Historical Dictionary of Baseball - Paperback

by Lyle Spatz (Author)

Dating back to 1869 as an organized professional sport, the game of baseball is not only the oldest professional sport in North America, but also symbolizes much more. Walt Whitman described it as "our game, the American game," and George Will compared calling baseball "just a game" to the Grand Canyon being "just a hole." Countless others have called baseball "the most elegant game," and to those who have played it, it's life.

The Historical Dictionary of Baseball is primarily devoted to the major leagues it also includes entries on the minor leagues, the Negro Leagues, women's baseball, baseball in various other countries, and other non-major league related topics. It traces baseball, in general, and these topics individually, from their beginnings up to the present. This is done through a chronology, an introductory essay, appendixes, and an extensive bibliography. The dictionary section has over 900 cross-referenced entries on the roles of the players on the field--batters, pitchers, fielders--as well as non-playing personnel--general managers, managers, coaches, and umpires. There are also entries for individual teams and leagues, stadiums and ballparks, the role of the draft and reserve clause, and baseball's rules, and statistical categories. This book is an excellent access point for students, researchers, and anyone wanting to know more about the sport of baseball.

Author Biography

Lyle Spatz is the chairman of SABR's Baseball Records Committee. He is the author of three books of baseball history, co-author of another, and has contributed chapters to several more. His articles have appeared in The Washington Post, The New York Times, other newspapers, and numerous baseball magazines. He has taught baseball history to Elderhostel groups and also presented papers at the Babe Ruth Conference at Hofstra University and at the Jackie Robinson Conference at Long Island University.