The rec.sport.baseball FAQ

Books

Fiction

A novel about early 1900's baseball. Very well done.

A documentary-style tale of a Buddhist kid who shows up at the Mets training camp with a 150 mph fastball.

A collection of baseball short stories.

The story of a fictional third major league in the 50s, and its demise due to communist infiltration. The main character is a pitcher named Gil Gamesh, who was banned from the league for pitching a ball directly at an umpire during a time out.

A time travel book about a down-on-his-luck guy from the 1980's who finds himself transported to the late 1860's, where he ends up hooking up with the Cincinatti Redlegs.

A fantasy about a 2000+ inning game in the driving rain.

The story of Roy Hobbs. The movie of the same name was based rather loosely on the book. The book, in turn, is based on the legend of Parsifal.

The movie Field of Dreams was based on this book, though there are significant differences between the book and the movie.

An imaginary look at a new expansion team to replace the Washington Senators from the point of view of a female sports writter. Very funny and good light reading.

A collection of baseball short stories.

Books

Nonfiction/Biography

An insightful look at the life of a mature minor leaguer.

Over 1000 brief bios of players who made "the show" in the fifties makes this book worth looking for.

This is not just the story of a kid who made it from the "backwaters" of Canada to star for Connie Mack. Marchildon also recounts his experiences as a P.O.W. and the effects they had.

ISBN 0-679-40459-7

Creamer's look at the 1941 season, which he considers to be the best of all time. He faithfully recounts the Dodger/Yankee WS, and features every star player of the time for at least a page or two. Dimaggio's streak gets more than its share of coverage, as does Williams' average. Good reading, but don't spend too much on it.

Jackie Robinson.

A true account of life with the Seattle Pilots in 1969 from a player's perspective. There were several sequels, including his wife's revenge, Home Games.

The early days of baseball outside of Organized Baseball.

Early baseball history.

Baseball history through the 1920s.

The best overall survey of baseball economics; it is not only well researched and full of solid analysis, but also highly readable.

A fascinating look at the workings of one major league organization.

A wonderful collection of stories about the people who live baseball, from players and scouts to front office personnel.

A very well selected collection of baseball wit and wisdom.

A solid history of the pioneers of radio broadcasting.

A solid if unspectacular history of the minors.

A more scholarly overview of the economics of MLB.

A collection of essays from Boswell, the baseball writer for the Washington Post.

An Illustrated Guide to Chris Berman's Unique Characterizations of Notable Sports Personalities. ISBN 0-8362-1753-5

A no-holds-barred account of life with "Boss" Steinbrenner.

A photographic celebration of the game.

This book covers a wide range of baseball topics, and is a treat to read.

An overview of the history and development of the places in which major league baseball has been played.

A collecton of women's writing about baseball.

An exhaustive and always absorbing biography of one of the most entertaining pitchers of all time, Dizzy Dean, at the same time provides a perceptive look at baseball during the era of the Great Depression.

A look at scouting, published in the mid-80s. In many ways, even more interesting now than when it was published, because you know what happened to all the young prospects mentioned in the book.

A comprehensive biography of the player some consider the Negro Leagues' answer to Babe Ruth as a star.

The story of Joe Jackson and the Black Sox scandal.

Urban Philadelphia and baseball.

A memoir of a baseball player who failed to fulfill his dreams.

A collection of writings from the The New Yorker.

Gordon is a superior writer and the book centers around the early Blue Jays. There are also excellent observations on women and the game, winter ball and spring training. Gordon currently writes mysteries and the protagonist is a baseball reporter.

A documentary of the Negro leagues, including interviews with a number of the Negro league stars.

An oral history of baseball's early days.

This book chronicles the season Kahn bought an interest in the Utica Blue Sox minor league team.

A solid look at the features of all the individual major league parks, past and present. Marred by many factual errors.

Well-written and valuable for its portrayal of the relationships between owners and commissioners, though other parts of the book are badly marred by Kuhn's distortion of reality.

A collection of essays from Boswell, the baseball writer for the Washington Post. Includes the wonderful "99 Reasons Baseball is Better than Football".

A collection of essays from Boswell, the baseball writer for the Washington Post.

Autobiography

A very nice history of baseball with photos. Only goes up to the early eighties but watch for a newer edition.

Baseball's financial history.

Morgan tells his story, from his start in the Babe Ruth league in Oakland in the late 50's to his years as an Astro, then a Red, then several other teams before retirement in 1984. Good storytelling, but some bitterness about not having his number retired by either Astros or Reds.

Biography

A collection of writings from the The New Yorker.

Will takes a very analytical look at the craft or job of baseball from the four different roles using four excellent role models:

• Managing-Tony La Russa
• Pitching-Orel Hershiser
• Batting-Tony Gwynn
• Fielding-Cal Ripken Jr.

He suplements in-depth interviews with these four by including conversations with others in the area.

The definitive work on umpires.

An uneven but interesting look at minor league baseball.

Autobiography.

A revealing look at the business side of baseball during the sport's early days.

An interesting look at the art of defense.

Feller tells his life story, with many comments on how the game has changed since his prime in the 1940's and early 50's. Good perspective on the game, and a great book for anyone interested in baseball of that time.

A collection of writings from the The New Yorker.

A history of the Negro Leagues.

A one-volume history of the game.

An entertaining look at how the Hall of Fame works and who should be in the Hall that makes many interesting sidetrips.

A fascinating and extraordinarily well written look at Tony Lucadello, perhaps the most succesful scout in baseball history.

Excellent, well-written book on the only on-field death in ML history.

The story of the first year of the Northern League.

A collection of writings from the The New Yorker.

An excellent book about spring training.

An account of a season spent traveling the country in an RV visiting minor league parks and teams.

An absorbing history of baseball in the Dominican Republic.

A collection of writings from the The New Yorker.

Williams talks about what makes a great hitter and ranks his all-time top twenty. He sometimes struggles to be diplomatic but few would doubt his credentials.

First published in 1968, and updated in 1990, a complete look at every facet of the game. Features chapters on batting, pitching, fielding, the proper use and place of statistics, owners, managers, and the media. Well worth the price. Every fan will probably learn something he or she did not know from reading this book. Originally published as The Thinking Man's Guide to Baseball, then as The Thinking Fan's Guide to Baseball.

An excellent study of the relationship between a community and its baseball park and teams.

Terrific biography of the Georgia Peach.

Biography of Bill Veeck, showman and sometime baseball team owner.

A history of the Negro Leagues.

A superb history of baseball broadcasting.

An informative look back at the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League through oral history.

Yes, he whines, but still an informative look at the labor movement in baseball.

A collection of essays from Boswell, the baseball writer for the Washington Post.

A full and satisfying examination of how women have participated in baseball from the late nineteenth century through today.

If you enjoyed the "Spaceman's" observations in Ken Burns' Baseball, the former USC, Red Sox and Expo pitcher tells the story of his career in much the same manner.

An enjoyable if somewhat lightweight study of Japanese baseball and the experience of Americans who play in the Japanese leagues.

Books

Statistics/Technical

Earlier years (1977-1981) are available from James directly. Just call him in Lawrence, Kansas. He is listed in directory information. His wife will send the back issues out right away!

This book has bios, ranging from one sentence to a couple pages, of over four thousand players from the Negro Leagues.

Released annually, has all recognized baseball records. Includes post-season and All-Star data.

A statistician and an iconcoclastic pitching coach look at the game from two perspectives.

A complete dictionary of baseball terms.

Published yearly from 1985 through 1993.

The 2nd edition, available in paperback, is better.

Published in 1984, this book is much too out-of-date to be used for anything but historical curiosity. Every sabermetric technique in it has been revised many times, mostly by the authors themselves. Still, it was a landmark book. For more up-to-date sabermetrics, see Total Baseball.

Also known as "The Big Mac", MacMillan is the "official" record books of statistics for MLB.

This book of Negro League stats is the result of years of hard work by SABR's Negro League Committee. It lists rosters, standings, and career stats for the major Negro Leagues.

Published yearly.

An interesting yearly publication where they investigate questions about players, parks, and the game from a statistical point of view.

Statistics for everyone who was in the major leagues last year. Includes Bill James' predictions for next year and park factor data.

Statistics for everyone who was in the minor leagues (but not the majors) last year. Includes MLE's for players at the AA and AAA level.

Detailed statistics for major league players for the last year and the last five years, including many breakdowns like home/road, lefty/righty and by month. Has some fielding data.

The definitive reference book. Now in its third edition.

The Earl of Baltimore tells how he did it.

Periodicals

The successor to the SABR Review of Books, this is the best source for reviews of each year's baseball books.

Fiction, nonfiction, historical articles and poetry about baseball. Subscriptions available from
Elysian Fields Press
P.O. Box 45618
Madison, WI 53744-5618.
$18.50/year. Published quarterly.

Three times yearly (end of spring training, middle of season, season review in December) publishes an essay by Roger Angell. These essays have been collected into several books (search for Angell in this file).

Published bi-annually, features a large number of reviews of baseball books in each edition in addition to other interesting articles.

Baseball literature (short stories, poetry) and book reviews. Subscriptions available from
6224 Collegevue Pl
Cincinnati, OH 45224
about $15/year. Published quarterly.

Movies

Fiction

1973, Robert DeNiro, Michael Moriarty, Danny Aiello
The story of two players on a fictional New York team drawn together under unusual circumstances.

1976, Billy Dee Williams, James Earl Jones, Richard Pryor
Comedy about a baseball player (Williams) trying to buck the owners of the Negro National League by starting his own razzle-dazzle team in 1939.

1988, Kevin Costner, Susan Sarandon, Tim Robbins
An interesting look at what happens when a journeyman minor league catcher meets a young phenom and a baseball groupie in the Carolina League.

1958, George Abbott, Gwen Verdon, Ray Walston
Adaptation of the Broadway musical where the Devil (Walston) makes a deal with a desperate Washington Senators fan.

1949, Ray Milland
A professor realizes a boyhood dream when he discovers a chemical that repels wood.

1987, William Petersen, Virginia Madsen
Comedy about a third-rate minor league team's battle for the championship. Made for cable, available on video.

1988, Wesley Snipes, Charlie Sheen, Tom Berenger, Corbin Bernson
An almost slapstick comedy. New owner sabotages the Indians so they'll be so bad she can move them to Miami. The players have other ideas. Watch for former Milwaukee pitcher Pete Vukovich as the feared Yankee slugger.

1994 Charlie Sheen, Tom Berenger, Corbin Bernson

1984, Robert Redford, Robert Duvall, Glenn Close, Kim Basinger
Based very loosely on the Bernard Malamud novel, this movie is a fairy tale about the golden age of baseball. Redford is excellent, as is the rest of the all-star case. Directed by Barry Levinson.

1993
Somewhat entertaining (if predictable) story of an 11 year old who's injured arm heals "too tight," giving him an incredible fastball. He plays for the Cubs, and they go to the WS. Two stars.

1993
Youthful novice ballplayer accidentally loses his stepfather's Babe Ruth autographed ball into a neighbor's dog-guarded yard and relies on his teammates to help retrieve it. Set in 1962 Los Angeles, so the California Angels caps are anachronistic. James Earl Jones is outstanding in a small role.

19??, Mark Harmon, Jodie Foster

1949, Gene Kelly, Esther Williams, Frank Sinatra
Contrived but amusing turn-of-the-century Busby Berkeley musical, with Williams taking over Kelly and Sinatra's baseball team. Sinatra as an Irish shortstop must be seen to be properly disbelieved, but it's a fun film.

Movies

Nonfiction/Biography

1991?, John Goodman
Not-terribly-factual biography.

1948, William Bendix, Clair Trevor, Charles Bickford.
"Biography is 'insult' to famed baseball star; inept." (Leonard Maltin)

1990?, Ray Liotta. John Sayles, director.
A more-or-less factual retelling of the Black Sox Scandal. Has a pretty good feel for the baseball of the time.

1957, Anthony Perkins, Karl Malden
Stark account of Jimmy Piersall and his bout with mental illness. Perkins is impressive.

1950, Jackie Robinson.
Straightforward biography of Jackie Robinson. Heavy on the social issues.

1942, Gary Cooper, Babe Ruth, Walter Brennan
The life of Lou Gehrig. The baseball action isn't terribly accurate, but many old Yankees (including Babe Ruth and Bill Dickey) play themselves.

Miscellaneous

A calculator-sized ROM-based baseball database with moderately good search characteristics. Data is from Pete Palmer's database (which Total Baseball also uses), and includes a lot of interesting stuff but leaves out some things, most notably OBP. Second edition includes stats through 1992.

The book (see above) with multimedia additions (such as sound clips). Multimedia edition also includes (besides sound clips) many, many pictures of players, teams, and ballparks. Software interface has good search capability.

http://www.atm.ch.cam.ac.uk/sports/baseball.html

http://www.yahoo.com/yahoo/Entertainment/Sports/Baseball

Operated by the Raleigh (NC) News and Observer
http://www.nando.net/baseball/bbmain.html

The Seattle Mariners have a home page and a minor league page
http://www.semaphore.com/mariners/
http://www.semaphore.com/mariners/html/minor.teams.html