Was Abner Doubleday the architect of baseball? What exactly did it mean to be a "professional" baseball player in the 1870s? What goes on in the front office? What exactly is the Eephus pitch? What are "the tools of ignorance"? Readers will find the answers to these questions – and many others – in the pages of this remarkable baseball reference that's essential reading for fans of the game.
Part history book, part instructional guide, and part reference manual, Baseball FAQ covers all the bases – from the rules of the game to the ballparks of yesterday and today, from the minors to the major league, from the stats to the food. This engaging, compulsively readable tome offers baseball fans of all ages a wealth of fun facts and anecdotes on America's favorite pastime, including sections on the All-American Girls Professional Ball League, the Negro Leagues, the basic skills of baseball, baseball in the movies, the scandals, and the Hall of Famers.
- English
- ePUB (mobile friendly)
- Available on iOS & Android
eBook - ePub
Table of contents
- Contents
- Acknowledgments
- Introduction: It’s Much More Than Xs and Os
- 1. Rules of the Game: Hey! Everyone Has to Play by the Rules
- 2. 1300 AD to 1900: Now Batting . . .
- 3. 1901 to 1950: A Solid Single . . .
- 4. 1951 to 1970: Rounding Second . . .
- 5. 1971 to 2000: Heading for Home . . .
- 6. 2001 to Beyond: On to the Next At Bat . . .
- 7. Houses of the Holy: I Don’t Care if I Never Get Back . . .
- 8. Past Grounds of Glory: Stadiums Long Gone
- 9. Buy Me Some . . . The Total Experience—Food, Fungoes, and Fun
- 10. Can Anyone Here Play This Game? Basic Skills of Baseball
- 11. White Ball, Black Players: Baseball’s Negro Leagues
- 12. Minor League Baseball: The Best Seat on the Bus
- 13. Baseball at the Movies: Playing at Playing Ball
- 14. Baseball Honors and Awards: To the Victors Belong the Spoils
- 15. Beating the Best Baseball Bar Bets: Great Answers to Crazy Questions
- 16. An Uneven Playing Field: The Dark Days of Baseball
- 17. Baseball By the Numbers: Stats and the World of Sabermetrics
- 18. The Best There Ever Was: Baseball’s Greatest Players
- 19. My View from the Bleachers: Personal Baseball Moments
- Bibliography