Baseball: An Illustrated History

The panorama of baseball is unfolded in this book's sprightly words and lively photos—many published for the first time—against a background of historical turning points. From primitive stickball games played in village squares during the American Revolution to the refined professional sport of the mid-1980s, baseball has continually mirrored the American scene. Baseball's triumphant moments are featured here: the high spots of every season from the 1858 contest between the New York Knickerbockers and the Brooklyn Atlantics, to the 1985 world championship campaign of the Kansas City Royals; the constant setting of new records, including Hank Aaron's overtaking of Babe Ruth, and Pete Rose's outnumbering of Ty Cobb; and the brilliant leadership of the game's statesmen such as Ban Johnson and Branch Rickey. But baseball's headaches and coping strategies, successful or unsuccessful, get due attention. The game has weathered wars, depressions, and such social changes as immigration, urbanization, unionization, and integration that have called for agonizing but finally effective adjustments. Technological changes like floodlighting and AstroTurf® have required even tougher adjustments by players, and the staggering riches brought by television are a bonanza that players, managers, and owners are still learning to live with. Unlike some pessimistic observers, Voigt remains convinced that organized baseball will meet its current challenges with its historic fortitude. In this book he offers entertainment and food for thought to both new and seasoned fans.

About the Author :
David Quentin Voigt is Professor of Sociology and Anthropology at Albright College in Reading, Pennsylvania. He is the author of two other Penn State Press books: American Baseball (3 volumes, 1983) and The League That Failed: Big League Baseball in the 1890s (forthcoming).

Review :
“If you can afford only one general baseball history book for your library, I would recommend this one. Voigt is one of the game’s leading historians.”—Baseball America “A terrific gift item for any fan, you may also consider it for youngsters who have shown a rooting interest in the game. They’ll love the pictures and grow into the words, gaining valuable insights, not the least of which will be that baseball writing is not necessarily pap.”—Major League Monthly “This is the one book to buy if you are buying only one baseball history.”—Spitball: The Literary Baseball Magazine “From the primitive stickball games played on village greens in the 18th century to the highly professional and lucrative sport of the 1980s, baseball has proven itself to be a game both rich in tradition and remarkably adaptable to changing times. The 400 pictures in this book feature not only the well-known stars but the lesser known owners and promoters who were largely responsible for establishing and maintaining the game as America’s pastime.”—Houston (TX) Chronicle “Voigt is one of the game’s leading historians. . . . This volume would appeal to those with a longtime interest in baseball and those who have just recently discovered the game’s fascinating history.”—Sporting News “Perhaps no one is better qualified to write a one-volume overview of baseball’s history than David Voigt. He has firmly established himself as the foremost narrator of the game’s past. . . . Baseball: An Illustrated History answers many requests from historians, fans, and general readers for a solid, accurate, one-volume history of the sport. . . . The book will serve as an ideal starting point for novices into the past of the sport and promises to enhance interest in more serious historical accounts of the national pastime.”—Journal of Sport History “On the heels of his exhaustive three-volume history, American Baseball, Voigt has molded his work into a richly illustrated single volume. . . . Unlike many other books with a similarly rich look, the words here are a match for the pictures. . . . A terrific gift item for any fan, you may also consider it for youngsters who have shown a rooting interest in the game. They’ll love the pictures and grow into the words, gaining valuable insights, not the least of which will be that baseball writing is not necessarily pap.”—Major League Monthly