Stealing Games: How John McGraw Transformed Baseball with the 1911 New York Giants
The 1911 New York Giants stole an astonishing 347 bases, a record that still stands more than a century later. That alone makes them special in baseball history, but as Maury Klein relates in Stealing Games they also embodied a rapidly changing America on the cusp of a faster, more frenetic pace of life dominated by machines, technology, and urban culture.

Baseball, too, was evolving from the dead-ball to the live-ball era—the cork-centered ball was introduced in 1910 and structurally changed not only the outcome of individual games but the way the game itself was played, requiring upgraded equipment, new rules, and new ways of adjudicating. Changing performance also changed the relationship between management and players. The Giants had two stars—the brilliant manager John McGraw and aging pitcher Christy Mathewson—and memorable characters such as Rube Marquard and Fred Snodgrass; yet their speed and tenacity led to three pennants in a row starting in 1911. Stealing Games gives a great team its due and underscores once more the rich connection between sports and culture.

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Stealing Games: How John McGraw Transformed Baseball with the 1911 New York Giants
The 1911 New York Giants stole an astonishing 347 bases, a record that still stands more than a century later. That alone makes them special in baseball history, but as Maury Klein relates in Stealing Games they also embodied a rapidly changing America on the cusp of a faster, more frenetic pace of life dominated by machines, technology, and urban culture.

Baseball, too, was evolving from the dead-ball to the live-ball era—the cork-centered ball was introduced in 1910 and structurally changed not only the outcome of individual games but the way the game itself was played, requiring upgraded equipment, new rules, and new ways of adjudicating. Changing performance also changed the relationship between management and players. The Giants had two stars—the brilliant manager John McGraw and aging pitcher Christy Mathewson—and memorable characters such as Rube Marquard and Fred Snodgrass; yet their speed and tenacity led to three pennants in a row starting in 1911. Stealing Games gives a great team its due and underscores once more the rich connection between sports and culture.

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Stealing Games: How John McGraw Transformed Baseball with the 1911 New York Giants

Stealing Games: How John McGraw Transformed Baseball with the 1911 New York Giants

by Maury Klein
Stealing Games: How John McGraw Transformed Baseball with the 1911 New York Giants

Stealing Games: How John McGraw Transformed Baseball with the 1911 New York Giants

by Maury Klein

Hardcover

$28.00 
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Overview

The 1911 New York Giants stole an astonishing 347 bases, a record that still stands more than a century later. That alone makes them special in baseball history, but as Maury Klein relates in Stealing Games they also embodied a rapidly changing America on the cusp of a faster, more frenetic pace of life dominated by machines, technology, and urban culture.

Baseball, too, was evolving from the dead-ball to the live-ball era—the cork-centered ball was introduced in 1910 and structurally changed not only the outcome of individual games but the way the game itself was played, requiring upgraded equipment, new rules, and new ways of adjudicating. Changing performance also changed the relationship between management and players. The Giants had two stars—the brilliant manager John McGraw and aging pitcher Christy Mathewson—and memorable characters such as Rube Marquard and Fred Snodgrass; yet their speed and tenacity led to three pennants in a row starting in 1911. Stealing Games gives a great team its due and underscores once more the rich connection between sports and culture.


Product Details

ISBN-13: 9781632860248
Publisher: Bloomsbury USA
Publication date: 03/22/2016
Pages: 400
Product dimensions: 6.10(w) x 9.30(h) x 1.30(d)

About the Author

Maury Klein is renowned as one of the finest historians of American business and economy. He is the author of many books, including A Call to Arms: Mobilizing America for World War II; The Power Makers: Steam, Electricity, and the Men Who Invented Modern America; and Rainbow's End: The Crash of 1929. He is Professor Emeritus of History at the University of Rhode Island. Klein lives in Saunderstown, Rhode Island.

Table of Contents

Introduction ix

Prologue: The Rite of Spring xiii

Part 1 The Groundwork 1

1 The Mastermind 3

2 The Business of Baseball 19

3 The Master Builder 30

4 Rivals 46

5 Fresh Blood 62

6 Starting Over 77

7 Bitter Aftertastes 96

8 Coming Together 110

Part 2 The Season 127

9 April: All Fired Up 129

10 May: Home Away from Home 146

11 June: Dogfight 164

12 July: Dog Days 179

13 August: Jinxes and Charms 200

14 September: Road Warriors 218

15 October: Sweet Victory 238

16 World Series: The Long and Short of It 246

17 The McGraw Dynasties 274

Epilogue: The Parade Passing 281

Appendix A The 1908 Brush Committee Report 301

Appendix B Statistics of the 1911 New York Giants 307

Abbreviations 309

Notes 311

Bibliography 341

Index 347

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