Nothing evokes the glory days of Negro Leagues baseball like the name of star pitcher Satchel Paige. This collection of essays and papers based on the 9th Annual Jerry Malloy Negro League Conference focuses on Paige and on the Kansas City Monarchs, the team he led to the Negro Leagues World Series in 1942 and 1946. Essays discuss such topics as the people Paige encountered in his career; Paige's effect on the Jim Crow era; and Paige in myth and reality - do we gain or lose by separating the two? Also considered is how the image of the Negro League was shaped in its day by newspaper coverage, and later in the popular film ""Bingo Long and the Traveling All-Stars"". A biography of Paige, highlights of his career, and a history of the Monarchs are all included, along with Kansas City rosters and other team information.

Over a career spanning forty years, David G. Dalin has written extensively about the role of American Jews in public life, from the nation's founding, to presidential appointments of Jews, to lobbying for the welfare of Jews abroad, to Jewish prominence in government, philanthropy, intellectual life, and sports, and their one-time prominence in the Republican Party. His work on the separation of Church and State and a prescient 1980 essay about the limits of free speech and the goal of Neo-Nazis to stage a march in Skokie, Illinois, are especially noteworthy. Here for the first time are a collection of sixteen of his essays which portray American Jews who have left their mark on American public life and politics.

Long-time fans of the National Pastime have known Moyer's name for more than 25 years. That's because he's been pitching in the bigs for all those years. With his trademark three pitches - slow, slower, and slowest - the left-handed Moyer is a pinpoint specialist whose won-lost record actually got better as he got older - from his 20s to his 30s and into 40s. He's only a few wins shy of 300 for his amazing career. But this is where the book takes an unusual turn. Moyer was just about finished as a big leaguer in his mid-20s until he fatefully encountered a gravel-voiced, highly confrontational sports psychologist named Harvey Dorfman. Listening to the 'in-your-face' insights of Dorfman, Moyer began to re-invent himself and reconstruct his approach to his game. Moyer went on to become an All-Star and also a World Series champion. Yogi Berra once observed that 'Half of this game is 90% mental.' And Moyer's memoir proves it.

It's often said that catcher is the most important, most demanding defensive position in baseball. This view explains why so many light-hitting catchers have enjoyed long?and by all accounts successful?major league careers. Yet arguments over the all-time greats invariably privilege offensive standouts, and even among these players batting statistics are more likely than fielding numbers to affect ranking. So what, historically, have been the expectations for major league catchers, and who stands as the greatest in a more balanced view of offensive and defensive contributions? In Part I of this book, the history of catching and catchers is discussed in detail, with attention to the most celebrated players of each era. In Part II, the author employs sabermetric formulas to rank the 50 greatest catchers since 1920, when changes to the rules, the parks, and the ball dramatically changed the way baseball was played. Also included is a chapter on catchers of the 19th century, deadball era, and Negro Leagues, whose career statistics are either incomplete, inaccurate, or produced under markedly different playing conditions and rules.

Playing in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, Willie Keeler is still considered one of baseball's most accomplished batters in the history of the game. Wee Willie's popular "Hit 'em where they ain't" explanation for his batting success has become part of baseball lore. He is known for his quick-thinking at the plate and for his record-setting forty-four-game hitting streak in 1897 that was not surpassed until Joe DiMaggio broke the record in 1941. In addition to being one of baseball's most accomplished hitters, Keeler was an integral part of two memorable teams-the Baltimore Orioles of 1894-1897 and the Brooklyn Superbas of 1899-1900. Willie Keeler: From the Playgrounds of Brooklyn to the Hall of Fame recounts the life of this talented yet often overlooked ballplayer. It follows Keeler from his birth in 1872 in Brooklyn to his death in 1923. His unique story includes a career that was almost evenly split between the rough and "dirty" National League of the 1890s and the new, more disciplined American League of the early twentieth century. Each part of this book examines a key stage of Keeler's life and career: his childhood and teenage years; his career with the Baltimore Orioles; his years with the Brooklyn Superbas; his time with the New York Yankees; and his life after baseball. Featuring several rare photographs, many of which have not been seen in more than a hundred years, Willie Keeler provides an in-depth look into the life of an undersized ballplayer who forged a big career. Baseball fans, scholars, and historians alike will find this book both informative and entertaining.

Hal Trosky played first base for the Cleveland Indians during the Great Depression, a time when the American League included perhaps the greatest trio of first basemen ever: Lou Gehrig, Jimmie Foxx, and Hank Greenberg. Because of the phenomenal feats of those players, Trosky's story was consigned to the figurative back page of history. He led the American League in Runs Batted In in 1936, was elected to the Indians' All-Time team in 1969, and at his peak played at a level comparable to anyone in the game. His career was tragically cut short due to an onset of severe migraine headaches, and he was out of baseball by the age of 34, but his playing days spanned the time from Babe Ruth through the end of World War II. Until now, his story has never been entirely told. This book combines access to Trosky family archives with exhaustive research in order to craft a narrative of Trosky's life. From his early years in Iowa, through his entire major league career and throughout his life after baseball, this book looks at the man on and off the diamond, and on the legacy that remains.

Frommer's latest book takes us to the birthplace of America's most beloved sport. Starting from baseball's humble beginnings, Frommer vividly introduces the reader to the trailblazing personalities that shaped baseball's history. From the first games in Madison, New York to the rise of the National League, Frommer vividly recreates the energy of this early time. Frommer's expertise lends itself to tell the magical story of baseball's history and insight into an era that is not to be forgotten.

The conclusion of the Sandy Koufax Era 1964-1966 was a wild roller coaster ride for the Los Angeles Dodgers. Overly dependent on the fragile left arm of their brilliant Hall of Fame left-hander, they careened from their worst season since WWII in 1964 after losing him to injury in mid-August, to a World Series Championship in 1965 on the strength of his heroic shutout performance on short rest in Game 7 of the World Series with the Twins, to an ignominious World Series collapse to the Orioles in 1966 after he single-handedly saved the season for them on the last day of the regular season. After putting together one of the most prolific final 2-year runs in baseball history in which he averaged 27 complete games, 27 wins, and 350 strikeouts-and sixteen days after winning his second straight unanimous Cy Young Award- Koufax shocked the Dodgers and Major League Baseball by announcing his retirement. Like a brilliant supernova that had lit up the sports world for six years he flamed out and was gone at the age of thirty.

The book is the day by day story of the 1954 Indians, whose .721 winning percentage is still the highest in American League history. It tells how down the city of Cleveland was on the team following three straight second place finishes, how little was expected of it by its fans, and even some of its players, and how it exceeded all expectations by winning a league-record 111 games and a pennant, before flopping in the World Series.

In late 1913, the newly formed Federal League declared itself a major league in competition with the established National and American Leagues. Backed by some of America's wealthiest merchants and industrialists, the new organization posed a real challenge to baseball's prevailing structure. For the next two years the well-established leagues fought back furiously in the press, in the courts, and on the field. The story of this fascinating and complex historical battle centers on the machinations of both the owners and the players, as the Federals struggled for profits and status, and players organized baseball's first real union. Award-winning author Daniel R. Levitt gives the most authoritative account yet published of the short-lived Federal League, the last professional baseball league to challenge the National and American League monopoly. This paperback edition was first printed in hardcover as The Battle That Forged Modern Baseball. An eBook edition is also available under the original title.

Tom Gamboa played professionally, coached, scouted, managed in the minors and in Puerto Rico, and coached in the big leagues with the Cubs and Royals. He even had a small part in the Academy Award nominated Moneyball. With his insight and humor, Tom takes readers inside the dugouts and clubhouses for all the behind the scenes workings of a baseball team. There was the cross country traveling he had to do on a daily basis as a national crosschecker. Winning a number of pennants as a minor league manager as well as building a perennial winner in Puerto Rico in the winter league. Tom was the scout who discovered Jesse Orosco, and then later helped develop Doug Glanville and Jose Hernandez in Puerto Rico and the Cubs organization, giving them the mental strength to go along with their physical tools. And before Jim ""The Rookie"" Morris made it to the majors at age 35, Tom coached him as a 20-year-old on a title team in the Brewers organization. And when Sammy Sosa told Tom he wanted to fist bump him after each home run he hit, Tom didn't think it would happen over 60 times each of the next two seasons. Tom gets to look back at his career in full now that he had retired after three seasons of managing the Brooklyn Cyclones in the Mets organization.

Roberta J. Newman and Joel Nathan Rosen have written an authoritative social history of the Negro Leagues. This book examines how the relationship between black baseball and black businesses functioned, particularly in urban areas with significant African American populations--Chicago, Detroit, Indianapolis, Kansas City, Newark, New York, Philadelphia, and more. Inextricably bound together by circumstance, these sports and business alliances faced destruction and upheaval.

Once Jackie Robinson and a select handful of black baseball's elite gained acceptance in Major League Baseball and financial stability in the mainstream economy, shock waves traveled throughout the black business world. Though the economic impact on Negro League baseball is perhaps obvious due to its demise, the impact on other black-owned businesses and on segregated neighborhoods is often undervalued if not outright ignored in current accounts. There have been many books written on great individual players who played in the Negro Leagues and/or integrated the Major Leagues. But Newman and Rosen move beyond hagiography to analyze what happens when a community has its economic footing undermined while simultaneously being called upon to celebrate a larger social progress. In this regard, "Black Baseball, Black Business" moves beyond the diamond to explore baseball's desegregation narrative in a critical and wide ranging fashion.

In the spring of 1945 Pete Gray, who had lost his right arm in a childhood accident, made his debut with the St. Louis Browns of the American League. Dubbed the "One-Amed Wonder" by sportswriters, Gray was a controversial figure from the moment he stepped on a major league diamond. Club owners saw him as a gate attraction for war-weary baseball fans; some of his teammates openly questioned his ability and felt that he cost them a chance to capture a second consecutive pennant. Gray was left to wonder just how good a ballplayer he really was. Though some may have doubted Gray's ability, no one questioned the cantankerous outfielder's desire to reach the major leagues. From the coalfields of northeastern Pennsylvania, Pete Gray fought his way through the minor leagues with single-minded determination. Despite his missing arm, he was the most valuable player of the minor league's Southern Association in 1944. His on-field exploits and relentless fire became an inspiration to the many servicemen who returned from the battlefields of World War II with missing limbs.

The parents and widow of Lou Gehrig were so concerned about the potential desecration of his grave that they considered moving his ashes to the Hall of Fame. Officials embraced the idea of creating a mausoleum for baseball greats, but the idea was killed by Gehrigs wifewhose cryptic remarks leave us wondering to this day about the disposition of his remains. Kirsts essay on Gehrigs ashes and numerous other essays are put together from dozens of personal interviews with baseball characters.

Babe Dahlgren claims he was blacklisted for rumors of marijuana use; Babe Ruth sends a note to a child stricken with polioa note nearly lost when the family moved, and the first physical confirmation obtained by the Hall of Fame of the sluggers legendary kindness to children; a black cat is brought to the ballpark as a gesture of contempt when Jackie Robinson plays against Syracuse, a team he felt treated him as badly as any in the International League. The collection contains new information about the father of baseball card collecting, about a bat company whose accomplishments were lost in baseball lore, and about the murder trial of the first African American to play in the Major Leagues. Beautifully written, filled with fresh facts and revelations, these essays will appeal.

After coming close to winning the pennant on more than one occasion during the early 1920s, the Pittsburgh Pirates finally shed the stigma of being underachievers and claimed the National League flag in 1925, ending the New York Giants' four-year reign at the top of the league. Manager Bill McKechnie's brigade of young guns moved on to oppose the defending world champion Washington Senators in the World Series. After falling behind three games to one, Pittsburgh pulled off the greatest comeback in World Series history when they rallied to win in a thrilling seventh game. This detailed history recounts the entire 1925 Pittsburgh Pirates season, paying special attention to the team's construction and the World Series. Appendices provide complete statistics for the 1925 Pittsburgh Pirates, box scores for all seven games of that year's World Series, and World Series statistics for both teams.

In 1924, at the age of 27, manager and second baseman Stanley ""Bucky"" Harris--aka ""The Boy Wonder""--led the Washington Senators to their only World Series championship. His incredible debut season at the helm of the Senators marked the beginning of remarkable 29-year managerial career that earned him a spot in the Baseball Hall of Fame. This detailed biography chronicles Harris's road to the top of his sport, including his youth in the coal mining region of eastern Pennsylvania, his brief stint in professional basketball, his early days as a baseball player, his 1947 world championship as manager of the Yankees, and his role in the racial integration of both the Senators and the Boston Red Sox. By highlighting Harris' easy-going nature and intelligence, this profile makes it perfectly clear why one player being traded to Harris' Senators declared, ""Ask any ballplayer who he'd like to play for and he'd say Bucky Harris.

The Western Gate to the Sunshine State boasts an epic history of hardball, dating back nearly to the beginning of the sport. Sunshine, loyal fans and pristine beaches have attracted baseball's best athletes to Pensacola--from stars like Babe Ruth and Ted Williams to the Blue Wahoos, modern-day affiliate for the Cincinnati Reds. The city is home to major-league teams during spring training, minor-league teams during the season and baseball fanatics year-round. Whether it's following big-league icons or cheering high school future stars, Pensacola's love affair with baseball runs deep. Team up with local author Scott Brown as he details the area's greatest moments in America's oldest pastime.

This entertaining, informative and easily understood guide digs into the roots of baseball in and around Cleveland, starting in the 1840's and closing with the end of the century in 1900. It is an outline with a large volume of baseball information where the chapters are chronologically and geographically ordered accounts of games and off-field happenings that made the news. This is a complete history of the sport at all levels in its formative year-until now, that not only reflects the economic and social growth of Cleveland, during this the time of Industrial Revolution, but all of America as well. It also contains a fascinating but forgotten story of baseball on the Western Reserve, from its infancy as an amateur game through its growth into adulthood as a professional sport. Also included are several dozen illustrations and photostats from microfilm newspaper records, along with an alphabetical list of all names and subjects. Dozens of box scores, with players' names and statistics for important games, are found throughout the text as well as complete team standings at year end.

Willie Mays' career bridged eras in baseball history, from the Negro Leagues to expansion to free agency. Through it all, his all-around ability and his love of the game set him apart. His career accomplishments include 660 home runs, 2 MVPs, Rookie of the Year, and the first 30-30 season. No other player is cited by so many of his peers as the best they have ever seen. From his childhood growing up in segregated Birmingham, Alabama to becoming the first black team captain in baseball, Mays' life is described in detail. Readers will learn of his early life, his career with the Giants and the Mets, his induction into the Hall of Fame, understanding why he is regarded by many today as baseball's greatest living player.

Who comprised the most productive pairs in the history of professional team sports? Joe Montana and Jerry Rice of the San Francisco 49ers? Michael Jordan and Scottie Pippen of the Chicago Bulls? What about the prolific hockey tandem of Wayne Gretzky and Mark Messier? And that all-time great New York Yankees twosome of Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig can certainly not be excluded. Using various selection criteria including longevity, level of statistical compilation, impact on one s team, and overall place in history The 50 Most Dynamic Duos in Sports History attempts to ascertain which twosome truly established themselves as the most dominant tandem in the history of the four major professional team sports: baseball, basketball, football, and hockey. Arranged and ranked by sport, this work takes an in-depth look at the careers of these 100 men, including statistics, quotes from opposing players and former teammates, and career highlights. Finally, all 50 duos are placed in an overall ranking. Covering every decade since the 1890s, this book will find widespread appeal among sports fans of all generations. And with photographs of many of the tandems, The 50 Most Dynamic Duos in Sports History is a wonderful addition to any sports historian s collection."

Roger Conner, the Babe Ruth of the 1880s and inventor of the pop-up slide, ranks number one for 19th century players in home runs and was an expert bunter. Called "The Gentleman of the Diamond," and played well into his fifties. This biography covers Conner's entire baseball career as well as his early life.

A queer graphic novel where the balls are fast, the smooches are spicy, and the girls . . . magicalIn this queer graphic novel that’s equal parts romance, softball, and magical girl drama, Mickey Monsoon and Astra Maxima are best friends . . . and maybe more. That is, until Astra unceremoniously dumps Mickey to become a softball wunderkind at a private girl’s school in Switzerland. Years later, Mickey is the hotshot pitcher for the Belle City Broads, and their team is poised to sweep the league this season. But Micky is thrown off their game when Astra shows up to catch for the Gaiety Gals, the Broads’ fiercest rival. Astra is flirty, arrogant, and reckless on the field—everything the rule-abiding Mickey hates.Astra thinks Mickey’s cute and wants to fool around, even despite their rocky history and the trail of jilted softballers that Astra leaves in her wake. Too bad the only thing Mickey wants is vengeance for their broken heart and wounded pride! But even they have to admit—Astra is a certified babe. And that’s not all: Astra isn’t just a softball superstar, she’s a full-fledged magical girl. The only way for Mickey to defeat Astra is to betray the Broads and join the Danger Dames, a secret elite team, and start dating Astra’s ex! OK, that last bit wasn’t part of the plan . . . Mickey’s rapidly getting in too deep, but is she just in trouble or is she actually in love? Full of wet mitts, hard hits, and a bevy of softball-playing babes, Grand Slam Romance: Book 1 is a flawless home run that is sure to knock readers out of the park.

Inspired and led by sporting magnate Albert Goodwill Spalding, two teams of baseball players circled the globe for six months in 1888-1889 competing in such far away destinations as Australia, Sri Lanka and Egypt. These players, however, represented much more than mere pleasure-seekers. In this lively narrative, Zeiler explores the ways in which the Spalding World Baseball Tour drew on elements of cultural diplomacy to inject American values and power into the international arena. Through his chronicle of baseball history, games, and experiences, Zeiler explores expressions of imperial dreams through globalization's instruments of free enterprise, webs of modern communication and transport, cultural ordering of races and societies, and a strident nationalism that galvanized notions of American uniqueness. Spalding linked baseball to a U.S. presence overseas, viewing the world as a market ripe for the infusion of American ideas, products and energy. Through globalization during the Gilded Age, he and other Americans penetrated the globe and laid the foundation for an empire formally acquired just a decade after their tour.

It was a novel experiment as baseball's leading men formed the National Association, bringing order to the hodgepodge of professional and amateur clubs that made up the sport from the end of the Civil War through 1870. It was an imperfect beginning to organized professional sports in America-the league was plagued by gambling, contract jumping and rumors of dishonest play-but it laid groundwork for the multibillion dollar enterprises of the 21st century. Like most sporting endeavors, it was entertaining, with the best players in the world displaying their talents throughout the northeastern and mid-western United States and, in 1874, during a ground-breaking journey to England. In its second edition, this book covers all the action-both on and off the field-of the NA's early years, providing the definitive history of the first professional sports league in the U.S.