]

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Long game’s journey into…day

2011 title

(Or “Night and Day, you are the one…”) One of the baseball books that’s been getting a lot of buzz lately is Dan Barry’s Bottom of the 33rd: Hope, Redemption, and Baseball’s Longest Game, about the longest game in pro baseball, a 1981 affair between the Pawtucket Red Sox and the Rochester Red Wings. Herewith […]

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Cinematic birthday greetings: Ken Berry

Birthday greetings

Not the Ken Berry of F Troop fame, but Ken Berry the outfielder for the White Sox, Angels, Brewers, and Indians, who turns 70 today. The defensive standout (two Gold Gloves) served as a technical adviser for the movie version of Eight Men Out and even had a speaking part. He’s the loudmouth in the […]

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Literary birthday greetings: Captain Video

Autobiography/memoirs

I have a special affinity for players who remain with one team for their career: Carl Yazstremski, Cal Ripken, Jr., Mantle, Feller, Musial, etc. Free agency has rendered such a feat exceedingly rare. (Several years ago, The New York Times produced a pretty item featuring a a dozen or so contemporary players; the date isn’t […]

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Try not to prejudge John Rocker’s literary plans

2011 title

but it’s difficult. A couple of items about John Rocker, the former ML reliever who got into heaps of trouble for his comments about New York and the good people of Queens who ride the 7 train as reported by Sports Illustrated. Rocker, who’s been out of the Majors since 2003, will take his turn […]

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Literary birthday greetings: The Say Hey Kid

Biography

Willie Mays turns 80 today. Wow. Somewhere in my stacks I have some yellowing magazines from the mid-60s that still compared Mays to Mickey Mantle, Duke Snider having been out of the picture for a couple of seasons. Mays appeared on the cover of Sports Illustrated nine times (six as an active player). So much […]

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This week in Sports Illustrated

2011 title

Watch out, Starlin Castro! The Cubs shortstop gets the dreaded cover treatment in the May 9 issue, written by Albert Chen, with a little something extra by Joe Sheehan. In addition An SI poll names Shin-Soo Choo as MLB’s most under-rated player. Sheehan also writes about the Twins’ recent woes. UPDATE: Chen is the subject […]

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Literary birthday greetings: Chief Bender

Biography

The Hall of Fame pitcher was born this date in 1884. He holds the record for most wins for players born on this date with 212 although he won more than 20 in a season just twice. He is also, surprisingly, second in saves (34). Bender was not too shabby at the plate either, with […]

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Review: Baseball Miscellany

2011 title

Judy Van Sickle Johnson over at the very excellent Watching the Game blog does the occasional book review that goes beyond the normal critique. Her thoughtful takes include sundry views on life, the universe, and everything, to borrow another title. Her latest considers Matthew Silverman’s Baseball Miscellany: Everything You Always Wanted to Know About Baseball […]

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And now for something completely different

"Ripped from today's headlines..."

The Baseball Reliquary — “an organization dedicated to fostering an appreciation of American art and culture through the context of baseball history” — might be seen by some as a “renegade” outfit. They buck the established order of things with their own Hall of Fame, aka, The Shrine of the Eternals. TBR just announced the […]

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Hall of Fame sponsors authors series

2011 title

From a press release issued by the baseball hall of Fame: This year, some of baseball’s greatest storytellers are coming to Cooperstown to share their work as part of the Museum’s annual Authors’ Series offerings. The Hall of Fame’s Summer Authors’ Series gets under way May 28 and continues throughout June, July and August. The […]

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Tom Hoffarth’s supplements

2011 title

Tom Hoffarth adds a postmortem for his One-a-Days, including a ranking of the 30 titles. Best: Bottom of the 33rd: Hope, Redemption, and Baseball’s Longest Game. Worst: Donnie Baseball: The Definitive Biography of Don Mattingl. Median: 1961*: The Inside Story of the Maris-Mantle Home Run Chase. He also has an entry on “Extra innings: The […]

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Bits and pieces

2011 title

Now brought to you by … the breakfast cereal of AMC’s The Killing. Very cool. Anyway… * Ben Platt posted this review of Kostya Kennedy’s new biography of Joe DiMaggio on MLB.com. * The “Bats” baseball blog of The New York Times ran this profile of Steve Stone, author of the new book Said In […]

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Literary birthday greetings: Ryan Dempster

"Oddballs"

The veteran pitcher turns 34 today. Last year he gathered some of his teammates to collaborate on the yummy Chicago Cubs Cookbook: All-Star Recipes from Your Favorite Players.

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