What Are You Reading Right Now?

[jsontag]

If there are any other good books on 19th century base ball you could recommend I would greatly appreciate it. The only other one I have is Albert Spalding's book "Base Ball".

Here are a few.

The Beer and Whisky League: The Illustrated History of the American Association--Baseball's Renegade Major League by David Nemec

Where They Ain't: The Fabled Life and Untimely Death of the Original Baltimore Orioles, the Team That Gave Birth to Modern Baseball by Burt Solomon

The Great 19th Century Encyclopedia of Major League Baseball by David Nemec

The Rank and File of 19th Century Major League Baseball: Biographies of 1,084 Players, Owners, Managers and Umpires by David Nemec

A Game of Brawl: The Orioles, the Beaneaters, and the Battle for the 1897 Pennant by Bill Felber

Players and Teams of the National Association, 1871-1875 by Paul Batesel

Nineteenth Century Baseball: Year-By-Year Statistics for the Major League Teams, 1871 Through 1900 by Marshall D. Wright

Tale of Four Cities: Nineteenth Century Baseball's Most Exciting Season; in Contemporary Accounts by Jean-Pierre Cailut (1889 Season)

Long Before the Dodgers: Baseball in Brooklyn, 1855-1884 by James L. Terry

The League that Lasted: 1876 and the Founding of the National League of Professional Baseball Clubs by Neil W. Macdonald

When the Dodgers Were Bridegrooms: Gunner McGunnigle and Brooklyn's Back-to-Back Pennants of 1889 and 1890 by Ronald G. Shafer

[brewcrew82]

Here are a few.

The Beer and Whisky League: The Illustrated History of the American Association--Baseball's Renegade Major League by David Nemec

Where They Ain't: The Fabled Life and Untimely Death of the Original Baltimore Orioles, the Team That Gave Birth to Modern Baseball by Burt Solomon

The Great 19th Century Encyclopedia of Major League Baseball by David Nemec

The Rank and File of 19th Century Major League Baseball: Biographies of 1,084 Players, Owners, Managers and Umpires by David Nemec

A Game of Brawl: The Orioles, the Beaneaters, and the Battle for the 1897 Pennant by Bill Felber

Players and Teams of the National Association, 1871-1875 by Paul Batesel

Nineteenth Century Baseball: Year-By-Year Statistics for the Major League Teams, 1871 Through 1900 by Marshall D. Wright

Tale of Four Cities: Nineteenth Century Baseball's Most Exciting Season; in Contemporary Accounts by Jean-Pierre Cailut (1889 Season)

Long Before the Dodgers: Baseball in Brooklyn, 1855-1884 by James L. Terry

The League that Lasted: 1876 and the Founding of the National League of Professional Baseball Clubs by Neil W. Macdonald

When the Dodgers Were Bridegrooms: Gunner McGunnigle and Brooklyn's Back-to-Back Pennants of 1889 and 1890 by Ronald G. Shafer

Awesome!!! Thanks!

[Cowtipper]

I'm reading The Incredible Mets by Maury Allen.

[Cod]

I just picked up all four volumes of The Fireside Book of Baseball series for $14 at a used book store. I've heard about this series and been wanting them for awhile, so I'm pretty excited to start reading them.

[Sabo-metrics]

I just finished the new Cobb book: Ty Cobb, A Terrible Beauty. This is a must - read for any Ty Cobb fan. If you haven't heard, the author goes back and researches the true story of Ty Cobb and explains in detail how the Al Stump book and Cobb movie are basically worthless. He also points to THIS WEBSITE as a source for some of his research!

I had loaned Cobb's biography to my young nephew (12 yrs old) and then felt a little guilty when he became obsessed with baseball's biggest monster. After finishing this book, I am relieved to know that Cobb's biography is a lot closer to the truth than most of the information out there, including Ken Burns documentary which paints him as a dangerous man.

[Cowtipper]

I'm currently reading If at First: A Season With the Mets by Keith Hernandez and Mike Bryan.

[Cowtipper]

I'm currently reading If at First: A Season With the Mets by Keith Hernandez and Mike Bryan.

^^ good book, would recommend. Hernandez's arrogance gets to be a little much sometimes, but a quality read.

Now I'm reading The Worst Team Money Could Buy by Bob Klapisch and John Harper.

[Jeremy]

Just curious guys

For those that have read fools rush in by bill James how did they enjoy it?

[The Monument]

I just picked up all four volumes of The Fireside Book of Baseball series for $14 at a used book store. I've heard about this series and been wanting them for awhile, so I'm pretty excited to start reading them.

Great books at a great price! I read those growing up in the 70's. Lots of BB history.

[The Monument]

Just finished Ryne Duren's I Can See Clearly Now. With a 100 mph fastball and a serious drinking problem, Duren was Yanks closer before the term was used. Follows his career from late 50's to mid 60's, including glory years with Yanks in '60-61. Split between 50% baseball and 50% alcohol education without being preachy. This book segued nicely into Mariano Rivera's The Closer, which I'm halfway through. Amazing how Mo takes little credit for his abilities and chalks most of it up to God-given talent. I liked how he was able to bad-mouth the PED bunch without really saying anything bad . You have to read it to see what I mean. Both books are easy reading and highly recommended.

[abolishthedh]

The biography on Vin Scully, Pull Up A Chair, by Curt Smith. The author assumes a great deal on the part of the reader in the form of cultural reference points in the 1950s. These assumptions are not as troublesome once you have familiarity with those reference points from your own memory, just in my view. It is timely, with this being his last year.

[abolishthedh]

It would be worth sharing a review of Pull Up A Chair. As media books go, this is one of a kind, because not too many broadcasters have an autobio nor a regular biography published about them. A lot of behind the scenes stuff is shared over who got along with whom, perspectives on the mistakes made by the networks in the hindsight of fans, and some baseball trivia which I never knew from time to time.

That said, this is the kind of book which fans will read with the intent of reminiscing, but the author just doesn't have the style to allow for reminiscence. At one point on a page, you are reading about 1986, and in the same paragraph he is clearly mentioning 1988. The author isn't confusing his facts, he just moves too quickly. The book is 238 pages of reading, and that isn't enough to cover Scully's career. Admittedly, it might become boring to cover 67 years with the detail that some biographies offer, because Vin Scully is a family man without interesting personal sideshow stories. In any case, the author just moves too quickly to bring about any nostalgia, and so that is disappointing.

[Cowtipper]

^^ good book, would recommend. Hernandez's arrogance gets to be a little much sometimes, but a quality read.

Now I'm reading The Worst Team Money Could Buy by Bob Klapisch and John Harper.

^^ Good book, would recommend. Now I'm reading The Last Best League by Jim Collins. It's about the Cape Cod League.

[toomanyhatz]

I finally got to reading Molly Knight's book, which I loved. Here's what I said on another site (not sports-related):

One of the truly great baseball books. Knight is a good writer, not a great one, but she got unprecedented access to one of the most colorful almost-great teams of recent times. And perfectionist Clayton Kershaw, oddball talent Zack Greinke, untamed youth Yasiel Puig and sensitive superstar Matt Kemp (a year on from having dated Rihanna) are an amazing cast of characters.

I think it's almost better that Knight is a reporter and not a Norman Mailer type bringing her own agenda to it. It's such an unlikely combination of characters that the story can't fail to be interesting. And there's so many great 'right place at the right time' elements to it - like when she shows up at Kershaw's Dallas house right as the new contract is announced.

Some of the players are apparently unhappy with how they're portrayed, but it certainly seems pretty honest and admirable. She doesn't throw anyone under the bus, but she doesn't gloss over anyone's flaws, either.

[Cowtipper]

^^ Good book, would recommend. Now I'm reading The Last Best League by Jim Collins. It's about the Cape Cod League.

^^ good book, would recommend.

Now I am reading The Sluggers by John Holway.