Look For These History Of Baseball Books

By Rachael Gutierrez


History of baseball books make great gifts for any sports fan in your life, especially those who love America's favorite pastime. If you're not sure where to get started when choosing one, however, this list can help. In this article, you'll find synopses of the best books in this genre, which can help make a decision whether you're buying for yourself or for a loved one. From gorgeous coffee table photo volumes to narrative accounts about specific teams, seasons, or players, the game and its place in our culture is truly captured in these tomes.

"The Victory Season: The End of World War II and the Birth of Baseball's Golden Age" was written by Robert Weintraub, a frequent sports contributor to the New York Times. Weintraub is both an extensive researcher and exciting storyteller, making this account of a specific era in the sport's history a joy to read for anyone who wants to learn more about this period of American culture.

"The Glory of Their Times: The Story of the Early Days of Baseball Told by the Men Who Played It" is an excellent choice if you want to hear the stories straight from the men who played the game. This oral retelling, collected by Lawrence S. Ritter, was compiled from hours of interviews with dozens of Ty Cobb's contemporaries shortly after Cobb's death in 1961. If you, your father, or grandfather grew up with players like Fred Snodgrass, Hans Lobert, and Chief Meyers, then this is the ideal choice.

If you're curious about the biggest growth period in the major leagues, look no further than "Baseball's New Frontier: A History of Expansion, 1961-1998." Examining the steps that led to an unprecedented number of teams that were added during this period, the book paints a picture of how we got from the early days to today's modern game.

"The Summer of Beer and Whiskey" is currently only available in a Kindle edition. Nevertheless, it's worth reading for its raucous retelling of the 1883 pennant race between the Philadelphia Athletics and St. Louis Browns. It focuses on the story of eccentric Chris von der Ahe, who knew nothing about the sport and yet risked his life savings to purchase the Cardinals franchise.

"The Greatest Baseball Stories Ever Told: Thirty Unforgettable Tales from the Diamond" collects some of the best writings about the sport from some of America's greatest journalists. This unique collection includes contributions from John Updike, Gay Talese, Doris Kearns Goodwin and Pete Hamill.

"Baseball's Golden Age: The Photographs of Charles M. Conlon" is not a traditional history, but the gorgeous images do as much to tell the story of the sport as any narrative account. Conlon was the most prolific photographer of this sport from 1904 to 1942, capturing some of its most iconic images. Since Conlon remains largely unknown, this is one of the first times that his amazing photos have been compiled into one volume.

If you're interested in history of baseball books, look no further than this comprehensive list. Whether you need a volume that attempts to capture the complete history of the sport or one that focuses on a specific era, any of these make an excellent choice. Many are available in electronic versions, though if images are important to you, you might prefer t purchase a traditional print version.




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