The SABR Bookshelf: Spring 2020
Here are the SABR Bookshelf listings for Spring 2020.
To get your NEW book listed on The SABR Bookshelf, make sure a review copy is sent to: The SABR Bookshelf, Cronkite School at ASU, 555 N. Central Ave. #416, Phoenix, AZ 85004. An e-book file will also suffice; please send the e-book in PDF, EPUB or Kindle/MOBI format to jpomrenke@sabr.org.
To ensure a listing in The Baseball Index, SABR’s online catalog of baseball research materials at www.baseballindex.org please make sure a review copy is sent to The Baseball Index, 4025 Beechwood Pl., Riverside, CA 92506.
Bolded names indicates that the author(s) is a SABR member. Click here for a list of publishers found in the SABR Bookshelf, along with their contact information.
In addition, check out new books published by SABR at SABR.org/ebooks.
Green Cathedrals: The Ultimate Celebration of All Major League and Negro League Ballparks, Fifth Edition
By Philip J. Lowry
Publisher: SABR
Retail Price: $9.99 (ebook)
ISBN: 978-1-9438-1656-9
Buy It: SABR
Summary: This fifth edition is the first update to SABR’s classic Green Cathedrals since 2006. It now includes 583 major-league ballparks, with the addition in particular of many Negro leagues parks that have been documented in the intervening years.
Whales, Terriers, and Terrapins: The Federal League 1914-15
Edited by Steve West and Bill Nowlin
Publisher: SABR
Retail Price: $9.99 (ebook)
ISBN: 978-1-9701-5920-2
Buy It: SABR
Summary: A SABR Digital Library publication covering memorable players, games, and stories from the ill-fated Federal League of 1914-15.
Braves Win! Braves Win! Braves Win! The 1995 World Champion Atlanta Braves
Edited by Tom Hufford and Bill Nowlin
Publisher: SABR
Retail Price: $9.99 (ebook)
ISBN: 978-1-9701-5922-6
Buy It: SABR
Summary: A SABR Digital Library publication for the 25th anniversary of Atlanta’s first and only World Series championship, with biographies of all players and executives, stories of memorable games, and behind-the-scenes accounts from the Braves’ first title-winning team.
Swing Kings: The Inside Story of Baseball’s Home Run Revolution
By Jared Diamond
Publisher: William Morrow
Retail Price: $28.49 (hdcvr)
ISBN: 978-0-0628-7210-4
Buy It: Amazon
Summary: The recent increase in home runs sparks curiosity and this book examines how players’ new approach to their swings is helping to put the ball in the seats.
Yogi: A Life Behind the Mask
By Jon Pessah
Publisher: Little, Brown and Company
Retail Price: $30.00 (hdcvr)
ISBN: 978-0-3163-1099-4
Buy It: Amazon
Summary: Pessah looks at the career of Hall of Famer Yogi Berra and how he was never expected to become a Major League player.
Intangibles: Unlocking the Science and Soul of Team Chemistry
By Joan Ryan
Publisher: Little, Brown and Company
Retail Price: $28.00 (hdcvr)
ISBN: 978-0-3164-3493-5
Buy It: Amazon
Summary: An award-winning journalist uses statistics to determine the power and effectiveness of team chemistry.
The Cactus League
By Emily Nemens
Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux
Retail Price: $27.00 (hdcvr)
ISBN: 978-0-3741-1794-8
Buy It: Amazon
Summary: Nemens’s baseball novel highlights the annual tradition of spring training in Arizona and the hidden traditions.
Rosenblatt Stadium: Essays and Memories of Omaha’s Historic Ballpark, 1948-2012
Edited by Kevin Warneke, Libby Krecek, Bill Lamberty, Gary Rosenberg
Publisher: McFarland & Co.
Retail Price: $39.95 (sftcvr)
ISBN: 978-0-7864-7770-8
Buy It: Amazon
Summary: A collection of essays about Omaha’s Rosenblatt Stadium, home of the College World Series, by players, organizers, and fans.
The Called Shot: Babe Ruth, The Chicago Cubs, & The Unforgettable Major League Baseball Season of 1932
By Thomas Wolf
Publisher: University of Nebraska Press
Retail Price: $36.95 (hdcvr)
ISBN: 978-0-8032-5524-1
Buy It: Amazon
Summary: The 1932 season, with profiles of players of both the Yankees and the Cubs, leading up to the drama of the World Series.
Life Stories and Lessons from the Say Hey Kid
By Willie Mays and John Shea
Publisher: St. Martin’s Press
Retail Price: $28.99 (hdcvr)
ISBN: 978-1-2502-3042-3
Buy It: Amazon
Summary: Willie Mays shares what shaped him as a player in his memoir examining his inspirations and influences.
The Incredible Women of the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League
By Anika Orrock
Publisher: Chronicle Books
Retail Price: $19.95 (hdcvr)
ISBN: 978-1-4521-7364-1
Buy It: Amazon
Summary: An illustrated account of when the men went off to World War II, how women kept the game alive by playing professional baseball in the Midwest.
Gotham Baseball: New York’s All-Time Team
By Mark C. Healey
Publisher: The History Press
Retail Price: $21.99 (sftcvr)
ISBN: 978-1-4671-4163-5
Buy It: Amazon
Summary: New York is full of history and the players have been breaking records for decades but for New Yorkers, baseball is more than game.
The Man Who Made Babe Ruth: Brother Matthias of St. Mary’s School
By Brian Martin
Publisher: McFarland & Co.
Retail Price: $35.00 (sftcvr)
ISBN: 978-1-4766-7336-3
Buy It: Amazon
Summary: A biography of Ruth’s mentor which contains a great deal of material on the Babe himself.
The Hall Ball: One Fan’s Journey to Unite Cooperstown Immortals with a Single Baseball
By Ralph Carhart
Publisher: McFarland & Co.
Retail Price: $29.95 (sftcvr)
ISBN: 978-1-4766-7964-8
Buy It: Amazon
Summary: The story of a traveling baseball starts at Doubleday Field in Cooperstown, New York, and visits every Hall of Famer.
George “Mooney” Gibson: Canadian Catcher for the Deadball Era Pirates
By Richard C. Armstrong and Martin Healy Jr.
Publisher: McFarland & Co.
Retail Price: $35.00 (sftcvr)
ISBN: 978-1-4766-7969-3
Buy It: Amazon
Summary: First biography of this solid catcher for the Pirates of the early 20th century.
Billy Ball: Billy Martin and the Resurrection of the Oakland A’s
By Dale Tafoya
Publisher: Lyons Press
Retail Price: $24.95 (hdcvr)
ISBN: 978-1-4930-4362-0
Buy It: Amazon
Summary: After the Oakland A’s dynasty was broken up in the 1970s, the team needed new management at the end of the decade so the team welcomed Billy Martin.
Summer Baseball Nation: Nine Days in the Wood Bat Leagues
By Will Geoghegan
Publisher: University of Nebraska Press
Retail Price: $29.95 (hdcvr)
ISBN: 978-1-4962-1399-0
Buy It: Amazon
Summary: From the Cape Cod League to the Alaska Collegiate Baseball League, the author traces college players testing their wooden-bat skills.
Bouton: The Life of a Baseball Original
By Mitchell Nathanson
Publisher: University of Nebraska Press
Retail Price: $34.95 (hdcvr)
ISBN: 978-1-4962-1770-7
Buy It: Amazon
Summary: The first Bouton biography written by someone besides Bouton, with full access to the pitcher/writer and his box of scrap notes that became Ball Four.
Isabel “Lefty” Alvarez: The Improbable Life of a Cuban American Baseball Star
By Kat D. Williams
Publisher: University of Nebraska Press
Retail Price: $29.95 (hdcvr)
ISBN: 978-1-4962-1882-7
Buy It: Amazon
Summary: Alvarez joined the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League at 15 and carved out a solid career.
Stealing Home: Los Angeles, the Dodgers, and the Lives Caught in Between
By Eric Nusbaum
Publisher: PublicAffairs
Retail Price: $28.00 (hdcvr)
ISBN: 978-1-5417-4221-5
Buy It: Amazon
Summary: The history of how Dodger Stadium came to be is more complex then it seems, and this book addresses the politics and the Latino community caught in between.
Last Ride of the Iron Horse: How Lou Gehrig Fought ALS to Play One Final Championship Season
By Dan Joseph
Publisher: Sunbury Press, Inc.
Retail Price: $19.95 (sftcvr)
ISBN: 978-1-6200-6232-6
Buy It: Amazon
Summary: Lou Gehrig battled ALS during his final season but kept battling through his symptoms and creating his legacy.
Future Value: The Battle for Baseball’s Soul and How Teams Will Find the Next Superstar
By Eric Longenhagen and Kiley McDaniel
Publisher: Triumph Books
Retail Price: $28.00 (hdcvr)
ISBN: 978-1-6293-7767-4
Buy It: Amazon
Summary: New roles of scouting are outlined and recognized as the book takes a look at the new era of baseball.
A Fan’s Guide to Baseball Analytics: Why WAR, WHIP, wOBA, and Other Advanced Sabermetrics Are Essential to Understanding Modern Baseball
By Anthony Castrovince
Publisher: Sports Publishing
Retail Price: $29.95 (sftcvr)
ISBN: 978-1-6835-8344-8
Buy It: Amazon
Summary: An introductory course on sabermetric statistics, broken up into sections on pitching, hitting, and fielding.
Hall of Name: Baseball’s Most Magnificent Monikers from ‘The Only Nolan’ to ‘Van Lingle Mungo’ and More
By D.B. Firstman
Publisher: Self-published
Retail Price: $18.00 (sftcvr)
ISBN: 978-1-7341-6740-5
Buy It: Amazon
Summary: A collection of baseball’s most memorable names, with detailed etymologies of their names and career recaps for each player.
To go back to The SABR Bookshelf, click here.