Posts tagged as:

Ball Four

January 3? Already? Where did the year go?   From RoyalsReview.com, this list of “15 books for baseball fans—and some for other sports fans, too.” (Note: not necessarily new releases.)   Peter Dreier, co-author of Baseball Rebels: The Players, People, and Social Movements That Shook Up the Game and Changed America and Major League Rebels: Baseball […]

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If it seems there have been a lot of Conversations with Jon Leonoudakis, it’s because he’s constantly putting out new product. In this case, it’s Ball Four Turns 40, a documentary about that watershed memoir by the irrepressible Jim Bouton. In our latest chat, we talk about the gathering of the Baseball Reliquary in 2011 […]

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New: An asterisk serves to let you know that the author is a member of the Pandemic Baseball Book Club. I enthusiastically recommend you visit the site, sign up for their newsletter, and buy some merch. A reminder: The Amazon rankings are updated every hour, so these lists might not be 100 percent accurate by […]

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Note: The Amazon rankings are updated every hour, so these lists might not be 100 percent accurate by the time you read them (or even by the time I finish writing one). But close enough for government work, as the saying goes. xaaIn addition, occasionally the powers-that-be over there try to pull a fast one […]

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My review of Mitchell Nathanson’s new bio, Bouton: The Life of a Baseball Original is now up on Bookreporter.com.

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What becomes a legend most?

October 17, 2019

That used to be, among other things, a tag line for a print campaign featuring models wearing fur coats. But today I’m applying it to those periodic lists that purport to offer the “best,” “greatest,” “essential,” etc., books on the game. I can’t speak to the expertise of the writers or what criteria they use […]

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Note: The Amazon rankings are updated every hour, so these lists might not be 100 percent accurate by the time you read them (or even by the time I finish writing one). But close enough for government work, as the saying goes. In addition, occasionally the powers-that-be over there try to pull a fast one […]

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As many of you know, I was on a little hiatus during which time Jim Bouton passed away. There have been dozens of obituaries and accolades and I will not refer to them, save the few below; they’re easy enough to Google. But here’s my two cents. It was almost ten years ago when Bouton […]

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Headnote:  The Amazon rankings are updated every hour, so these lists might not longer be 100 percent accurate by the time you read them. But it’ll be close enough for government work. In addition, sometimes the powers-that-be over there try to pull a fast one by including a book in a category to which it […]

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Headnote: I’ve decided to bow to the times and include separate lists for e-books and audio books. Be aware that while many titles also appear in print versions, pretty much anyone can produce an e-book these days, so I’m not going to comment at all about the quality. As far as the audio goes, I’m […]

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Headnote: I’ve decided to bow to the times and include separate lists for e-books and audio books. Be aware that while many titles also appear in print versions, pretty much anyone can produce an e-book these days, so I’m not going to comment at all about the quality. As far as the audio goes, I’m […]

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Bits and pieces, Nov. 18, 2015

November 18, 2015

Been a bit busy lately with the two author events, so I know I’ve fallen behind. You never know where inspiration will come from. According to this public radio story, Haruki Murakami came up with the idea for his first novel, Hear the Wind Sing, as the result of a 1978 pro game in Japan, […]

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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, […]

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Since I posted the first of these on a Thursday, which is known on social media as a time of reflection, I thought to make it a regular thing under this rubric. As a reminder, I highly recommend Pocket as a way to hold onto links you come that you want to keep. Unlike bookmarks, […]

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The top-ten baseball books as per Amazon.com. Caveat 1: Print editions only (at least for now); I’m old fashioned that way. Caveat 2: Since the rankings are updated every hour, these lists might not longer be 100 percent accurate by the time you read it. But it’ll be close enough for government work. Caveat 3: […]

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* The New York Times published this review about Ballplayer: Pelotero, a film documentary about baseball in the Dominican Republic. Upshot: “Forget feel-good boys-of-summer tales. This film shows a shady business in which scouts and the teams they represent try to manipulate teenage players, and to some extent the players do some manipulating of their […]

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Davidson, a defensive end for the rough and tumble Oakland Raiders in the 1960s, passed away Monday at the age of 72. So what does the hulking football player have to do with baseball you ask? Well, after he left the game, he turned to acting (not unlike Merlin Olsen and Alex Karas). He appeared […]

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And the hits just keep coming. Recent author interviews on NPR programs include: This Q&A with Jim Bouton, was the guest for a segment on “‘Ball Four’: The Book That Changed Baseball,” from Northwest Public Radio (an NPR “double threat”). Hart Seely, author of The Juju Rules: Or, How to Win Ballgames from Your Couch: A […]

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The airwaves sure have been busy over the past few days. ♦ Jim Abbott (Imperfect: An Improbable Life) was a guest on yesterday’s Leonard Lopate Show. I find it interesting that the subtitle does not include “Baseball,” as in “An Improbable Baseball Life.” ♦ John Grisham, author of Calico Joe  was a guest on Only […]

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Review roundup, April 11

April 11, 2012

♦ Tom Hoffarth’s latest in his 30 books.30 days series: High Fives, Pennant Drives and Fermandomania: A Fan’s History of the Los Angeles Dodgers’ Glory Years 1977-1981, by Paul Haddad. ♦They’re not exactly timely, but by waiting more than 40 years since the publication of Jim Bouton’s Ball Four, this review on Paste has a  […]

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