In 1954, one year after Baltimore bought the St. Louis Browns, the New York Yankees hired former Browns executive and owner William O. DeWitt as assistant to general manager George Weiss. "DeWitt," the paper announced, "was considered an astute baseball man who would have a definite role to play with the Yankees." Baseball fans had assumed that once the Yankees were no longer the American League's doormats, DeWitt would quietly retire. But DeWitt, a protege of Branch Rickey, was shrewd and intelligent and his years with the Browns were only the beginning of a long and fascinating career, including his years as owner and general manager of the Cincinnati Reds. This first ever biography focuses on the life and career of a baseball executive who contributed greatly to America's pastime.

The New York Yankees were the strongest team in the major leagues from 1948-1960, capturing the American League Pennant 10 times and winning seven World Championships. Ask the average baseball fan who made the Yankees so dominant and most will mention players such as Joe DiMaggio, Yogi Berra, Whitey Ford, or Mickey Mantle. Some may insist that manager Casey Stengel was the key. But sports pundits at the time, and respected sports historians today consider the real genius behind the Yankees' success their general manager, a portly, often taciturn, and very shy man named George Martin Weiss. Weiss loved baseball but lacked the ability to play the game. What he had was the savvy to run a baseball team better than virtually anyone he competed against. Weiss spent more than 50 years in baseball, including nearly 30 years with the Yankees. Before he was Yankee GM, he created and ran their superlative farm system that continuously supplied talented players to the parent club. When the Yankees fired him at age 67, because he was ""too old"", the newly franchised New York Mets immediately hired him to build their team. This is the first in-depth biography of George M. Weiss, who, when inducted into Baseball's Hall of Fame in 1972, was hailed for contributing ""as much to baseball as any man the game could ever know.

Long before Hank Greenberg earned recognition as baseball's greatest Jewish player, Jews had developed a unique, and very close, relationship with the American pastime. In the late nineteenth century, as both the American Jewish population and baseball's popularity grew rapidly, baseball became an avenue by which Jewish immigrants could assimilate into American culture. Beyond the men (and, later, women) on the field, in the dugout, and at the front office, the Jewish community produced a huge base of fans and students of the game. This important book examines the interrelated histories of baseball and American Jews to 1948-the year Israel was established, the first full season that both major leagues were integrated, and the summer that Hank Greenberg retired. Covered are the many players, from Pike to Greenberg, as well as the managers, owners, executives, writers, statisticians, manufacturers and others who helped forge a bond between baseball and an emerging Jewish culture in America. Key reasons for baseball's early appeal to Jews are examined, including cultural assimilation, rebellion against perceived Old World sensibilities, and intellectual and philosophical ties to existing Jewish traditions. The authors also clearly demonstrate how both Jews and baseball have benefited from their relationship.

This history follows up on the well-received first volume and traces the arc of Jews in baseball after Hank Greenberg retired in 1948. During this postwar period, Jews saw greater acceptance into the American mainstream as organized anti-Semitism was largely displaced by greater affluence, education, and a more geographically dispersed Jewish community. Jews continued to flourish in baseball - new stars like Al Rosen, Sandy Koufax and Shawn Green debuted, and off the field the era brought more Jewish owners, executives, sportswriters, broadcasters, and even a commissioner. This book further demonstrates how and why Jews and baseball have continued to grow together.

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 Finely 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.