Finding America in a Minor League Ballpark
A Season Hosting for the Durham Bulls
- 288 pages
- English
- ePUB (mobile friendly)
- Available on iOS & Android
About this book
Over forty million people attend minor league baseball games each season. Who are they? Why do they come? Let's find out! Noted social scientist Harris Cooper took a job as a Seating Bowl Host for the most famous minor league baseball team, the Durham Bulls. As a host, he helped fans find seats and other stadium amenities, made sure everyone was safe, took pictures, and chased kids from the aisles. He got to talk with a wide-ranging assortment of people, from regular attendees to those at their very first baseball game, from retired judges to middle school students. Minor league baseball games draw a broader array of Americans than any sport. The fleeting moments spent talking baseball with the fan sitting next to you or with a ballpark employee disguise the remarkable variety of people who call themselves "baseball fans." Dr. Cooper brings these people to life. In addition, the book presents a brief history of minor league baseball, the Bulls, and the city of Durham, so typical of small American cities. It profiles the ballplayers, focusing not on their on-field statistics but on who they are and where they come from. The book also profiles twelve baseball movies, all of which focus on baseball not played in the major leagues. Throughout the book, Dr. Cooper draws on his knowledge of social science to extract from his experiences a description of the inhabitants and goings-on at a ballpark. It illuminates not just baseball writ large, but also provides a compelling portrait of Americans as a people and their shared love of our national pastime.
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Information
Table of contents
- Front Cover
- Half-Title Page
- Title Page
- Copyright Page
- Dedication
- Contents
- Chapter 1. Pregame Warm Up
- Chapter 2. A Walk to the Ballpark
- Chapter 3. Home Series 1: Opening Week
- Chapter 4. Home Series 2: Kids and the K-Wall
- Chapter 5. Home Series 3: Happy Birthday Wool E. Bull
- Chapter 6. Home Series 4: Things Are Looking Up
- Chapter 7. A Brief History of the Not-So-Minor Leagues
- Chapter 8. Home Series 5: Memorial Day
- Chapter 9. Home Series 6: Mid-Season Break
- Chapter 10. Home Series 7: Happy Birthday, USA
- Chapter 11. Home Series 8: Bull Durham Night
- Chapter 12. Seasons Past: Club History
- Chapter 13. Home Series 9: The Stakes Get Higher
- Chapter 14. Home Series 10: Surf & Turf Series
- Chapter 15. Home Series 11: A Playoff Preview?
- Chapter 16. Who’s On First?
- Chapter 17. Home Series 12: Yankees Invade North Carolina
- Chapter 18. Home Series 13: The Season Comes to an End
- Chapter 19. Postseason Wrap Up
- Acknowledgments
- Book References
- Image Credits
- Index
- About the Author