Favorite baseball book? Card or historical focused.

[cardsmemro]

I’m trying to compile a list of books to read in 2022. Would prefer them to be historically focused or about cards. Happy to hear all suggestions though! Thanks

[jsfriedm]

I think the Jane Leavy biographies are excellent - she has ones on Babe Ruth, Mickey Mantle, and Sandy Koufax - Golenbock's oral history of the Brooklyn Dodgers, John Thorn's book on 19th century baseball. The best book on cards I've read is "The Card," although if you've been in the hobby a while you'll probably be familiar with most of it. Interested in others' recommendations.

[Casey2296]

I would add Mark Peavey's book "A history of baseball in the dead ball era". He is a member here and his book is a really fun read. Amazon link below.
https://www.amazon.com/History-Baseb.../dp/B08NWQZTCW

[John1941]

My favorite of all time is the New Bill James Historical Baseball Abstract. It's really good: very well written, and very well researched, with lots of interesting things that don't always get told.

The Great American Baseball Card Flipping, Trading and Bubble Gum Book is a great one too. It and the Bill James Historical Baseball Abstract were the two books that introduced me to the older players. I've read both of them many times since I was nine or so.

[Bobbycee]

Get your hands on: "Crazy '08" by Cait Murphy. It's all about the wild 1908 Baseball pennant race & features great stories on many of the faces you see on T206.

[chadeast]

Originally Posted by John1941

My favorite of all time is the New Bill James Historical Baseball Abstract. It's really good: very well written, and very well researched, with lots of interesting things that don't always get told.

+1. I'll add "The Catcher was a Spy: The Mysterious Life of Moe Berg" and "Hal Chase: The Defiant Life and Turbulent Times of Baseball's Biggest Crook".

[mrreality68]

Originally Posted by Casey2296

I would add Mark Peavey's book "A history of baseball in the dead ball era". He is a member here and his book is a really fun read. Amazon link below.
https://www.amazon.com/History-Baseb.../dp/B08NWQZTCW

I like this book also

[Wanaselja]

“Satchel” - Larry Tye
“Our Team” - Luke Epplin (covers the 48 Indians)
“The Glory of Their Times” - I assume this is a Net54 staple

[clydepepper]

The Curious Case of Sidd Finch.

[JollyElm]

These are all very cool...

Big Hair and Plastic Grass : a Funky Ride Through Baseball and America in the Swinging '70s - Dan Epstein

The Bronx Zoo - Sparky Lyle

Swinging '73: Baseball's Wildest Season - Matthew Silverman

Ballparks: Yesterday & Today - Phil Trexler (& Marty Strasen?)

[chalupacollects]

This one is great!

The Great American Baseball Card Flipping, Trading and Bubble Gum Book. 1973. Lots of little fun stories about marginal players and good ones too!

And on the downer side… Operation Bullpen…


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Exhibitman]

Originally Posted by chalupacollects

This one is great!

The Great American Baseball Card Flipping, Trading and Bubble Gum Book. 1973. Lots of little fun stories about marginal players and good ones too!

As a collector, this is the one that set me off after classic Topps cards as a kid.



"In 1955, there were 77,263,127 male American human beings. And every one of them in his heart of hearts would have given two arms, a leg and his collection of Davy Crockett iron-ons to be Teddy Ballgame."

[icollectDCsports]

Originally Posted by Exhibitman

As a collector, this is the one that set me off after classic Topps cards as a kid.



"In 1955, there were 77,263,127 male American human beings. And every one of them in his heart of hearts would have given two arms, a leg and his collection of Davy Crockett iron-ons to be Teddy Ballgame."

Your post gave me a big smile, Adam. When I purchased and read that book around 1980, I also just HAD to get THAT card. So many great cards in the book but that one stood out to me. So I sent $20 away for one listed in a hobby publication (don't recall which one). And the '55 design is still my favorite by Topps from that decade.

[egri]

I don't think I've seen it mentioned yet, so I'll throw out "Wait 'Till Next Year", by Doris Kearns Goodwin.

[Tabe]

My selections would go something like this:

59 in '84 by Ed Achorn - Hoss Radbourn's incredible 1884 season plus lots of detail on baseball in that era in general

The Pitch That Killed by Mike Sowell - tremendous book on the death of Ray Chapman

Crazy '08 by Cait Murphy - Wonderful book on the 1908 season. A must-read.

The Bird by Doug Wilson - Incredible biography of Mark Fidrych that captures the essence of Mark and the undying love that Detroit fans have for him. If you are a Tigers fan, this should be #1 on your list, it's that good.

Never Give Up by Ruppert Jones - Powerful autobiography by Jones about dealing with a traumatic brain injury. It's harrowing, powerful, and uplifting all at once.

Any books by Tim Hornbaker. Tim's baseball books are all top-shelf, best-in-class: War on the Basepaths (Ty Cobb), Fall From Grace (Joe Jackson), and Turning the Black Sox White.



If you're not already a member, I highly recommend joining the "Baseball Books" group on Facebook. 10k members and lots of discussion about many books.

[benge610]

"The Iowa Baseball Confederacy" - W.P. Kinsella
I love Kinsella anyway but they are often, "shorts". I became totally immersed in this one and could not put it down; it helps to be a Cub fan and lover of baseball history but in spite of that, a beloved piece for me.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/0618340807...v_ov_lig_dp_it

[campyfan39]

Agree.
Also the book simply titled “Campy” is awesome as is his biography “It’s Good to be Alive”

I wrote a book about cards myself called “Buying Back Dad’s Cards” https://www.lulu.com/en/us/shop/dr-c...e=1&pageSize=4

Originally Posted by chalupacollects

This one is great!

The Great American Baseball Card Flipping, Trading and Bubble Gum Book. 1973. Lots of little fun stories about marginal players and good ones too!

And on the downer side… Operation Bullpen…


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[jpop43]

'How Baseball Happened' by Tom Gilbert

'Baseball in the Garden of Eden' by John Thorn

And, while it a bare bones history and OLD, Peverelly's 'Book of American of Pastimes' published in 1866 is a must for researchers.

JP
www.dugouttreasures.com

[jakebeckleyoldeagleeye]

The Year Babe Ruth Hit 104 Home Runs by Bill Jenkinson.
As long as there is an earth George Herman Ruth will still best the greatest.

[carlsonjok]

I really loved Howard Bryant's "The Last Hero: A Life of Henry Aaron" Very well written.

[tedzan]

The Year They Called Off The World Series

By Benton Stark

This book is an excellent read of a very significant year in Baseball History, for there was no Major League WORLD SERIES played in 1904.
Mgr. John McGraw of the NY Giants (NL Champs) refused to play Boston (AL Champs). Boston beat the NY Highlanders in a play-off series
at the end of the season. It appeared that the Highlanders would face the Giants in the 1st NY subway Series but a famous Pitcher blew it
in the 9th Inning of the last game of the season.

You T206 guys will really love this true-life story. Approx. 70 - T206 players come alive in your minds as you read this book's 217 pages.


TED Z

T206 Reference
.

[luciobar1980]

Originally Posted by campyfan39

Agree.
Also the book simply titled “Campy” is awesome as is his biography “It’s Good to be Alive”

I wrote a book about cards myself called “Buying Back Dad’s Cards” https://www.lulu.com/en/us/shop/dr-c...e=1&pageSize=4

Hmm, this looks cool! Do you happen to offer it in Kindle/Ebook format?

[FrankWakefield]

Alright,

As I read along, I see I forgot to mention Mr. Nemec's books, The Beer And Whiskey League and his encyclopedia on 19th century ball. Kevin is right about those.

I REALLY enjoyed October 1964, but I'm such a biased Cardinals fan that I didn't mention it initially.

Alibi Ike. David up there mentions Ring Lardner. The guys who wrote about baseball for the first 30 years of the 20th century were MASTER WORD SMITHS. A way to get a glimpse of this would be to read Ring Lardner. I suggest You Know Me Al as a starting point. It's funny! It's amazing, and it's educational. Alibi Ike is a joy in movie form. It's dated, but I really enjoy it. Joe E Brown stars. William Frawley plays the manager. Frawley was Fred Mertz in the old I Love Lucy shows, he was a huge baseball fan, he had a clause in his contract with I Love Lucy that allowed him to not have to show up at the studio to work on the show if the Yankees were in the World Series. And in the 1950's the Yankees were in it quite often. That's why Fred Mertz is occasionally absent from the script. But I digress, for those of you wanting to read fiction, read The Celebrant first, then find a Ring Lardner book. Hopefully it's You Know Me Al.

And I agree with Huck, above, about The Politics of Glory. I think the original version of that is best. Think about wondering how hot dogs and sausage is made, and what's in it. Then imagine that approach to how a HOF ball player got in. It's a bit ugly sometimes. As a Cardinals fan I'm a bit hurt over how is seems Frankie Frisch (great, smart ballplayer) put his finger on the scales, maybe, as some old ballplayers were considered or reconsidered.

[campyfan39]

No, sorry. Just paperback but it is in full color. God bless

Originally Posted by luciobar1980

Hmm, this looks cool! Do you happen to offer it in Kindle/Ebook format?

[robw1959]

Originally Posted by chalupacollects

This one is great!

The Great American Baseball Card Flipping, Trading and Bubble Gum Book. 1973. Lots of little fun stories about marginal players and good ones too!

And on the downer side… Operation Bullpen…


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

+1 . . . Good night, Sibbi Sisti, wherever you are.

[GrewUpWithJunkWax]

Having only gotten back into cards within the last year, I certainly don't have the depth as the above posts.

I will say that I recently enjoyed reading the articles at historythroughcards.com. Some articles are lengthy, and at times he dives into tangents while exploring various facets, but I enjoyed the research.

Also, I just ordered the new book "Spotting Fakes: Examining the Top 50 Fake Sports Cards", knowing I still have a lot to learn.

[topcat61]

Originally Posted by GrewUpWithJunkWax

Having only gotten back into cards within the last year, I certainly don't have the depth as the above posts.

I will say that I recently enjoyed reading the articles at historythroughcards.com. Some articles are lengthy, and at times he dives into tangents while exploring various facets, but I enjoyed the research.

Also, I just ordered the new book "Spotting Fakes: Examining the Top 50 Fake Sports Cards", knowing I still have a lot to learn.

Thanks I appreciate you checking out my work. Cheers, -Ryan

[GrewUpWithJunkWax]

Originally Posted by topcat61

Thanks I appreciate you checking out my work. Cheers, -Ryan

Keep up the good work

[frankbmd]

My Word!!!

I never realized we had so many members who can read.

[brianp-beme]

Originally Posted by frankbmd

My Word!!!

I never realized we had so many members who can read.

Read can yes do we.

Brian

[orioles70]

Goodnight Sibby Sisti, wherever you are.

Sent from my SM-N950U using Tapatalk

[jgannon]

Mickey Mantle's, "The Education of a Baseball Player" is a great book...

[Bcwcardz]

The Card by Michael O’Keefe
Card Sharks by Pete Williams

The card is about the origins of the PSA 8 T206 Wagner and it’s journey.
Card Sharks is about the origins of Upper Deck.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[todeen]

Not sure this one has been mentioned or not. But I like the diversity of topics it covers.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G930A using Tapatalk