Last year (where does the time go?) I posted a “Things we Keep” entry about a couple of White Sox yearbooks I bought at a used book store when I was a kid. A few months ago, I received an email from Patrick Dessent of Illinois: I have a question: my grandfather was a White […]
Tagged as:
Chicago White Sox,
Elmer "Doc" Bennett
When I was a kid, younger than 10, it was a different world. Kids walked everywhere by themselves. To school, to the library, to play with friends. When I lived in Crown Heights, a Brooklyn neighborhood, there was a great used book store a couple of blocks away from our apartment where I would often […]
Tagged as:
Chicago White Sox,
Yearbook(s)
The veteran actor, perhaps best known for his role as Martin Crane, the father on Fraiser, died on Feb. 4 at the age of 78. Mahoney was one of those character actors you always recognize but rarely remember the name. To me, his greatest turn as as Chicago White Sox manager Kid Gleason in the […]
Tagged as:
Chicago White Sox,
Eight Men Out,
John Mahoney
A couple of months ago, I posted about some of the new books being published in 2018. Since then, Amazon has put up a few more titles. You’re welcome. In order of release, and sticking to the same restrictions as I have often stated… The Science of Baseball: Modeling Bat-Ball Collisions and the Flight of […]
Tagged as:
Chicago White Sox,
Houston Astros,
New Yiork Yankees
An early start today because work. NOTE: 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 […]
Tagged as:
Atlanta Braves,
Boston Red Sox,
Chicago Cubs,
Chicago White Sox,
Chipper Jones,
David Ortiz,
David Ross,
Jackie Robinson,
Rick Ankiel,
statistics,
Ted Williams,
World Series
NOTE: 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 on […]
Tagged as:
baseball statistics,
Bob Gibson,
Chicago White Sox,
Kansas City Royals,
Lonnie Wheeler,
Los Angeles Dodgers,
Oakland Athletics,
Roger Angell,
Sports Illustrated,
World Series
I picked up a couple of books at the library recently and, lo and behold, found some baseball in ’em. 100 of the Worst Ideas in History, by Michael Smith and Eric Kasum, includes three items on the national pastime in the chapter “Stupidity at a Major League Level.” Each contains the following: “The genius […]
Tagged as:
7/11,
Babe Ruth,
Chicago White Sox,
Freakonomics,
Josh Gibson,
Pete Rose
Does a review carry more weight if it’s done by A Hall of Famer-award winning writer? In this case, Paul Hogan who received the Spink Award for 2013 for contributions to baseball writing published this one about Tim Hornbaker’s Turning the Black Sox White: The Misunderstood Legacy of Charles A. Comiskey on the MLB website. […]
Tagged as:
Black Sox scandal,
Charles Comiskey,
Chicago Cubs,
Chicago White Sox,
Paul Hagen,
Wrigley Field
♦ The Ft. Wayne News-Sentinel published this piece by Mark Souder, a former congressional representative, about his favorite White Sox books, including this year’s Paul Dickson contribution, Bill Veeck: Baseball’s Greatest Maverick. ♦ Tony La Russa is making the rounds on his book tour. He was a recent guest on NPR’s The Leonard Lopate Show (which […]
Tagged as:
Bill Veeck,
Chicago White Sox,
Leonard Lopate,
National Public Radio,
Paul Dickson,
Robert Siegel,
Tony LaRussa
The High Holy Days are upon us and each year brings the inevitable question: will the handful of Jewish Major Leaguers play on Yom Kippur, the holiest day in the Jewish calendar, or will they sit? The most prominent stars to refrain from taking the field during this time were Hank Greenberg and Sandy Koufax […]
Tagged as:
Chicago White Sox,
Hank Greenberg,
High Holy Days,
Ray Robinson,
Sandy Koufax,
Yom Kippur
Because you can keep a TV on a bookshelf: Although I actually prefer the shorter version: Love the eye-roll when the Cubs’ fan refers to the “elegantly-coiffed ex-governor.”
Tagged as:
baseball caps,
Chicago Cubs,
Chicago White Sox
Kelly D. Cleaver Sr. recently published Sorry Kid, I Don’t Much Feel Like Playing Today which, according to the blurb on the iUniverse publishing site, “settles the debates once and for all by breaking down each player’s contributions on a play-by-play basis. Section one addresses Chicago’s pitching and fielding, while section two is all about […]
Tagged as:
Black Sox scandal,
Chicago White Sox,
World Series
Hall of Famer Early Wynn was born this date in 1920. He hung around for 23 Years, missing the whole 1945 season for military service. I was under the impression that he retired right after he won his coveted 300th game, but I was in error. He actually appeared in another15 games after his July […]
Tagged as:
Chicago White Sox,
Early Wynn,
Ralph Branca
Triumph and Tragedy: The 1919 Chicago White Sox is scheduled to premiere on Saturday, Nov. 13, at 9pm ET/8pm CT on the MLB Network. The one-hour made-for-television program features some members of the Field of Dreams Ghost Players.
Tagged as:
Black Sox scandal,
Chicago White Sox
Haven’t seen too many of ESPN’s 30 for 30 documentary series, but happened on this one while flipping through the dial. Jordan Rides the Bus is a nifty piece by Ron (Bull Durham) Shelton that takes a studied look at Michael’s days as member of the Birmingham Barons, a minor team in the Chicago White […]
Tagged as:
Bull Durham,
Chicago White Sox,
ESPN,
Michael Jordan,
Ron Shelton
White Sox skipper Ozzie Guillen and sportswriter Mark Gonzales will sign copies of Gonzales’ book, The Good, The Bad and the Ugly: Heart-pounding, Jaw-dropping and Gut-wrenching Moments from Chicago White Sox History, on Thursday, June 25, at 6:30 p.m. at the Downers Grove Recreation and Fitness Center, 4500 Belmont Road, Downers Grove, IL The Amazon […]
Tagged as:
Chicago White Sox,
Ozzie Guillen
Congratulations to Barack Obama, our new commander in chief. Whew. The New York Times‘ Alan Schwarz wrote this piece on Chicago White Sox’ GM Kenny Williams and Obama. Looks like we’ll need a revision here:
Tagged as:
Barack Obama,
Chicago White Sox