Koppett's Concise History of Major League Baseball
Koppett's Concise History of Major League Baseball

Author: Leonard Koppett

Publisher: Da Capo Press

Published: 2004-03-01

Total Pages: 528

ISBN-13: 9780786712861

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Baseball's greatest asset is the richness of its lore, and Leonard Koppett has made the entire treasure of the game's history accessible in one enjoyable volume. In his lively narratives on the shape and significance of each season from baseball's nineteenth-century beginnings to the updated and expanded sections on the last decade, Koppett explains the changes in baseball-the-game and baseball-the-business that forged the major leagues we know today. Each chapter recounts trends, players, and events during different eras; offers succinct seasonal recaps, and summarizes how the consequences of that particular baseball era set the stage for the next. On the origins and evolution of on-the-field play—from the 1880s origin of pitching high and tight then low and away, to modern-day use of body armor at bat—plus statistics and record-breaking achievements, Koppett's got it covered. On business and organizational controversies, such as the introduction of night baseball, radio and TV broadcasting, free agency, strike actions, divisional play-offs, and the policies of owners and commissioners, Koppett's got it covered. One-stop reading for the most essential stories, statistics, and opinions on the major leagues, Koppett's Concise History of Major League Baseball is the most original baseball reference available.

The Midsummer Classic
The Midsummer Classic

Author: David Vincent

Publisher: U of Nebraska Press

Published: 2001-01-01

Total Pages: 630

ISBN-13: 9780803292734

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Examines the history of All-Star baseball, providing play-by-plays, rosters, and box scores of each game; and discusses how All-Star games have been influenced by racial integration, expansion teams, and the designated hitter.

The New York Yankees
The New York Yankees

Author: Frank Graham

Publisher:

Published: 1943

Total Pages: 351

ISBN-13:

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"This is the story of the greatest organization in baseball. It begins with the purchase of the New York franchise in the American League in 1903, and through its pages moves the always colorful figures of the men who created and have maintained this ball club..."--Back cover.

Keepers of the Game
Keepers of the Game

Author: Dennis D'Agostino

Publisher: U of Nebraska Press

Published: 2013-02-01

Total Pages: 288

ISBN-13: 1597976911

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The inside stories from baseball's legendary beat writers

Ebbets to Veeck to Busch
Ebbets to Veeck to Busch

Author: Burton A. Boxerman

Publisher: McFarland

Published: 2010-06-25

Total Pages: 264

ISBN-13: 9780786480272

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Of baseball there have been countless books, but, surprisingly, relatively few about the owners, the men and women who invested their time--and, frequently, their fortunes--in baseball teams. What has been written tends to concentrate on the financial aspects of ownership or individual owners and their private lives, and pays less attention to the enduring contributions certain owners have made. Eight owners and their lasting influences on the game are the focus of this book. Charles Ebbets, Barney Dreyfuss, Helene Britton, Clark Griffith, Walter O'Malley, Bill Veeck, Charles Finley and August Busch were chosen for inclusion not only because of their larger contributions but also because they were hands-on owners who ran their teams decisively. For instance, Helene Britton proved that a knowledgable woman could successfully run a ball club, even if she couldn't vote; Bill Veeck hired the first black player in the American League, introduced exploding scoreboards and was the first owner to put his players' names on the backs of their uniforms; Walter O'Malley relocated his Dodgers to the West Coast and convinced Giants owner Horace Stoneham to bring his team out too.

Historical Dictionary of Baseball
Historical Dictionary of Baseball

Author: Lyle Spatz

Publisher: Scarecrow Press

Published: 2012-12-21

Total Pages: 505

ISBN-13: 0810879549

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Dating back to 1869 as an organized professional sport, the game of baseball is not only the oldest professional sport in North America, but also symbolizes much more. Walt Whitman described it as “our game, the American game,” and George Will compared calling baseball “just a game” to the Grand Canyon being “just a hole.” Countless others have called baseball “the most elegant game,” and to those who have played it, it’s life. The Historical Dictionary of Baseball is primarily devoted to the major leagues it also includes entries on the minor leagues, the Negro Leagues, women’s baseball, baseball in various other countries, and other non-major league related topics. It traces baseball, in general, and these topics individually, from their beginnings up to the present. This is done through a chronology, an introductory essay, appendixes, and an extensive bibliography. The dictionary section has over 900 cross-referenced entries on the roles of the players on the field—batters, pitchers, fielders—as well as non-playing personnel—general managers, managers, coaches, and umpires. There are also entries for individual teams and leagues, stadiums and ballparks, the role of the draft and reserve clause, and baseball’s rules, and statistical categories. This book is an excellent access point for students, researchers, and anyone wanting to know more about the sport of baseball.

Encyclopedia of Major League Baseball Clubs
Encyclopedia of Major League Baseball Clubs

Author: Steven Riess

Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing USA

Published: 2006-06-30

Total Pages: 1103

ISBN-13: 0313083061

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From exploits on the field, to machinations in the front office, to data on the cities where they play, the Encyclopedia of Major League Baseball Clubs presents the team history of each of the 30 MLB teams. Intelligent, in-depth essays provide social and economic histories of each club that go beyond the recounting of team glories or failures year by year. Team origins, annual campaigns, and players and managers all figure into the story, but so do owners, financiers, politicians, neighborhoods and fans. Teams are also looked at as business enterprises, with special attention given to labor issues like the reserve clause and free agency, as well as stadium construction and financing. Social and political issues are covered as well, including racism and integration, ethnic makeup of fans and players, gambling, liquor sales, and Sunday play. National events, like World War I, World War II, the Great Depression and the Cold War, and their impact on the national pastime, are also brought into the picture where they are relevant. Media coverage and broadcasting rights are discussed, as is the great influence the flood of media money has had on the sport. As America's sport, baseball reflects not just our ideas and beliefs about competition, it also reflects our national and regional identities. Readers will be able to find useful information about: important players, managers, owners; community relations/charity work; business and labor issues (television income, free agency); race relations; baseball/sports economics (including stadium construction, team relocations; and teams in local and national culture (Fenway Park, Wrigley Field as local icons, Yankees as a national team). Every essay is signed, and concludes with suggested readings and a bibliography. The work is illustrated, has a comprehensive bibliography, and is thoroughly indexed.

Baseball
Baseball

Author: George Vecsey

Publisher: Modern Library

Published: 2008-12-24

Total Pages: 274

ISBN-13: 0307494063

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“Football is force and fanatics, basketball is beauty and bounce. Baseball is everything: action, grace, the seasons of our lives. George Vecsey’s book proves it, without wasting a word.”—Lee Eisenberg, author of The Number In Baseball, one of the great bards of America’s Grand Old Game gives a rousing account of the sport, from its pre-Republic roots to the present day. George Vecsey casts a fresh eye on the game, illuminates its foibles and triumphs, and performs a marvelous feat: making a classic story seem refreshingly new. Baseball is a narrative of America’s can-do spirit, in which stalwart immigrants such as Henry Chadwick could transplant cricket and rounders into the fertile American culture and in which die-hard unionist baseballers such as Charles Comiskey and Connie Mack could eventually become the tightfisted avatars of the game’s big-money establishment. It’s a celebration of such underdogs as a rag-armed catcher turned owner named Branch Rickey and a sure-handed fielder named Curt Flood, both of whom flourished as true great men of history. But most of all, Baseball is a testament to the unbreakable bond between our nation’s pastime and the fans, who’ve remained loyal through the fifty-year-long interdict on black athletes, the Black Sox scandal, franchise relocation, and the use of performance-enhancing drugs by some major stars. Reverent, playful, and filled with Vecsey’s charm, Baseball begs to be read in the span of a rain-delayed doubleheader, and so enjoyable that, like a favorite team’s championship run, one hopes it never ends. “Vecsey possesses a journalist’s eye for detail and a historian’s feel for the sweep of action. His research is scrupulous and his writing crisp. This book is an instant classic—a highly readable guide to America’s great enduring pastime.”—The Louisville Courier Journal

Baseball and the Music of Charles Ives
Baseball and the Music of Charles Ives

Author: Timothy A. Johnson

Publisher: Scarecrow Press

Published: 2004

Total Pages: 220

ISBN-13: 9780810849990

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Baseball and the Music of Charles Ivesoffers readers an exceptionally rich understanding of Charles Ives. Through intelligent discussion of Ives's musical compositions combined with solid research on the composer's lifelong love of the American pastime, Ives's pioneering spirit and unique creativity are highlighted most clearly in this fascinating work.