Any good baseball book recommendations?

[Bored5000]

Two great ones I have read in recent months are Shoeless: The Life and Times of Joe Jackson and Wicked Curve: The Life and Troubled Times of Grover Cleveland Alexander. The David Fleitz book on Jackson is the best bio I have come across on Shoeless Joe. It goes far beyond the Black Sox Scandal and presents a more balanced look at the man than the hero worship of Jackson in Eight Men Out and Field of Dreams. The book also details the 30 years of Jackson's life following his banishment from baseball more than any other source I have found.

Likewise, the John Skipper book on Alexander is a fascinating read of a man whose demons (alcoholism, epilepsy, shellshock from World War I) completely overwhelmed him over the last 20 years of his life. Over the final couple decades of his life, Alexander slid into an existence of constant unemployment, drunkeness and poverty, despite the efforts of numerous people in baseball to help him either through jobs or just outright handouts. I am a Phiilies fan, so in addition to the gripping tale of Alexander, the Skipper book also provided some of the best information on the 1915 Phillies National League pennant winners that I have read anywhere.

http://www.amazon.com/Shoeless-The-L...tz+joe+jackson

http://www.amazon.com/Wicked-Curve-T...over+alexander