Field of Schemes: (6 Deadball Files)

- Matters come to a head in the concluding episode of The Deadball Files. Baseball sleuth Adam Wallace finds himself on two seemingly independent quests. The Hall of Fame asks him to research the details of the very first Congressional Baseball Game -- now an annual charitable event in the nation's capital -- for a new exhibit on baseball and politics. And the Commissioner of Baseball asks him to examine the newly legitimized relationship between Major League Baseball and companies that facilitate gambling on the games. His tasks have more in common than he had realized, and neither leads quite where he had expected. Adam uncovers a lot of information about that first game on Capitol Hill, played in 1909, right down to the official box score, and he's well on his way to telling a tale of how a powerful politician used baseball to help relieve the tension that had been building in the House of Representatives when he realizes that a protagonist of that story, former major league pitcher and then congressman John Tener, provides a bridge to the Commissioner's concerns. As Governor of Pennsylvania Tener later launched a national campaign against gambling in baseball, which led to his selection as president of the National League not long before the Black Sox scandal. As for the gambling in the game today? That quest takes Adam from the streets of the Lower East Side to the mountains of Costa Rica, and in the end it leads straight to... Oops. Almost gave it away!

About the Author :
JB Manheim is Professor Emeritus at The George Washington University, where he developed the world's first degree-granting program in political communication and was later founding director of the School of Media & Public Affairs. In 1995 he was named Professor of the Year for the District of Columbia. He learned his love of baseball watching Dizzy Dean broadcast the Game of the Week and huddling with his grandfather for warmth on July nights at The Mistake By The Lake, AKA, Cleveland Municipal Stadium, and renewed it when the National Pastime finally returned to the Nation's Capital. Manheim brings to life his expertise in propaganda and strategic communication through his fictional stories of baseball behind the scenes. His writing will lead you to question whether what you think you know about the history of the game and about the powers who control it is real, or whether it's just a carefully nurtured product of lies, deceptions, misdirection, and propaganda. JB Manheim is a member of the Society for American Baseball Research and the Internet Baseball Writers Association of America.

Review :
"Manheim has steamrolled his way into this sub-genre based on research into things that are closely associated with the grand beginnings of baseball... It seems perfect for a display at the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, in a 'Believe It Or Not!" section bound to draw theorists from all parts of the map who love this kind of mind-bending drama." Tom Hoffarth, The Drill "Perfectly captures the essence of an era marked by technological innovation, social change, and the enduring love for America's favorite pastime." Readers' Favorite "Comes with twists and turns leading to even more twists and turns and ... many interesting... characters who each add a piece needed to solve the puzzle." The Inside Game "J.B. Manheim Goes 5 for 5!" StartSpreadingTheNews.blog