Most baseball fans want to hear about stellar players and spectacular plays, statistics and storied franchises. Level Playing Fields sheds light on a usually unnoticed facet of the game, introducing fans and historians alike to the real fundamentals of baseball: dirt and grass. In this lively history, Peter Morris demonstrates that many of the game’s rules and customs actually arose as concessions to the daunting practical difficulties of creating a baseball diamond. Recovering a nearly lost and decidedly quirky chapter of baseball history, Level Playing Fields tells the engaging story of Tom and Jack Murphy, brothers who made up baseball’s first great family of groundskeepers and who played a pivotal role in shaping America’s national pastime. Irish immigrants who tirelessly crafted home-field advantages for some of baseball’s earliest dynasties, the brothers Murphy were instrumental in developing pitching mounds, permanent spring training sites, and new irrigation techniques, and their careers were touched by such major innovations as tarpaulins and fireproof concrete-and-steel stadiums. Level Playing Fields is a real-life saga involving craftsmanship, resourcefulness, intrigue, and bitter rivalries (including attempted murder!) between such legendary figures as John McGraw, Connie Mack, Honus Wagner, and Ty Cobb. The Murphys’ story recreates a forgotten way of life and gives us a sense of why an entire generation of American men found so much meaning in the game of baseball.
The Pirates' situation got even worse the next day, when Jesse Haines beat Hal Carlson, 1–0, dealing the slumping leaders their second consecutive shutout. With the Giants idle, Pittsburgh's lead was now a mere half game.
... Todd, 87 Hutchinson, Fred, 24, 47 Jackson, Reggie, 167, 246 James, Fob, 18 Jarvis, Leroy, 207, 208 Jay. ... Billy, 58, 60 Kluszewski, Ted, 153, 154, 175 Koufax, Sandy, 69, 218 Kralick, Jack, 04 Kramer, Jack, 141 Khrushchev, Nikita, ...
The Black Barons' manager, Piper Davis, was introduced to Mays by Willie's father, Cat, with whom Davis had been a teammate years earlier in the Alabama Industrial League. Davis was regarded as the premier second baseman in the Negro ...
8 General James Mattoon Scott was a literary example of Eisenhower's warning. Seven Days in May, written by Fletcher Knebel and Charles W. Bailey II, reinforces the notion that a military coup in the White House could happen with a man ...
10. Quoted in Dan Daniel, “Tresh Certain He's It,” New York World- Telegram and Sun, February 7, 1962, 34. 11. Quoted in Steve Jacobson, “Tresh 'Star' at Short; Or, at Least, He Was,” New York Newsday, July 17, 1962, 20c. 12.
There was more than one Chet Nichols in major-league history. The earlier Chet pitched for parts of six seasons, including his 1930 adventure with the Phillies. He made it through the year 1–2 with a 6.79 ERA (and his only major-league ...
The Imperfect Diamond tells the stories of the players and their opponents, the powerful owners: how John Montgomery Ward led the Players League Rebellion of 1890; the rise and fall of David Fultz and the Baseball Players Fraternity (1912 ...
We want to reach out to all generations and backgrounds. Hopefully, these stories and lessons will inspire people in a positive way.” —Willie Mays
We want to reach out to all generations and backgrounds. Hopefully, these stories and lessons will inspire people in a positive way.” —Willie Mays
A number of authors have tried to identify baseball's premier feats, fantastic plays, and dominating performances. Because "best of" listings inevitably raise questions, differences of opinions, and even controversy, one...