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Sports / Recreation
An exhilarating, splendidly illustrated, entirely new look at the history of baseball: told through the stories of the vibrant and ever-changing ballparks where the game was and is staged, by the Pulitzer Prize-winning architectural critic. From the earliest corrals of the mid-1800s (Union Grounds in Brooklyn was a "saloon in the open air"), to the much mourned parks of the early 1900s (Detroit's Tiger Stadium, Cincinnati's Palace of the Fans), to the stadiums we fill today, Paul Goldberger makes clear the inextricable bond between the American city and America's favorite pastime. In the changing locations and architecture of our ballparks, Goldberger reveals the manifestations of a changing society: the earliest ballparks evoked the Victorian age in their accommodations--bleachers for the riffraff, grandstands for the middle-class; the "concrete donuts" of the 1950s and '60s made plain television's grip on the public's attention; and more recent ballparks, like Baltimore's Camden Yards, signal a new way forward for stadium design and for baseball's role in urban development. Throughout, Goldberger shows us the way in which baseball's history is concurrent with our cultural history: the rise of urban parks and public transportation; the development of new building materials and engineering and design skills. And how the site details and the requirements of the game--the diamond, the outfields, the walls, the grandstands--shaped our most beloved ballparks. A fascinating, exuberant ode to the Edens at the heart of our cities--where dreams are as limitless as the outfields.
Baseball is more than a game--it is a living chronicle of American history, culture, and imagination. In this richly illustrated and masterfully told collection, celebrated designer and historian Todd Radom blends meticulous research with a designer's eye for detail, breathing new life into stories both well-known and obscure. In The Ballpark and Beyond, Radom takes readers on a captivating journey across 150 years of baseball history, weaving together little-known anecdotes, aesthetic curiosities, and the human drama that makes the sport timeless. Here are the tales of ornate nineteenth-century stadiums that looked like castles, the rowdy Baltimore Orioles who pioneered "inside baseball," and the quirky pillbox caps and mascots. Discover the origins of iconic team emblems, the strange saga of a baseball game played at the foot of the Sphinx, and the unforgettable icons--from Babe Ruth and Jackie Robinson to Satchel Paige and Ken Griffey Jr.--who helped elevate the game into the national consciousness. Whether you are a lifelong fan, a student of sports history, or simply someone who appreciates great storytelling, The Ballpark and Beyond offers a treasure trove of discoveries on every page. It is a love letter to the game and its enduring power to connect generations, stir emotions, and remind us why baseball will always hold a special place in the American imagination.
Ballparks Then and Now is a fascinating exploration of ballparks across America. Packed with archival and modern photography, this book documents the development of America's national pastime by looking at the fields of dreams on which it is played.
The ballpark experience has changed dramatically from baseball's early days on grassy lots with wooden grandstands and free admission. Union Grounds in Brooklyn, New York, is considered by many historians to be the first ballpark ever built, originating when William Cammeyer decided to use the Union Skating Pond as grounds for baseball games in 1862. The following decade the first professional leagues were formed in 1871, when enterprising owners began to invest in the creation of luxurious wooden palaces such as the Grand Pavilion in Boston and Sportsman's Park in St. Louis.
Discover the first steel-and-concrete ballpark of Shibe Park in Philadelphia, built in 1909, which housed a record figure of 20,000 paying customers and set the standard in ballpark design for the next fifty years. Learn more about the cookie-cutter ballparks of the 1960s and 1970s, which today have largely been replaced by newer retro designs that give each park a unique feel and have re-established ballparks as a vital part of urban America.
See how much America's favorite pastime has changed -- and how much it's stayed the same -- in Ballparks Then and Now. Crammed with history and facts, this unique city-by-city tour of America's hallowed playing fields pairs archival images with modern photos of baseball's beloved landmarks like Union Grounds, Wrigley Field, Fenway Park, and the Negro League's Greenlee Field. Witness the ballpark renaissance of the 1990s and the dawning of multimillion-dollar corporate naming rights. With comprehensive data about each park (opening date, capacity, great moments), Ballparks Then and Now is the perfect keepsake for fans to enjoy whether they're sitting in the bleachers or a luxury box.
Baseball has changed dramatically since its early days. Today, the average ticket costs upwards of $20 and fans can feast on sushi from their luxurious air-conditioned seats. See how much America's favorite pastime has changed, and how much it's stayed the same in Ballparks Then & Now.
Crammed with history and facts, this unique city-by-city tour of America's hallowed playing fields pairs archival images with modern photos of baseball's beloved landmarks like Union Grounds, Wrigley Field, Fenway Park, and the Negro League's Greenlee Field.
Includes all of the excitement of the 2006 season, including the winners of the 2006 World Series and all of the changes to ballparks around the U.S.
Celebrate glorious wooden palaces like Boston's Grand Pavilion and Sportsman's Park in St. Louis, constructed after baseball went professional in 1871.
Witness the ballpark renaissance of the 1990's and the dawning of multi-million dollar corporate naming rights.
With comprehensive data about each park (opening date, capacity, great moments), this new compact edition of best-selling Ballparks Then and Now is the perfect take-along size for fans to enjoy whether they're sitting in the bleachers or luxury box.
If you love baseball and the venerable stadiums its played in, you need this definitive history and guide to Major League ballparks of the past, present, and future.
With a tear-out checklist to mark ballparks you've visited and those on your bucket list, Ballparks takes you inside the intriguing histories of every park in the Major Leagues, with hundreds of photos, stories, and stats about:
No baseball fan's collection is complete without this up-to-date tome.
This up-to-minute book follows the story of Barbaro, the Triple Crown contender whose unlikely fight back from almost certain death from a shattered leg and ensuing complications captured the hearts of a nation who responded with a stunning display of love.
In 132 years of derby races, only 11 horses have won the Triple Crown, the last in 1978. Barbaro was a favorite to be the twelfth until May 20, 2006, at the Preakness Stakes, when his jockey, Edgar Prado pulled him up a couple of hundred yards from the starting gate. Subsequent examination revealed that he had virtually exploded bones in his right rear leg so badly that under normal conditions he would have been euthanized right on the track. But his owners, Roy and Gretchen Jackson, chose another path, one filled with anxiety and tears--but also courageous determination to save his life.
This touching, soaring book--filled with insights from Barbaro's trainers, breeders, caretakers, and owners--follows Barbaro from foal to colt to champion to perfect patient. But In the end it is not just a story of a down-but-not-out champion, but of human beings at their very best.
For readers of Born to Run by Christopher McDougall, The Barefoot Running Book lends practical advice on the minimalist running phenomenon Ditch those cushiony running shoes--they're holding you back and hurting your feet! You've heard about barefoot running and how it can reduce injury and allow for better form. Maybe you've even tried it and learned how shedding those heavy, overly- manufactured shoes can make running more enjoyable. Regardless of your expertise level, Jason Robillard--a leading expert on barefoot running education and director of the Barefoot Running University--synthesizes the latest research to ease you from barefoot walking to slow running to competitive and trail running vis-à-vis simple drills, training plans, and useful hints from fellow barefoot runners. Practical, easy-to-follow, and illustrated with black-and-white photographs throughout, The Barefoot Running Book shows how everyone can transition to barefoot and minimalist shoe running--safely and optimally.
From the authors of Barefoot Running, the essential guide to the life-changing benefits of barefoot walking As the thousands of people who have fallen in love with barefoot running already know, shedding your shoes is good for the body and the soul. Barefoot Walking shows all readers, no matter their fitness level, how to take command of their physical and spiritual well-being through this simple and easy practice, even if they are daunted by sore feet, achy joints, injury, illness, or feeling out of shape. This book contains special material for children, pregnant women, and seniors, and shows anyone how this gentle, natural activity can literally transform one's life, restoring health, vitality, strength, and balance, and improving focus, mood, memory, and more. Full of tips and tools for going bare, this is the essential handbook for people who want to move their body, connect with the earth, and feel physically and psychologically more alive.
*A Good Morning America Buzz Book*
*A LitHub Most Anticipated Book of 2022*
The definitive biography of Charles Barkley, exploring his early childhood, his storied NBA career, and his enduring legacy as a provocative voice in American pop culture
He's one of the most interesting American athletes in the past fifty years. Passionate, candid, iconoclastic, and gifted both on and off the court, Charles Barkley has made a lasting impact on not only the world of basketball but pop culture at large.
Yet few people know the real Charles. Raised by his mother and grandmother in Leeds, Alabama, he struggled in his early years to fit in until he found a sense of community and purpose in basketball. In the NBA he went toe-to-toe with the biggest legends in the game, from Magic to Michael to Hakeem to Shaq. But in the years since, he has become a bold agitator for social change, unafraid to grapple, often brashly, with even the thorniest of cultural issues facing our nation today.
Informed by over 370 original interviews and painstaking research, Timothy Bella's Barkley is the most comprehensive biography to date of one of the most talked-about icons in the world of sports.
*A LitHub Most Anticipated Book of 2022*
The definitive biography of Charles Barkley, exploring his early childhood, his storied NBA career, and his enduring legacy as a provocative voice in American pop culture
He's one of the most interesting American athletes in the past fifty years. Passionate, candid, iconoclastic, and gifted both on and off the court, Charles Barkley has made a lasting impact on not only the world of basketball but pop culture at large.
Yet few people know the real Charles. Raised by his mother and grandmother in Leeds, Alabama, he struggled in his early years to fit in until he found a sense of community and purpose in basketball. In the NBA he went toe-to-toe with the biggest legends in the game, from Magic to Michael to Hakeem to Shaq. But in the years since, he has become a bold agitator for social change, unafraid to grapple, often brashly, with even the thorniest of cultural issues facing our nation today.
Informed by over 370 original interviews and painstaking research, Timothy Bella's Barkley is the most comprehensive biography to date of one of the most talked-about icons in the world of sports.
*A Good Morning America Buzz Book*
*A LitHub Most Anticipated Book of 2022*
The definitive biography of Charles Barkley, exploring his early childhood, his storied NBA career, and his enduring legacy as a provocative voice in American pop culture
He's one of the most interesting American athletes in the past fifty years. Passionate, candid, iconoclastic, and gifted both on and off the court, Charles Barkley has made a lasting impact on not only the world of basketball but pop culture at large.
Yet few people know the real Charles. Raised by his mother and grandmother in Leeds, Alabama, he struggled in his early years to fit in until he found a sense of community and purpose in basketball. In the NBA he went toe-to-toe with the biggest legends in the game, from Magic to Michael to Hakeem to Shaq. But in the years since, he has become a bold agitator for social change, unafraid to grapple, often brashly, with even the thorniest of cultural issues facing our nation today.
Informed by over 370 original interviews and painstaking research, Timothy Bella's Barkley is the most comprehensive biography to date of one of the most talked-about icons in the world of sports.
*A LitHub Most Anticipated Book of 2022*
The definitive biography of Charles Barkley, exploring his early childhood, his storied NBA career, and his enduring legacy as a provocative voice in American pop culture
He's one of the most interesting American athletes in the past fifty years. Passionate, candid, iconoclastic, and gifted both on and off the court, Charles Barkley has made a lasting impact on not only the world of basketball but pop culture at large.
Yet few people know the real Charles. Raised by his mother and grandmother in Leeds, Alabama, he struggled in his early years to fit in until he found a sense of community and purpose in basketball. In the NBA he went toe-to-toe with the biggest legends in the game, from Magic to Michael to Hakeem to Shaq. But in the years since, he has become a bold agitator for social change, unafraid to grapple, often brashly, with even the thorniest of cultural issues facing our nation today.
Informed by over 370 original interviews and painstaking research, Timothy Bella's Barkley is the most comprehensive biography to date of one of the most talked-about icons in the world of sports.
The behind-the-scenes story of horse racing's greatest trainer, Bob Baffert, the barn he founded, and the endless quest to train another Triple Crown winner.
Sixteen million people watch the Kentucky Derby every year. Nearly as many watch the Preakness and the Belmont Stakes. Three fascinating weekends in a three-month span that add up to under seven minutes of racing. But what's really going on behind the scenes and inside the barns? It's a year-round labor of love in which scores of people--trainers, jockeys, stable hands--and hundreds of horses, work in harmony to create champions. It takes a total team effort to develop a competitive horse, never mind a Triple Crown winner like American Pharoah. And few trainers in the history of horse racing, in a century and a half of trying, have created more champions than the sport's most celebrated trainer, Bob Baffert. In the past ten years, Baffert has had three colts win the Kentucky Derby and the Preakness, only to lose at the Belmont. In 2015, he had the first Triple Crown winner in thirty-seven years, American Pharoah. In 2016, his top Derby contender failed to place. Horse racing is notoriously unpredictable, which has always been part of the allure. But seeing how the potential champions are trained and groomed is surprising, illuminating, and even, at times, emotional and moving, as readers learn about the powerful bond between the horses and the stable employees who dedicate their lives to them. David Israel is a journalist turned television and film producer who made horse racing his successful third career and became the head of the California Horse Racing Board. Together, Israel, Baffert, and the horses themselves will tell the story of a whole season in Baffert's barn, as readers witness Baffert's yearly--and endless--quest to create another champion.
Sixteen million people watch the Kentucky Derby every year. Nearly as many watch the Preakness and the Belmont Stakes. Three fascinating weekends in a three-month span that add up to under seven minutes of racing. But what's really going on behind the scenes and inside the barns? It's a year-round labor of love in which scores of people--trainers, jockeys, stable hands--and hundreds of horses, work in harmony to create champions. It takes a total team effort to develop a competitive horse, never mind a Triple Crown winner like American Pharoah. And few trainers in the history of horse racing, in a century and a half of trying, have created more champions than the sport's most celebrated trainer, Bob Baffert. In the past ten years, Baffert has had three colts win the Kentucky Derby and the Preakness, only to lose at the Belmont. In 2015, he had the first Triple Crown winner in thirty-seven years, American Pharoah. In 2016, his top Derby contender failed to place. Horse racing is notoriously unpredictable, which has always been part of the allure. But seeing how the potential champions are trained and groomed is surprising, illuminating, and even, at times, emotional and moving, as readers learn about the powerful bond between the horses and the stable employees who dedicate their lives to them. David Israel is a journalist turned television and film producer who made horse racing his successful third career and became the head of the California Horse Racing Board. Together, Israel, Baffert, and the horses themselves will tell the story of a whole season in Baffert's barn, as readers witness Baffert's yearly--and endless--quest to create another champion.
The definitive, authorized biography of Bart Starr, quarterback for the University of Alabama and for the Green Bay Packers during the 1960s. A must-read for fans of the Crimson Tide, the Packers, and football greats.
No one can touch Bart Starr's record setting 5 NFL Championships including 3 straight. America's Quarterback tells the story of the man who helped create the legend of Vince Lombardi and the Green Bay Packers. Set against the changing landscape of the last half of the 20th century, this biography traces Starr's life from childhood in Alabama to stardom in Green Bay and beyond. Not a simple sports story, Keith Dunnavant traces the story of one man reaching for the American dream while professional football emerged from the shadows to capture the nation's imagination. It's a story of the tension between a coach and a player as different as fire and ice, and how they came to trust and revere each other. It's a story of triumph tempered by tragedy, and the world-class athlete who quietly, persistently, achieved a level of greatness unsurpassed by any quarterback since.
Analytics, technology, and the most ambitious rewrite of the rulebook in fifty years have reshaped baseball. Benjamin G. Rader's account of the American pastime moves from diamonds scratched out of commons and corn fields to the multimedia theme parks doubling as today's baseball stadiums. The fifth edition follows the long arc of the game's history into the third decade of the twenty-first century, an era rich in innovation but even richer from revenue streams undreamt-of by the plutocrats of old. Rader brings readers up to date with looks at the Astros cheating scandal, on-the-field changes from power pitchers to ghost runners, data-driven player development and career rebirth, and the one-of-a-kind Shohei Ohtani.
Engrossing and complete, Baseball, Fifth Edition, offers a comprehensive tour of the game and its place within American society and culture.
Jam-packed with cool baseball trivia, history-making records, unforgettable moments, and wacky true tales of your favorite games, players and events. This book hits a grand slam right out of the park! A perfect gift for the die-hard fan of America's favorite pasttime. Baseball is rich in anecdotes about team superstitions (from the black cat that haunted the Cubs to the "Curse of the Babe"), the antics of the superstars, and other facts that come out of left field. Think today's umpires have a temper? Wait till you read about the 19th century New Jersey ump who pulled out a gun and shoved it in the face of a player who came at him with a bat. Or about the time three Brooklyn Dodger runners found themselves at third base--together. Fans will laugh, they'll learn--and they won't put this down!
The Baseball is a salute to the ball, filled with insider trivia, anecdotes, and generations of ball-induced insanity--from Zack Hample, the bestselling author of Watching Baseball Smarter
- Which Hall of Famer once caught a ball dropped from an airplane?
- Why do balls get stamped with invisible ink?
- What's the best ticket to buy for catching a foul ball?
- Which part of the ball once came from dog food companies?
- How could a 10,000-year-old glacier help a pitcher grip the ball? In this enlightening, entertaining, and often wildly funny book, Zack Hample shares ballpark legends and lore, explores the history of the baseball souvenir craze, and also details the evolution of the ball. Finally, Hample--who has snagged more than 4,600 balls from 48 different major league stadiums--offers up his secret methods for snagging your own ball from major league games. Features a ballhawk glossary, profiles of legendary ballhawks, top 10 lists, and black-and-white photos throughout.
- Which Hall of Famer once caught a ball dropped from an airplane?
- Why do balls get stamped with invisible ink?
- What's the best ticket to buy for catching a foul ball?
- Which part of the ball once came from dog food companies?
- How could a 10,000-year-old glacier help a pitcher grip the ball? In this enlightening, entertaining, and often wildly funny book, Zack Hample shares ballpark legends and lore, explores the history of the baseball souvenir craze, and also details the evolution of the ball. Finally, Hample--who has snagged more than 4,600 balls from 48 different major league stadiums--offers up his secret methods for snagging your own ball from major league games. Features a ballhawk glossary, profiles of legendary ballhawks, top 10 lists, and black-and-white photos throughout.
NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER * Winner of the CASEY Award for Best Baseball Book of the Year "An instant sports classic." --New York Post * "Stellar." --The Wall Street Journal * "A true masterwork...880 pages of sheer baseball bliss." --BookPage (starred review) * "This is a remarkable achievement." --Publishers Weekly (starred review) A magnum opus from acclaimed baseball writer Joe Posnanski, The Baseball 100 is an audacious, singular, and masterly book that took a lifetime to write. The entire story of baseball rings through a countdown of the 100 greatest players in history, with a foreword by George Will. Longer than Moby-Dick and nearly as ambitious, The Baseball 100 is a one-of-a-kind work by award-winning sportswriter and lifelong student of the game Joe Posnanski. In the book's introduction, Pulitzer Prize-winning commentator George F. Will marvels, "Posnanski must already have lived more than two hundred years. How else could he have acquired such a stock of illuminating facts and entertaining stories about the rich history of this endlessly fascinating sport?" Baseball's legends come alive in these pages, which are not merely rankings but vibrant profiles of the game's all-time greats. Posnanski dives into the biographies of iconic Hall of Famers, unfairly forgotten All-Stars, talents of today, and more. He doesn't rely just on records and statistics--he lovingly retraces players' origins, illuminates their characters, and places their accomplishments in the context of baseball's past and present. Just how good a pitcher is Clayton Kershaw in the 21st-century game compared to Greg Maddux dueling with the juiced hitters of the nineties? How do the career and influence of Hank Aaron compare to Babe Ruth's? Which player in the top ten most deserves to be resurrected from history? No compendium of baseball's legendary geniuses could be complete without the players of the segregated Negro Leagues, men whose extraordinary careers were largely overlooked by sportswriters at the time and unjustly lost to history. Posnanski writes about the efforts of former Negro Leaguers to restore sidelined Black athletes to their due honor and draws upon the deep troves of the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum and extensive interviews with the likes of Buck O'Neil to illuminate the accomplishments of players such as pitchers Satchel Paige and Smokey Joe Williams; outfielders Oscar Charleston, Monte Irvin, and Cool Papa Bell; first baseman Buck Leonard; shortstop Pop Lloyd; catcher Josh Gibson; and many, many more. The Baseball 100 treats readers to the whole rich pageant of baseball history in a single volume. Engrossing, surprising, and heartfelt, it is a magisterial tribute to the game of baseball and the stars who have played it.
NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER * Winner of the CASEY Award for Best Baseball Book of the Year "An instant sports classic." --New York Post * "Stellar." --The Wall Street Journal * "A true masterwork...880 pages of sheer baseball bliss." --BookPage (starred review) * "This is a remarkable achievement." --Publishers Weekly (starred review) A magnum opus from acclaimed baseball writer Joe Posnanski, The Baseball 100 is an audacious, singular, and masterly book that took a lifetime to write. The entire story of baseball rings through a countdown of the 100 greatest players in history, with a foreword by George Will. Longer than Moby-Dick and nearly as ambitious,The Baseball 100 is a one-of-a-kind work by award-winning sportswriter and lifelong student of the game Joe Posnanski that tells the story of the sport through the remarkable lives of its 100 greatest players. In the book's introduction, Pulitzer Prize-winning commentator George F. Will marvels, "Posnanski must already have lived more than 200 years. How else could he have acquired such a stock of illuminating facts and entertaining stories about the rich history of this endlessly fascinating sport?" Baseball's legends come alive in these pages, which are not merely rankings but vibrant profiles of the game's all-time greats. Posnanski dives into the biographies of iconic Hall of Famers, unfairly forgotten All-Stars, talents of today, and more. He doesn't rely just on records and statistics--he lovingly retraces players' origins, illuminates their characters, and places their accomplishments in the context of baseball's past and present. Just how good a pitcher is Clayton Kershaw in the twenty-first- century game compared to Greg Maddux dueling with the juiced hitters of the nineties? How do the career and influence of Hank Aaron compare to Babe Ruth's? Which player in the top ten most deserves to be resurrected from history? No compendium of baseball's legendary geniuses could be complete without the players of the segregated Negro Leagues, men whose extraordinary careers were largely overlooked by sportswriters at the time and unjustly lost to history. Posnanski writes about the efforts of former Negro Leaguers to restore sidelined Black athletes to their due honor, and draws upon the deep troves of the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum and extensive interviews with the likes of Buck O'Neil to illuminate the accomplishments of players such as pitchers Satchel Paige and Smokey Joe Williams; outfielders Oscar Charleston, Monte Irvin, and Cool Papa Bell; first baseman Buck Leonard; shortstop Pop Lloyd; catcher Josh Gibson; and many, many more. The Baseball 100 treats readers to the whole rich pageant of baseball history in a single volume. Chapter by chapter, Posnanski invites readers to examine common lore with brand-new eyes and learn stories that have long gone unheard. The epic and often emotional reading experience mirrors Posnanski's personal odyssey to capture the history and glory of baseball like no one else, fueled by his boundless love for the sport. Engrossing, surprising, and heartfelt, The Baseball 100 is a magisterial tribute to the game of baseball and the stars who have played it.