Deadball Stars Of The American League

The second volume in the series from the game's best historians

The first in a series of baseball histories by the game??'s best historians

The typical baseball fan yearns for one of two things: a strikeout or a home run. But most of the game takes place in between these electrifying moments, and this book discusses the importance of “small ball” to baseball. It examines the multitude of times small ball activities have secured victories through aggressive base running, sacrifice hits, squeeze bunts, stolen bases, productive outs and hit-and-run plays, as well as games in which aggressive small ball activity led to defeat. The book covers the most important small ball players, managers and teams.

The Chalmers Race is the story of Ty Cobb and Napoleon Lajoie and the controversial 1910 batting race.

Baseball at its best is a combination of chess match and gladiatorial combat, waged over a long season but turning on split-second decisions and physical instincts. The 1916 season demonstrated the drama that made the sport the national pastime: tight pennant races, multiple contenders, record-breaking performances, and controversy, both on and off the field. Ten of the 16 teams battled for first place, four pitchers started and won both games of a doubleheader, Babe Ruth pitched on Opening Day, and players from the Federal League became the sport’s first free agents. The book features full rosters, player biographies, statistics, photographs and an appendix of the sportswriters who chronicled the season.

Baseball’s Greatest Comeback recounts the story of the 1914 Boston Braves that experienced the greatest come-from-behind season ever witnessed in baseball history. A perennially woeful team, the Braves rose from the ashes of last place—fifteen games behind on July 4th—to battle in the World Series against the Philadelphia Athletics, one of the most dominant teams of all time. Baseball fans witnessed one of sport’s most spectacular comebacks, and Boston’s National League team earned a new designation: “The Miracle Braves.” Full of timeless images and memorable characters—including a fanatically superstitious manager, a cheerfully madcap star, and an obsessively driven, yet highly sensitive captain—this book will inform and entertain baseball fans and sports historians alike.

Offering a fresh approach to the familiar concept of all-time baseball teams, this exhaustive work ranks more than 2,500 players by state of birth and includes both major league and Negro League athletes. Each chapter covers one state and opens with the all-time team, naming a top selection for each position followed by honorable mentions. Also included are all-time stat leaders in nine categories--games, hits, average, RBI, home runs, stolen bases, pitching wins, strikeouts and saves--a brief overview of the state's baseball history, notable player achievements, historic baseball places to see, potential future stars, a comprehensive list of player nicknames, and the state's all-time best player.

The 1909 World Series featured Hall of Fame players Ty Cobb and Honus Wagner and was the first championship to extend to Game Seven, the final and deciding game. This work examines the entire regular season of both the Tigers and the Pirates but pays special attention to the seven games of that World Series. Includes 54 photographs, complete club statistics, biographical and career thumbnails, box scores for each series game, and tables on the acquisition of each player as well as information on how they departed.