This compilation of 120 primary writings documents baseball’s first century, from a loosely organized village social event to the arrival of the National League. Collecting from a wide range of sources—including newspaper accounts, letters, folk poetry, songs, and annual guides—Dean A. Sullivan of Fairfax, Virginia, progresses chronologically from the earliest known baseball reference (1825) to the creation of the Doubleday Myth (1908).

Baseball analysts often criticize pitcher win-loss records as a poor measure of pitcher performance, as wins are the product of team performance. Fans criticize WAR (Wins Above Replacement) because it takes in theoretical rather than actual wins. Player won-lost records bridge the gap between these two schools of thought, giving credit to all players for what they do--without credit or blame for teammates' performance--and measuring contributions to actual team wins and losses. The result is a statistic of player value that quantifies all aspects of individual performance, allowing for robust comparisons between players across different positions and different seasons. Using play-by-play data, this book examines players' won-lost records in Major League Baseball from 1930 through 2015.

This history of America’s pastime describes the evolution of baseball from early bat and ball games to its growth and acceptance in different regions of the country. Such New York clubs as the Atlantics, Excelsiors and Mutuals are a primary focus, serving as examples of how the sport became more sophisticated and popular. The author compares theories about many of baseball’s “inventors,” exploring the often fascinating stories of several of baseball’s oldest founding myths. The impact of the Civil War on the sport is discussed and baseball’s unsteady path to becoming America’s national game is analyzed at length.

On a sunny Fourth of July during World War I, King George V went out to a ball game. Along with Queen Mary and other royalty, Winston Churchill, dozens of VIPs, thousands of troops and ordinary Londoners, the monarch cheered an extraordinary "baseball match" between American soldiers and sailors. This historic event helped solidify the transatlantic alliance that was vital to winning the war. The game itself was a thriller, reported throughout the English-speaking world. The players ranged from kids fresh off the sandlots to a handful of major and minor leaguers and a future Hall of Famer. The two veteran pitchers went the distance, the outcome in doubt until the last batter. Drawing on American and British sources and game-day coverage, this first-ever full account of the "King's game" records every play and explores the lives of several players. The author provides a brief history of the Anglo-American Baseball League and armed forces baseball played in England, France and the United States during the Great War.

Dean A. Sullivan presents a fascinating array of provocative, unexpected, and illuminating materials that reveal the rich history of baseball. The 105 pieces in this work cover such topics as the Merkle Boner, Jim Thorpe, Christy Mathewson, the Black Sox scandal, Lou Gehrig, the death of Ray Chapman, Ty Cobb, Dizzy Dean, and more from the storied major leagues. Lesser-known treasures celebrate semipro teams, boys' baseball fiction, Japanese baseball, college ball, black baseball, the minor leagues, women's teams, and other facets of the wonderful game of baseball.

The third volume in this exciting, well-researched history of America's pastime retraces some of the most important people and events in the game, from Jackie Robinson's shattering of the race barrier to the labor unrest of the 1970s.