John Racanelli

John Racanelli is a Chicago lawyer with an insatiable interest in baseball-related litigation. When not rooting for his beloved Cubs (or working), he is probably doing baseball research or enjoying downtime with his wife and family. He is the world’s foremost photographer of triple peanuts at ball parks and likes to think he has one of the most complete collections of vintage handheld electronic baseball games known to exist. John is vice chair for the Emil Rothe (Chicago) SABR Chapter and founder and co-chair of the SABR Baseball Landmarks Research Committee. A regular contributor to the SABR Baseball Cards Research Committee blog, his series of articles “Death and Taxes and Baseball Card Litigation” won a 2023 McFarland-SABR Baseball Research Award. John delivered the keynote address at the dedication ceremony for a historical marker placed in honor of Lewis Robert “Hack” Wilson in Ellwood City, Pennsylvania on August 25, 2023. Along with Derek Bain, John co-authored the book, Hardball Retro’s Compendium of Baseball Video Games and Electronic Handhelds, which won a 2025 Sporting News-SABR Baseball Research Award. Follow John on X/Twitter: @phitter72 and Bluesky: @phitter72.bsky.social.