Baseball FAQ: All That's Left to Know About America's Pastime

by Tom DeMichael

Overview

(FAQ Pop Culture). Was Abner Doubleday the architect of baseball? What exactly did it mean to be a "professional" baseball player in the 1870s? What goes on in the front office? What exactly is the Eephus pitch? What are "the tools of ignorance"? Readers will find the answers to these questions and many others in the pages of this remarkable baseball reference that's essential reading for fans of the game. Part history book, part instructional guide, and part reference manual, Baseball FAQ covers all the bases from the rules of the game to the ballparks of yesterday and today, from the minors to the major league, from the stats to the food. This engaging, compulsively readable tome offers baseball fans of all ages a wealth of fun facts and anecdotes on America's favorite pastime, including sections on the All-American Girls Professional Ball League, the Negro Leagues, the basic skills of baseball, baseball in the movies, the scandals, and the Hall of Famers.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781617136061
Publisher:	Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc.
Publication date:	01/01/2016
Series:	FAQ Pop Culture
Pages:	392
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 8.90(h) x 1.00(d)

About the Author

Tom DeMichael (Chicago, Illinois) holds a degree in U.S. history and has published numerous books and magazine articles in subjects as diverse as American film, American firefighting, collectible toys, and television's greatest game shows. This is his third book in the FAQ series, following James Bond FAQ and Modern Sci-Fi Films FAQ.

As a lifelong fan of baseball, DeMichael has seen major and minor-league games all over the country. He is a member of SABR (the Society for American Baseball Research) and once legged a triple into a double during a Cubs fantasy camp game at Wrigley Field.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments ix

Introduction: It's Much More Than Xs and Os xi

1 Rules of the Game: Hey! Everyone Has to Play by the Rules 1

2 1300 AD to 1900: Now Batting … 16

3 1901 to 1950: A Solid Single … 34

4 1951 to 1970: Rounding Second … 55

5 1971 to 2000: Heading for Home … 77

6 2001 to Beyond: On to the Next At Bat … 99

7 Houses of the Holy: I Don't Care if! Never Get Back … 111

8 Past Grounds of Glory: Stadiums Long Gone 150

9 Buy Me Some … The Total Experience-Food, Fungoes, and Fun 170

10 Can Anyone Here Play This Game? Basic Skills of Baseball 179

11 White Ball, Black Players: Baseball's Negro Leagues 210

12 Minor League Baseball: The Best Seat on the Bus 221

13 Baseball at the Movies: Playing at Playing Ball 232

14 Baseball Honors and Awards: To the Victors Belong the Spoils 285

15 Beating the Best Baseball Bar Bets: Great Answers to Crazy Questions 307

16 An Uneven Playing Field: The Dark Days of Baseball 317

17 Baseball By the Numbers: Stats and the World of Sabermetrics 333

18 The Best There Ever Was: Baseball's Greatest Players 342

19 My View from the Bleachers: Personal Baseball Moments 356

Bibliography 365

Index 369