Awards – Society for American Baseball Research https://sabr.org Fri, 27 Mar 2026 19:29:33 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.9.4 Larry Ritter Book Award (Deadball) https://sabr.org/about/awards/larry-ritter Fri, 27 Mar 2026 00:21:10 +0000 http://dev.sabr.org/award/larry-ritter-book-award-deadball/ Each year, SABR’s Deadball Era Committee presents the Larry Ritter Book Award to recognize the best new baseball book primarily set in the Deadball Era that was published during the previous calendar year. The Ritter Award is presented during the Deadball Committee’s meeting at the annual SABR convention.

The award is named in honor of late SABR member Lawrence S. Ritter, author of The Glory of Their Times, the work that revived interest in the Deadball Era and often cited as the greatest baseball book ever written.

To learn more about the origins and history of the Larry Ritter Award, click here.

The task of reviewing this year’s nominees is assigned to an awards committee chaired by Doug Skipper, with John McMurray, Mark Dugo, David Fleitz, Craig Lammers, Mark Pattison, and Ben Klein as the other judges. The nominees’ list will be pared down to four finalists in early March, with the Larry Ritter Award to be publicly announced the following month.

2027 nominations

Submit nominations for the 2027 Larry Ritter Book Award, honoring books published in the 2026 calendar year, to Doug Skipper at theskippers1@hotmail.com by December 31, 2026.

2026 finalists

  • Deadbeats, Dead Balls, and the 1914 Boston Braves, by Martin H. Bush (Kent State University Press)
  • The House Divided: The Story of the First Congressional Baseball Game, by J.B. Manheim (Sunbury Press)
  • A History of Baseball in the Deadball Era: Volume Two 1906 to 1910, by Mark Peavy (independently published)
  • One Splendid Season: Baseball and America in 1912, Told with the Words and Images of the Hassan Triplefolder Set, by Phil Rosenzweig (Cragmont Books)

Larry Ritter Award winners

2025

  • Mike Donlin: A Rough and Rowdy Life from New York Baseball Idol to Stage and Screen, by Steve Steinberg and Lyle Spatz (University of Nebraska Press)

2024

  • Baseball Photography of the Deadball Era: Rediscovering the Early Lensmen and Their Indelible Images That Brought the Game from the Field to the Fans, by Jim Chapman (self-published)

2023

  • Charlie Murphy: The Iconoclastic Showman Behind the Chicago Cubs, by Jason Cannon (University of Nebraska Press)

2022

  • Gettysburg Eddie Plank: A Pitcher’s Journey to the Hall of Fame, by Dave Heller (McFarland & Co.)

2021

  • War Fever: Boston, Baseball, and America in the Shadow of the Great War, by Randy Roberts and Johnny Smith (Basic Books)

2020

  • James T. Farrell and Baseball: Dreams and Realism on Chicago’s South Side, by Charles DeMotte (University of Nebraska Press)
  • Oscar Charleston; The Life and Legend of Baseball’s Greatest Forgotten Player, by Jeremy Beer (University of Nebraska Press)

2019

  • September 1918: War, Plague, and the World Series, by Skip Desjardin (Regnery History)

2018

  • From the Dugouts to the Trenches: Baseball During the Great War, by Jim Leeke (University of Nebraska Press)

2017

  • The Selling of the Babe: The Deal That Changed Baseball and Created a Legend, by Glenn Stout (Thomas Dunne Books, St. Martin’s Press)

2016

  • Ty Cobb: A Terrible Beauty, by Charles Leerhsen (Simon & Schuster)

2015

  • Baseball on Trial: The Origin of Baseball’s Antitrust Exemption, by Nathaniel Grow (University of Illinois Press)
  • The Days of Wee Willie, Old Cy and Baseball War: Scenes from the Dawn of the Deadball Era, 1900-1903, by Chuck Kimberly (McFarland & Co.)

2014

  • Spitballing: The Baseball Days of Long Bob Ewing, by Mike Lackey (Orange Frazer Press)

2013

  • The Battle That Forged Modern Baseball: The Federal League Challenge and Its Legacy, by Daniel R. Levitt (Ivan R. Dee)  

 2012

  • Fenway 1912: The Birth of a Ballpark, a Championship Season, and Fenway’s Remarkable First Year, by Glenn Stout (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt) 

2011

  • Native American Son: The Life and Sporting Legend of Jim Thorpe, by Kate Buford (Alfred A. Knopf)

2010

  • The Federal League of Base Ball Clubs: The History of an Outlaw Major League, 1914-1915, by Robert Peyton Wiggins (McFarland & Co.)

2009

  • Ballparks of the Deadball Era: A Comprehensive Study of Their Dimension, Configurations and Effects on Batting, 1901-1919, by Ronald M. Selter (McFarland & Co.)

2008

  • Connie Mack and the Early Years of Baseball, by Norman L. Macht (University of Nebraska Press)

2007

  • Burying the Black Sox: How Baseball’s Cover-Up of the 1919 World Series Fix Almost Succeeded, by Gene Carney (Potomac)

2006

  • Peach: Ty Cobb in His Time and Ours, by Richard Bak (Sports Media Group)

2005

  • The American Indian Integration of Baseball, by Jeffrey Powers-Beck (University of Nebraska Press)

2004

  • The Tour to End All Tours: The Story of Major League Baseball’s 1913—1914 World Tour, by James E. Elfers (Bison Books)

2003

  • Before They Were the Bombers: The New York Yankees’ Early Years, 1903—1915, by Jim Reisler (McFarland & Co.)

2002

  • Hal Chase: The Defiant Life and Turbulent Times of Baseball’s Biggest Crook, by Martin Donell Kohout (McFarland & Co.)
]]> McFarland-SABR Baseball Research Award https://sabr.org/awards/mcfarland-sabr/ Wed, 18 Mar 2026 15:23:23 +0000 http://dev.sabr.org/award/mcfarland-sabr-baseball-research-award/ The McFarland-SABR Baseball Research Award honors the authors of the best articles on baseball history or biography completed or published during the preceding calendar year.

This award was previously named the Macmillan-SABR Baseball Research Award (1987-2000). It is presented each year at the SABR Convention to three individuals, groups or groups of individuals whose research projects have greatly expanded our knowledge of baseball. In 1995, the focus of the award was changed to articles about baseball history and biography.

The selection committee consists of: Roberta J. Newman (chair), Stephanie Liscio, and Allen Tait.

2027 award nominations

Nominations for the 2027 McFarland-SABR Baseball Research Award, honoring research projects completed in the 2026 calendar year, are now open. Please send nominations to Roberta Newman and include the article title, author, publication, date, and URL (if applicable). Deadline is December 31, 2026. Self-nominations are welcome.

McFarland-SABR Baseball Research Award winners

2026

2025

2024

2023

2022

2021

2020

2019

  • Richard Bak, “The Rise and Fatal Fall of Tenny Blount,” unpublished work.
  • Robert Fitts, “Baseball and the Yellow Peril,” Base Ball: New Research on the Early Game, Vol. 10 (McFarland & Co.)
  • John McMurray, “Addie Joss and the Benefit Game,” Base Ball: New Research on the Early Game, Vol. 10 (McFarland & Co.)

2018

2017

2016

2015

2014

2013

2012

2011

2010

  • Mark Armour, “A Tale of Two Umpires,” Baseball Research Journal, Fall 2009 (SABR)
  • William F. Lamb, “A Fearsome Collaboration: The Alliance of Andrew Freedman and John T. Brush,” Base Ball: A Journal of the Early Game, Fall 2009
  • Geri Strecker, “The Rise and Fall of Greenlee Field: Biography of a Ballpark,” Black Ball: A Journal of the Negro League, Fall 2009

2009

  • David J. Laliberte, “Myth, History and Indian Baseball: An Unexpected Story of the Game in Minnesota”
  • William J. McGill, “The Greatest College Pitcher: George Sisler at Michigan”
  • David Vaught, “Our Players Are Mostly Farmers: Baseball in Rural California, 1850-1890”

2008

  • Henry D. Fetter, “Revising the Revisionists: Walter O’Malley, Robert Moses, and the Death of the Brooklyn Dodgers”. (Revised text published under title “Revising the Revisionists: Walter O’Malley, Robert Moses and the End of the Brooklyn Dodgers,” in New York History, Vol. 89, No. 1, Winter 2008)
  • Frederick Ivor-Campbell, “Knickerbocker Base Ball: The Birth and Infancy of the Modern Game” Base Ball: A Journal of the Negro League, Fall 2007 (McFarland & Co.)
  • Dick Thompson, “Cannonball Bill Jackman,” The National Pastime #27, 2007 (SABR)

2007

  • Brian Carroll, “Early Twentieth Century Heroes: Coverage of Negro League Baseball in the Pittsburgh Courier and the Chicago Defender,” Journalism History, Spring 2006
  • Mitchell Nathanson, “The Irrelevance of Baseball’s Antitrust Exemption: A Historical Review,” Rutgers Law Review, Vol. 58, Issue 1, 2005
  • Steve Steinberg, “Matty and the Browns: A Window Onto the AL-NL War,” NINE: A Journal of Baseball History and Culture, Spring 2006

2006

2005

2004

2003

  • Frank Ardolino, “Missionaries, Cartwright and Spalding,” NINE: A Journal of Baseball History and Culture, Fall 2002
  • Ron Briley, “In the Tradition of Jackie Robinson: Ozzie Virgil and the Integration of the Detroit Tigers,” The Cooperstown Symposium on Baseball and American Culture, 2002 (McFarland & Co.)
  • Jim McConnell, “Dahlgren, You’re in There”

2002

2001

  • Tom Altherr, “A Place Leavel Enough To Play Ball: Baseball and Baseball-type Games in the Colonial Era, Revolutionary War, and Early American Republic”, NINE: A Journal of Baseball History and Social Policy Perspectives
  • Robert H. Schaefer, “The Lost Art of Fair-Foul Hitting,” The National Pastime #20, 2000 (SABR)
  • Dick Thompson, “The Wes Ferrell Story,” The National Pastime #21, 2001 (SABR)

Previously Awarded as the Macmillan-SABR Baseball Research Award

2000

  • Ron Briley, “As American as Cherry Pie: Baseball and Reflections of Violence in the 1960s and 1970s,” The Cooperstown Symposium on Baseball and American Culture, 1999
  • Chris Lamb, “L’Affaire Jake Powell: The Minority Press Goes to Bat Against Segregated Baseball,” Journalism and Mass Communication Quarterly, Vol. 76, No. 1, Spring 1999
  • Stephen Norwood and Harold Brackman, “Going to Bat for Jackie Robinson: The Jewish Role in Breaking Baseball’s Color Line,” Journal of Sport History, Vol. 26, No. 1, Spring 1999

1999

  • David M. Jordan, Larry Gerlach and John Rossi, “A Baseball Myth Exploded,” The National Pastime #18, SABR, 1998
  • Jim McConnell, “Baseball’s Dark Past,” Grandstand Baseball Annual
  • Andrew O’Toole, “Clemente’s First Spring,” Elysian Fields Quarterly

1998

  • Clifford Blau, “The History of Major League Tie Games”
  • John McReynolds, “Nate Moreland, Mystery to Historians,” Los Angeles Sentinel, August 13, 1998
  • Gary Smith, “Damned Yankee,” Sports Illustrated, October 13, 1997

1997

1996

  • James A. Smith Jr. and Herman Krabbenhoft, “Triple Play Project,” The Baseball Quarterly Review
  • Hank Thomas & Chuck Carey, for research involved in “The California Comet” on Walter Johnson’s California semi-pro career
  • Michael O’Grady, “From Covehead to the Polo Grounds: The Story of Henry Haverlock Oxley, Major Leaguer”

1995

  • Peter C. Bjarkman, Baseball with a Latin Beat: A History of the Latin American Game
  • Robert F. Burk, Never Just a Game: Players, Owners and American Baseball to 1920
  • Jack Kavanagh, Walter Johnson: A Life

1994

  • Lloyd Johnson and Miles Wolff, The Encyclopedia of Minor League Baseball
  • James A. Riley, The Biographical Encyclopedia of the Negro Baseball Leagues
  • Michael Gershman, Diamonds: The Evolution of the Ballpark

1993

  • Phil Dixon, The Negro Baseball Leagues: A Photographic History
  • Barbara Gregorich, Women at Play: The Story of Women in Baseball
  • William Ryczek, Blackguards and Red Stockings: A History of The National Association

1992

  • Robert Gregory, Diz: The Story of Dizzy Dean and Baseball During the Great Depression
  • Herman Krabbenhoft, “Baseball Quarterly Reviews”
  • Mark Stang and Linda Harkness, “Rosters!”

1991

  • Bruce Kuklick, “To Everything a Season — Shibe Park and Urban Philadelphia 1909-1976”

1990

  • Dr. Harold Seymour, Baseball: The People’s Game
  • Dick Clark, John Holway and James A. Riley, for work on Negro League statistics in The Baseball Encyclopedia (8th edition)
  • James E. Miller, “The Baseball Business”

1989

  • Bill Deane, Award Voting
  • Paul Dickson, The Dickson Baseball Dictionary
  • Marc Okkonen, Major League Uniforms of the 20th Century

1988

  • Melvin Adelman, for his work on 1820-1870 New York City baseball
  • Stew Thornley, “On to Nicollet,” a team profile of the Minneapolis Millers
  • Bob Tiemann and Rich Topp, for their work cataloging managerial changes

1987

  • Andy McCue, Baseball By the Books
  • Rob Ruck, The Tropic of Baseball: Baseball in the Dominican Republic
]]> Jefferson Burdick Award (Baseball Cards) https://sabr.org/awards/jefferson-burdick/ Mon, 09 Mar 2026 07:24:15 +0000 http://dev.sabr.org/award/jefferson-burdick-award-baseball-cards/ Baseball cards

In 2020, SABR’s Baseball Cards Committee established the Jefferson Burdick Award, honoring individuals who have made significant contributions to the baseball card hobby.

Jefferson Burdick

Eligible candidates include anyone who has made significant contributions to the hobby in such areas as baseball card research/scholarship; baseball card creation/production/innovation; developing/maintaining resources (e.g., publications, websites, communities, events) for collectors; and increasing access, knowledge, or enjoyment of the hobby.

Jefferson R. Burdick (1900–63) was a pioneer card collector whose invented classifications still govern the hobby; he donated his enormous collection to the Metropolitan Museum of Art, where it remains one of the most popular destinations for researchers. He created The American Card Catalog, the bible of the hobby, and tribute is paid to his lifelong work whenever anyone brings up T-206 or N-162 or other codes common in card collecting. To learn more about his life and legacy, click here or visit the Burdick section of the “Old Baseball Cards” library.

 

2027 nominations

To submit a nomination for the Jefferson Burdick Award, please use the Contact form on the SABR Baseball Cards website to let us know your nominee(s) along with a very brief description of their role or contributions. Nominations are due by February 28, 2027.

Nominees should be living at the time of nomination. You must be a SABR member to participate in the nomination process; if you are not yet a member, please join!

The winner will be selected by members of the Jefferson Burdick Award Selection Committee. For questions, please contact Jason Schwartz.

 

Award winners

]]> SABR Analytics Conference Lifetime Achievement Award https://sabr.org/awards/sabr-analytics-conference-lifetime-achievement/ Sun, 01 Mar 2026 08:23:42 +0000 https://sabr.org/?post_type=awards&p=299738 Doug Fearing of Teamworks Intelligence was presented by SABR CEO with the 2026 SABR Analytics Conference Lifetime Achievement Award on February 28, 2026.

The SABR Analytics Conference Lifetime Achievement Award is presented to members of the sabermetric community for their contributions to improve our understanding of the game of baseball.

Honorees are recognized at the SABR Analytics Conference. Learn more at SABR.org/analytics.

Award winners

]]> Dr. Mike Marshall Baseball Biomechanics Research Award https://sabr.org/awards/dr-mike-marshall-baseball-biomechanics-research/ Sat, 28 Feb 2026 07:01:40 +0000 https://sabr.org/?post_type=awards&p=316983 Kristen M. Stewart, right, was announced as the winner of the 2026 Dr. Mike Marshall Baseball Biomechanics Research Award on February 28, 2026, at the SABR Analytics Conference in Phoenix, Arizona. She was presented with the award by SABR CEO Scott Bush.

From left: SABR CEO Scott Bush and 2026 award recipient Kristen M. Stewart.

 

The Dr. Mike Marshall Baseball Biomechanics Research Award, established in 2025, is awarded during the SABR Analytics Conference in Phoenix, Arizona.

The award was created through the support of Deborah Marshall and Dr. Mike Marshall’s Pitching Academia and named in honor of the maverick former major-league pitcher. This award honors the legacy of Dr. Marshall by encouraging the study of baseball biomechanics and its application in further understanding pitching, with an emphasis on the risks, causes and/or prevention of pitching injury.

All student biomechanics research submitted for consideration for the SABR Analytics Conference is eligible for the award, which comes with a cash prize of at least $2,000 per year.

Past winners

2026

  • Kristen M. Stewart, “Individual Muscle Capacity to Generate Elbow Varus Moment during a Fastball Pitch.”

2025

  • Conner Pelletier, Jack Lambert, Anthony Becerra, and Sam Ehrlich, “The Interaction of Command and Biomechanics for Pitchers”
]]> SABR Analytics Conference Research Awards https://sabr.org/awards/sabr-analytics-conference/ Sat, 28 Feb 2026 07:00:16 +0000 http://dev.sabr.org/award/sabr-analytics-conference-research-awards/ SABR Analytics Conference

The SABR Analytics Conference Research Awards recognize baseball researchers who have completed the best work of original analysis or commentary during the preceding calendar year in the following categories:

  • Contemporary Baseball Analysis: Honoring the best analysis focusing on a subject related to the modern game(s), team(s) or player(s).
  • Contemporary Baseball Commentary: Honoring the best commentary focusing on a subject related to the modern game(s), team(s) or player(s). 
  • Historical Baseball Analysis/Commentary: Honoring the best original analysis or commentary focusing on a subject related to a game(s), team(s) or player(s) throughout baseball history.
  • John Dewan Defensive Analytics Award: Honoring the best defensive or fielding analysis published or presented in the last year.

Works of “Analysis” will be judged on the following criteria: thorough examination of the subject matter; originality of research; factual accuracy; significance in advancing our understanding of baseball.

Works of “Commentary” will be judged on the following criteria: distinguished writing; profound insight; factual accuracy; significance in advancing our understanding of baseball.

A work can be in any format except books, including but not limited to articles, columns, blog posts, television, film, websites, spreadsheets or databases, but it must have been first published in the preceding calendar year. Individual articles published as part of a book or journal compilation are eligible. No unpublished work will be considered. No work published, in part or in whole, prior to the preceding calendar year will be considered.

No work will be considered in more than one category. Multiple nominations can be submitted, but only one work per author will be considered as a finalist.

Nominations are solicited by representatives from SABR, Baseball Prospectus, FanGraphs, the Internet Baseball Writers Association of America, and Sports Info Solutions, and sent to Jacob Pomrenke at the SABR office. SABR chooses the final 3-5 nominees in each category, from the list submitted by each group. Voting for the winners is conducted online at SABR.org, BaseballProspectus.com, FanGraphs.com, and IBWAA.com, with results weighted equally at 25%.

Results are announced and presented at the annual SABR Analytics Conference. Learn more at SABR.org/analytics.

2027 nominations

What are the best baseball analytics articles you’ve read in 2026? Please send all nominations via e-mail to analytics-awards@sabr.org no later than December 31, 2026. Include author, title, date of publication and a URL link (if applicable). Self-nominations are encouraged.

Past winners

2026

2025

2024

2023

2022

2021

2020

2019

2018

2017

2016

2015

2014

2013

 

]]> Russell Gabay Award (New Jersey) https://sabr.org/chapters/russell-gabay-award/ Wed, 04 Feb 2026 20:53:58 +0000 http://dev.sabr.org/award/russell-gabay-award/ The Russell Gabay Award, established by SABR’s Elysian Fields Chapter and Goose Goslin Chapter in 2018, honors entities or persons who have demonstrated an ongoing commitment to preserving New Jersey baseball history or promoting baseball activities in the state.  

Russell Gabay was a native of Springfield, New Jersey. He began his career in the late 1970s producing for ESPN. For twenty years and until his sudden death in 2016, Gabay was the vice president and executive producer of international broadcasting for Major League Baseball. He was a huge baseball fan and had a reputation as a loyal professional with a true sense of team. Gabay was also known for his friendliness and generosity, whether toward people trying to break into the business or veterans with several decades of experience.

 

Nominations

The chapter leadership of the Goose Goslin and Elysian Fields chapters will call for nominees on November 1 of each year. At the time of nomination, individuals nominated must be living and institutions nominated must be operational.

All nominations must be received via email by the president of the Elysian Fields Chapter, Donna Muscarella, no later than December 31. The nomination must be made by a SABR member and must include the name of the nominee and a nomination statement no more than 1,000 words in length. Self-nominations are prohibited.

The winner will be determined by a ballot put forth to all members of the Goose Goslin and Elysian Fields chapters, as well as to Russell Gabay’s sister, Lori Gabay.

 

Past winners

]]> The Seymour Medal https://sabr.org/awards/the-seymour-medal/ Mon, 26 Jan 2026 07:01:23 +0000 http://dev.sabr.org/award/the-seymour-medal/ The Dr. Harold and Dorothy Seymour Medal honors the best book of baseball history or biography published during the preceding calendar year.

Not more than one Seymour Medal shall be given each year. If, in the judgment of the awards committee, a worthy candidate cannot be found, no medal shall be awarded.

To learn the history of the Seymour Medal, its idea and origin, the preparation of the unique medal and how it was created, click here. To read Dorothy Seymour Mills’ article “A Woman’s Work: Doing Research With Harold Seymour,” click here.

The first three Medals were awarded at the SABR National Convention. In 1999, SABR held the first Seymour Medal Conference at Cleveland State University in conjunction with the awarding of the medal. Today, SABR awards the Seymour Medal at the banquet of the annual NINE Spring Training conference in Tempe, Arizona.

The selection committee consists of R.J. Lesch (chair), Steve Gietschier, and Donna L. Halper.

To view more detailed criteria on selecting the Seymour Medal winners, click here.

2027 award nominations

Nominations are now open for the 2027 Seymour Medal, honoring books completed or published in the 2026 calendar year. Please contact R.J. Lesch with include author(s) name, book title, publisher, date, online URL (if applicable), and any other relevant information. Self-nominations are welcome. Non-SABR members are also eligible to be nominated. Deadline: December 31, 2026.

Seymour Medal winners

2026

2025

2024

2023

2022

2021

2020

2019

2018

2017

2016

2015

2014

2013

2012

2011

2010

  • Satchel: The Life and Times of an American Legend, by Larry Tye (Random House)

2009

  • Chief Bender’s Burden: The Silent Struggle of a Baseball Star, by Tom Swift (University of Nebraska Press)

2008

  • Branch Rickey: Baseball’s Ferocious Gentleman, by Lee Lowenfish (University of Nebraska Press)

2007

  • A Game of Inches: The Stories Behind the Innovations That Shaped Baseball, (two-volume set) by Peter Morris (Ivan R. Dee)

2006

  • Baseball Before We Knew It: A Search for the Roots of the Game, by David Block (University of Nebraska Press)

2005

  • Negro League Baseball: The Rise and Ruin of a Black Institution, by Neil Lanctot (University of Pennsylvania Press)

2004

  • Baseball Fever: Early Baseball in Michigan, by Peter Morris (University of Michigan Press)

2003

  • Breaking the Slump: Baseball in the Depression Era, by Charles C. Alexander (Columbia University Press)

2002

  • Early Baseball and the Rise of the National League, by Tom Melville (McFarland)

2001

  • Past Time: Baseball as History, by Jules Tygiel (Oxford University Press)

2000

  • Baseball’s Pivotal Era: 1945-1951, by William Marshall (The University Press of Kentucky)

1999

  • Baseball’s Last Dynasty: Charlie Finley’s Oakland A’s, by Bruce Markusen (Masters Press)

1998

  • The Detroit Tigers: Club and Community, 1945-95, by Patrick Harrigan (University of Toronto Press)

1997

  • Honus Wagner, the Life of Baseball’s “Flying Dutchman”, by Arthur D. Hittner (McFarland)

1996

  • Fleet Walker’s Divided Heart, by David Zang (University of Nebraska Press)

 

Seymour Medal finalists

2026

  • Touching Home: Baseball and the Liberal-Republican Tradition in America, by Mary Craig (University of Missouri Press)
  • Opening the Door for Jackie: The Untold Story of Baseball’s Integration, by Keith Evan Crook (McFarland & Co.)

2025

  • Leave While the Party’s Good: The Life and Legacy of Baseball Executive Harry Dalton, by Lee C. Kluck (University of Nebraska Press)
  • Charlie Hustle: The Rise and Fall of Pete Rose, and the Last Glory Days of Baseball, by Keith O’Brien (Pantheon)

2024

  • Daybreak at Chavez Ravine: Fernandomania and the Remaking of the Los Angeles Dodgers, by Erik Sherman (University of Nebraska Press)

2023

  • Baseball Rebels: The Players, People and Social Movements That Shook Up the Game and Changed America, by Peter Dreier and Robert A. Elias (University of Nebraska Press)
  • Red Barber: The Life and Legacy of a Broadcasting Legend, by Judith R. Hiltner and James R. Walker (University of Nebraska Press)

2022

  • The Best Team Over There: The Untold Story of Grover Cleveland Alexander and the Great War, by Jim Leeke (University of Nebraska Press)
  • Comeback Pitchers: The Remarkable Careers of Howard Ehmke & Jack Quinn, by Lyle Spatz and Steve Steinberg (University of Nebraska Press)

2021

  • How Baseball Happened: Outrageous Lies Exposed! The True Story Revealed, by Thomas W. Gilbert (David R. Godine)
  • Bouton: The Life of a Baseball Original, by Mitchell Nathanson (University of Nebraska Press)
  • The Called Shot: Babe Ruth, the Chicago Cubs, and the Unforgettable Major League Baseball Season of 1932, by Thomas Wolf (University of Nebraska Press)

2020

  • Pastime Lost: The Humble, Original, and Now Completely Forgotten Game of English Baseball, by David Block (University of Nebraska Press)
  • The Workingman’s Game: Waverly, New York, the Twin Tiers and the Making of Modern Baseball, 1887–1898, by William H. Brewster (Luminare Press)
  • Scouting and Scoring: How We Know What We Know about Baseball, by Christopher J. Phillips (Princeton University Press)

2019

  • Gehrig and the Babe: The Friendship and the Feud, by Tony Castro (Triumph Books)
  • The Cloudbuster Nine: The Untold Story of Ted Williams and the Baseball Team That Helped Win World War II, by Anne Keene (Sports Publishing)
  • Tom Yawkey: Patriarch of the Boston Red Sox, by Bill Nowlin (University of Nebraska Press)
  • Invisible Ball of Dreams: Literary Representations of Baseball behind the Color Line, by Emily Ruth Rutter (University Press of Mississippi)
  • The Presidents and the Pastime: The History of Baseball and the White House, by Curt Smith (University of Nebraska Press)

2018

  • Casey Stengel: Baseball’s Greatest Character, by Marty Appel (Doubleday)
  • The Streak: Lou Gehrig, Cal Ripken Jr., and Baseball’s Most Historic Record, by John Eisenberg (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt)
  • Home Team: The Turbulent History of the San Francisco Giants, by Robert Garratt (University of Nebraska Press)
  • Bloomer Girls: Women Baseball Pioneers, by Debra Shattuck (University of Illinois Press)

2017

  • God Almighty Hisself: The Life and Legacy of Dick Allen, by Mitchell Nathanson (University of Pennsylvania Press)
  • Terror in the City of Champions: Murder, Baseball, and the Secret Society that Shocked Depression-Era Detroit, by Tom Stanton (Lyons Press)
  • The Selling of the Babe: The Deal that Changed Baseball and Created a Legend, by Glenn Stout (Thomas Dunne Books)

2016

  • In Pursuit of Pennants: Baseball Operations from Deadball to Moneyball, by Mark Armour and Dan Levitt (University of Nebraska Press)
  • A Game of Their Own: Voices of Contemporary Women in Baseball, by Jennifer Ring (University of Nebraska Press)
  • The Colonel and Hug: The Partnership that Transformed the New York Yankees, by Steve Steinberg and Lyle Spatz (University of Nebraska Press)

2015

  • Baseball on Trial: The Origin of Baseball’s Antitrust Exemption, by Nathaniel Grow (University of Illinois Press)
  • The Chalmers Race: Ty Cobb, Napoleon Lajoie, and the Controversial 1910 Batting Title That Became a National Obsession, by Rick Huhn (University of Nebraska Press)
  • Johnny Evers: A Baseball Life, by Dennis Snelling (McFarland & Co.)

2014

  • The Baseball Trust: A History of Baseball’s Antitrust Exemption, by Stuart Banner (Oxford University Press)
  • The Bird: The Life and Legacy of Mark Fidrych, by Doug Wilson (Thomas Dunne Books/St.Martin’s Press)
  • Color Blind: The Forgotten Team That Broke Baseball’s Color Line, by Tom Dunkel (Atlantic Monthly Press)

2013

  • One Last Strike: Fifty Years in Baseball, Ten and a Half Games Back, and One Final Championship Season, by Tony La Russa and Rick Hummel (William Morrow)
  • Connie Mack: The Turbulent and Triumphant Years, 1915-1931, by Norman Macht (University of Nebraska Press)

2012

  • Campy: The Two Lives of Roy Campanella, by Neil Lanctot (Simon & Schuster)
  • Baseball in the Garden of Eden: The Secret History of the Early Game, by John Thorn (Simon & Schuster)

2011

  • Joe Cronin: A Life in Baseball, by Mark Armour (University of Nebraska Press)
  • Fifty-nine in ’84, by Edward Achorn (Smithsonian)
  • The Last Boy: Mickey Mantle and the End of America’s Childhood, by Jane Leavy (Harper)

2010

  • After Many A Summer, by Robert E. Murphy (University of Nebraska Press)
  • Yogi Berra, by Allen Barra (W. W. Norton & Company)

2009

  • The Father of Baseball: A Biography of Henry Chadwick, by Andy J. Schiff (McFarland)
  • Ed Barrow: The Bulldog Who Built the Yankees’ First Dynasty, by Daniel R. Levitt (University of Nebraska Press)

2008

  • Connie Mack and the Early Years of Baseball by Norman Macht (University of Nebraska Press)
  • Playing America’s Game: Baseball, Latinos, and the Color Line by Adrian Burgos, Jr. (University of California Press)

2007

  • A Well-Paid Slave: Curt Flood’s Fight for Free Agency in Professional Sports, by Brad Snyder (Viking)
  • Spalding’s World Tour: The Epic Adventure that Took Baseball Around the Globe – And Made It America’s Game, by Mark Lamster (Public Affairs)
  • The Origins and History of The All American Girls Professional Baseball League, by Merrie Fidler (McFarland)
  • “When to Stop The Cheering?: The Black Press, the Black Community, and the Integration of Professional Baseball, by Brian Carroll (Routledge)

2006

  • Breaking into Baseball, Women and the National Pastime, by Jean Ardell (Southern Illinois University Press)
  • Luckiest Man, The Life and Death of Lou Gehrig, by Jonathan Eig (Simon & Schuster)
  • Tris Speaker, The Rough and Tumble Life of a Baseball Legend, by Timothy M. Gay (University of Nebraska Press)

2005

  • The Golden Game: The Story of California Baseball, by Kevin Nelson and Hank Greenwald (Heyday Books)
  • The Numbers Game: Baseball’s Lifelong Fascination with Statistics, by Alan Schwarz (Thomas Dunne)

2004

  • 1924: Baseball’s Greatest Season, by Reed Browning (University of Massachusetts Press)
  • The Tour to End All Tours: The Story of Major League Baseball’s 1913-1914 World Tour, by James E. Elfers (University of Nebraska Press)
  • Saying It’s So: A Cultural History of the Black Sox Scandal, by Daniel Nathan (University of Illinois Press)
  • Beyond the Shadow of the Senators, by Brad Snyder (Contemporary Press/McGraw Hill)

2003

  • The End of Baseball as We Knew It: The Players Union, 1960-81, by Charles P. Korr (University of Illinois Press)
  • Shut Out: A Story of Race and Baseball in Boston, by Howard Bryant (Routledge)
  • Before They Were Cardinals: Major League Baseball in Nineteenth Century. St. Louis, by Jon David Cash (University of Missouri Press)
  • Louis Sockalexis: The First Cleveland Indian, by David L. Fleitz (McFarland)
  • The Negro Leagues 1869-1960, by Leslie A. Heaphy (McFarland)
  • Sandy Koufax: A Lefty’s Legacy, by Jane Leavy (Harper Collins)
  • Taking in a Game: A History of Baseball in Asia, by Joseph A. Reaves (University of Nebraska Press)

2002

  • Much More than a Game: Players, Owners, and American Baseball Since 1921, by Robert F. Burk (University of North Carolina Press)
  • Musial: From Stash to Stan the Man, by James F. Giglio (University of Missouri Press)
  • Hal Chase: The Defiant Life and Turbulent Times of Baseball’s Biggest Crook, by Martin Donell Kohout (McFarland & Company)

2001

  • Cy Young: A Baseball Life, by Reed Browning (University of Massachusetts Press)
  • More than Merkle: A History of the Best and Most Exciting Baseball Season in Human History, by David W. Anderson (University of Nebraska Press)
  • Joe DiMaggio: The Hero’s Life, by Richard Ben Cramer (Simon & Schuster)
  • Lefty Grove: American Original, by Jim Kaplan (SABR)
  • Sunday at the Ballpark: Billy Sunday’s Professional Baseball Career, 1883-1890, by Wendy Knickerbocker (Scarecrow Press)
  • Victory Faust: The Rube Who Saved McGraw’s Giants, by Gabriel Schechter (Charles April Publications)
  • Red Sox Century: One Hundred Years of Red Sox Baseball, by Glenn Stout and Richard A. Johnson (Houghton Mifflin)

2000

  • The Independent Carolina Baseball League, 1936-1938: Baseball Outlaws, by R.G. “Hank” Utley and Scott Verner (McFarland)
  • Brushing Back Jim Crow: The Integration of Minor League Baseball in the American South, by Bruce Adelson (University Press of Virginia)
  • Chris Von der Ahe and the Saint Louis Browns, by J. Thomas Hetrick (Scarecrow Press)
  • A Clever Base-Ballist: The Life and Times of John Montgomery Ward, by Bryan DiSalvatore (Johns Hopkins University Press)
  • The Pride of Havana: A History of Cuban Baseball, by Roberto Gonzales-Echevarria (Oxford University Press)
  • Smoke: The Romance and Lore of Cuban Baseball, by Mark Rucker and Peter Bjarkman (Total Sports Publishing)

1999

  • Koppett’s Concise History of Major League Baseball, by Leonard Koppett (Temple University Press)
  • Judge and Jury: The Life and Times of Judge Kenesaw Mountain Landis, by David Pietrusza (Diamond Communications)
  • When Johnny Came Sliding Home: The Post-Civil War Baseball Boom, 1865-1870, by William J. Ryczek (McFarland)
  • Baseball’s Radical for All Seasons: A Biography of John Montgomery Ward, by David Stevens (Scarecrow Press)
  • The League that Failed, by David Q. Voigt (Scarecrow Press)

1998

  • Big Red Dynasty, by Greg Rhodes and John Erardi (Road West Publishing)
  • Baseball on the Border: A Tale of Two Laredos, by Alan M. Klein (Princeton University Press)
  • Jackie Robinson: A Biography, by Arnold Rampersad (Knopf)
  • New York Yankee Openers, by Lyle Spatz (McFarland)

1997

  • Slide, Kelly, Slide: The Wild Life and Times of Mike”King” Kelly, Baseball’s First Superstar, by Marty Appel (Scarecrow Press)
  • Honus Wagner: A Biography, by Dennis DeValeria and Jeanne Burke DeValeria (University of Pittsburgh Press)
  • Brooklyn’s Dodgers: The Bums, The Borough, and the Best of Baseball for 1947-1957, by Carl E. Prince (Oxford University Press)
  • Creating the National Pastime: Baseball Transforms Itself 1903-1953, by G. Edward White (Princeton University Press)

1996

  • Rogers Hornsby: A Biography, by Charles Alexander (Henry Holt and Co)
  • Great Time Coming: The Life of Jackie Robinson from Baseball to Birmingham, by David Falkner (Simon & Schuster)
  • Diamonds of the North: A Concise History of Baseball in Canada, by William Humber (Oxford University Press)
  • The Beer and Whisky League: An Illustrated History of the American Association-Baseball’s Renegade Major League, by David Nemec (Lyons Press)
  • Walter Johnson: Baseball’s Big Train, by Henry W. Thomas (Phenom Press and University of Nebraska Press)
]]> SABR Founders’ Day Award https://sabr.org/awards/founders-day/ Tue, 30 Dec 2025 17:53:38 +0000 https://sabr.org/?post_type=awards&p=318887 SABR founding member Tom Hufford on the field at Camden Yards before the Orioles ballgame on August 19, 2022

The SABR Founders’ Day Award, established in 2024, recognizes a SABR member who has contributed significant or enduring service as a leader of a regional chapter or research committee. 

It is awarded in conjunction with the annual Founders’ Day celebration held to honor the organization’s first meeting on August 10, 1971, at the National Baseball Hall of Fame Library in Cooperstown, New York.

Tom Hufford (above), one of the 16 founding members of SABR, was honored with the first award.

Nominations

Click here to submit a nomination for the SABR Founders’ Day Award. Anyone can submit a nomination; nominees must be active SABR members in order to be eligible to receive the award.

Past recipients

]]> Dorothy Seymour Mills Lifetime Achievement Award (Women in Baseball) https://sabr.org/awards/dorothy-seymour-mills-life-achievement/ Sun, 21 Sep 2025 07:01:13 +0000 http://dev.sabr.org/award/dorothy-seymour-mills-lifetime-achievement-award-women-in-baseball/

In 2017, SABR’s Women in Baseball Committee established the Dorothy Seymour Mills Lifetime Achievement Award — “The Dorothy” — named in honor of Dorothy Seymour Mills and her lifetime of contributions to promoting women’s baseball.

Eligible candidates include any person with a sustained involvement in women’s baseball or any woman with a longtime involvement in baseball in any fashion — player, umpire, writer, executive, team owner, scout, etc. Candidates do not have to be living; it can be awarded posthumously. Self-nominations are accepted.

To learn more about the legendary baseball historian Dorothy Seymour Mills, click here.

2026 nominations

To submit a nomination for The Dorothy in 2026, please submit a letter of nomination (self or external); supporting letters; list of accomplishments with supporting documentation (including articles written by/about the candidate; book reviews for books written; links to organizations/tournaments/others that the candidate participated in or helped organize); awards received; or other achievements to Dr. Leslie Heaphy by e-mail at lheaphy@kent.edu or by mail at Dr. Leslie Heaphy, KSU at Stark, 6000 Frank Ave., North Canton, OH 44720.

Award winners

 

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