Description:
Carlton Fisk willing the ball to stay fair to win game six of the 1975 World Series. Publicity-friendly Bill Veeck sending 3-foot, 7-inch-tall Eddie Gaedel to bat--wearing the number 1/8--in 1951. Jackie Robinson playing his first game with the Dodgers on April 5, 1947. These events make up only a small part of Baseball: 100 Classic Moments in the History of the Game. Published under the aegis of the National Baseball Hall of Fame, Baseball is a celebration of the national pastime--from the first World Series in 1903, when the American League's Boston Pilgrims beat the National League's Pittsburgh Pirates, to 1998's Sosa/McGwire home run race, and from Major League Baseball's lowest low (the Black Sox scandal, 1920) to its highest highs, like the Miracle Mets of 1969 or Roger Maris hitting home run number 61. Each classic moment is recounted and contextualized in a brief essay, while over 400 photos from the archives of the National Baseball Hall of Fame illustrate the text. Some may take issue with the 100 included moments, arguing that others should have been substituted--but that's the nature of the selection process. With its hundreds of photographs and thoughtful text, Baseball is a handsome addition to any baseball library. --M. Stein
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