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Baseball by the Book

A veteran baseball writer and editor explores the world of books about baseball through interviews with today's best baseball authors.
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Baseball by the Book
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Now displaying: 2020
Dec 29, 2020

Triple-A baseball. So close the Show, yet so far away. Best-selling author John Feinstein spent the 2012 season traveling to Durham, Pawtucket, Lehigh Vally, Norfolk and points in between to tell the story of a group of men living on the cusp of a dream.

Feinstein joins us to discuss former World Series hero Scott Podsednik; veteran manager Charlie Montoya; career minor leaguer Jon Lindsey; one-time All-Star Nate McLouth and more. 

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Dec 15, 2020

For generations of fans, Tom Seaver was the Mets: A charismatic superstar pitcher who led the franchise to the heights of glory. Despite that, the Hall of Famer had a strained relationship with the team that twice let him go under controversial circumstances. Veteran journalist Bill Madden joins us to discuss the remarkable life of the man called Tom Terrific. 

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Dec 8, 2020

Sandy Koufax or Hank Greenberg? Or maybe Lou Boudreau? It's a special Hanukkah episode as author Howard Megdal joins us to debate the greatest Jewish baseball players of all time, from Lip Pike to Alex Bregman. Find out why Ryan Braun has hurt his standing, why Rod Carew doesn't make the list and why one former player belongs in the International Clown Hall of Fame.

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Dec 1, 2020

In February 1947, as the Cuban League pennant race culminated in a dramatic showdown between bitter rivals Almendares and Habana, Brooklyn Dodgers minor leaguer Jackie Robinson arrived on the island with his teammates for spring training. César Brioso joins us to discuss the remarkable confluence of historic events in baseball-mad Old Havana. 

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Nov 17, 2020

Inspired by "The Glory of Their Times," Danny Peary spent two years in the early 1990s traveling the country searching for retired baseball players. The result was a massive oral history featuring interviews with 65 former stars, journeymen and bench warmers from "Baseball's Greatest Era, 1947-1964." Peary joins us to discuss his classic book.

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Nov 10, 2020

Dick Lundy. Chino Smith. Cannonball Redding. These men are among the greatest baseball players who ever lived, author Steven Greenes says, yet they are not in the Hall of Fame. Using newly discovered statistics and long-forgotten expert polls, Greenes makes the case that these three and 21 other pre-integration Black players belong in Cooperstown. 

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Nov 3, 2020

Every day for a year, Ethan Bryan played catch. Along the way, he met former big leaguers, inspirational children, international stars and everyday Joes. The author joins us to discuss what he learned from a journey that took him to an Iowa cornfield, the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum and countless places in-between.

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Oct 27, 2020

Steve Dalkowski may have been the fastest pitcher in the history of baseball. So why did the legendary lefty never play an inning in the major leagues? Author Brian Vikander joins us to discuss the mythic career and troubled life of the real Nuke LaLoosh.  

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Oct 20, 2020

From Babe Ruth and Jackie Robinson to Tom Seaver and Derek Jeter, New York has produced more legendary baseball players than any other city. Author Mark Healey joins us to discuss his all-time New York team. Willie Mays or Mickey Mantle? Yogi Berra or Mike Piazza? The debates are endless and will start countless arguments.

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Oct 13, 2020

Eddie Cicotte was a stocky right-hander who used a dizzying array of junk pitches to become one of the Deadball Era's top hurlers. Then he threw it all away. Author David Fleitz joins us to discuss the sad tale of "Knuckles," the man who played a key role in fixing the 1919 World Series ― and a key role in exposing the scandal.

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Oct 6, 2020

Arky Vaughan was one of baseball's greatest shortstops, a nine-time All-Star who dominated in the high-scoring 1930s. So why did it take him more than three decades to get elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame? Author Frank Garland joins us to discuss the remarkable life and tragic death of the forgotten Pirates great. 

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Sep 29, 2020

Baseball has been lying about its own origins for more than 150 years, author Thomas W. Gilbert says. Half-truths, exaggerations and outright lies have been the order of the day from Alexander Cartwright to Abner Doubleday to the Cincinnati Red Stockings. The real story of how baseball emerged as the national game in the 19th century is far more fascinating than the officially sanctioned myths, Gilbert says.

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Sep 22, 2020

On the surface, legendary general manager Buzzie Bavasi and journeyman outfielder Al "The Bull" Ferrara wouldn't seem to have much in common. But Ken LaZebnik says Ferrara embodied the "intangibles" Bavasi valued as he put together his championship Dodgers teams. The author traces the relationship of the two friends in 1965, a season that saw Los Angeles win the World Series but also saw the Bull banished to the minors. 

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Sep 15, 2020

The Society for American Baseball Research is celebrating its 50th year. Mark Amour joins us to discuss this collection of 50 essential SABR articles from legendary baseball thinkers and writers like Bill James, Pete Palmer, Lawrence Ritter and John Thorn.

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Sep 8, 2020

Since the earliest of big league baseball, deaf players have been part of the National Pastime. Author R.A.R. Edwards joins us to share the stories of "Dummy" Hoy, "Dummy" Taylor, Curtis Pride and other hearing-impaired players who had an impact on the game both on and off the field.

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Sep 1, 2020

Twenty years ago this month, Hall of Fame manager Tommy Lasorda led a group of minor leaguers to an improbable Gold Medal win over the mighty Cubans at the Summer Olympics in Australia. Author David Fanucchi, who was there to see the whole thing, joins us to discuss how Ben Sheets, Doug Mientkiewicz and the rest shocked the world. 

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Aug 25, 2020

An Ohio farm boy who never finished high school, Cy Young went on to win more games than any pitcher in history and become synonymous with pitching excellence. Along the way, he helped establish the American League, threw the first World Series pitch and bridged the gap between 19th and 20th century baseball. Lew Freedman joins us to discuss the remarkable story of the legendary Hall of Famer. 

Aug 18, 2020

The 1935 Pittsburgh Crawfords, featuring Hall of Famers like Josh Gibson and Cool Papa Bell, are considered by many to be the greatest team in the history of the Negro Leagues. Frederick C. Bush and Bill Nowlin join us to discuss the legendary squad, its racketeer owner and the star who was missing that season. 

Aug 11, 2020

In 1995, the Seattle Mariners and New York Yankees met in something called the American League Division Series, a new round of postseason play necessitated by the addition of a wild card. The result was an epic clash that changed the course of baseball history. Author Chris Donnelly joins us to discuss Don Mattingly, Ken Griffey Jr., Buck Showalter and more. 

Aug 4, 2020

For four decades, Jay Horwitz was the beloved PR director of the New York Mets. Horwitz joins us to tell tales of Gary Carter, Daryl Strawberry, Mike Piazza, Sidd Finch and more. Plus, he explains why he finally decided to go public with a longtime healthcare secret. 

Jul 28, 2020

After nearly nine decades on the planet, baseball legend Willie Mays has plenty of stories to tell and life lessons to impart on younger generations. We are joined by author John Shea, who spent countless hours interviewing Mays and a host of others, including Hank Aaron, Barack Obama and Barry Bonds, to produce a memoir of the Say Hey Kid's life and legacy. 

Jul 21, 2020

For eight years, "the Hall Ball" went on a journey to have a picture taken with every member of the Baseball Hall of Fame, living and dead. Author Ralph Carhart joins us to discuss why he set out on this epic quest and describes the challenges, chuckles and unmarked graves he found along the way. 

Jul 21, 2020

For eight years, "the Hall Ball" went on a journey to have a picture taken with every member of the Baseball Hall of Fame, living and dead. Author Ralph Carhart joins us to discuss why he set out on this epic quest and describes the challenges, chuckles and unmarked graves he found along the way. 

Jul 14, 2020

In 1995, the once-lowly Cleveland Indians dominated the American League and slugged their way to the World Series for the first time in four decades.  Author Zack Meisel joins us to discuss Albert Belle, Jim Thome, Kenny Lofton and the rest of team that captured the heart of a generation of Cleveland baseball fans. 

Jul 7, 2020

A phenom at 22, nearly out of baseball at 23, Roy Halladay bounced back to become one of the dominant pitchers of the 2000s before injuries derailed his career. Along the way, he earned two Cy Young awards and pitched a perfect game and a postseason no-hitter. Todd Zolecki joins us to discuss the remarkable, tragic story of a pitcher who was groomed for greatness. 

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