#rob neyer

The Bookshelf Conversation: Rob Neyer, Part Two

Without further ado…

The Bookshelf Conversation: Rob Neyer, Part Two

Without further ado…

On this week's episode of SABRCast, Rob Neyer chats with Janet Marie Smith of the Los Angeles Dodgers about the revolutionary ideas she helped bring to ballpark design in the early 1990s and how those ideas still resonate across the league today. And, as Rob and Scott discuss who won the weekend, they detail their relationships with those captivating little cardboard photographs known as trading cards. For show notes, extra content, and a list of what Rob's reading, visit the SABRCast website at https://sabr.org/sabrcast

What's Rob reading this week?

Ball Four: The Final Pitch (Audible edition) By Jim Bouton

When Ball Four was published in 1970, it created a firestorm. Bouton, a former New York Yankees star turned journeyman knuckleballer with the Seattle Pilots, was called a Judas, a Benedict Arnold and a “social leper” for having violated the “sanctity of the clubhouse.” Baseball commissioner Bowie Kuhn tried to force Bouton to sign a statement saying the book wasn’t true. Ballplayers, most of whom hadn’t read it, denounced the book. It was even banned by a few libraries. Almost everyone else, however, loved Ball Four. Fans liked discovering that athletes were real people — often wildly funny people. Many readers said it gave them strength to get through a difficult period in their lives. Serious critics called it an important document. In 1999 Ball Four was selected by the New York Public Library as one of the “Books of the Century.” And Time magazine chose it as one of the "100 Greatest Non-Fiction" books. Click here to listen to Jim Bouton read the audiobook version of Ball Four at Audible.com.

Also reading: Jacob Bogage: "Baseball card collectors suspected rampant fraud in their hobby. Now the FBI is investigating." (Washington Post)

Also reading: Robert Silverman: "Inside Baseball Hall of Famer Mariano Rivera’s Far-Right Politics" (The Daily Beast)

Neyer to receive Casey Award

Congrats to Rob Neyer, who was recently named winner of the 2018 Casey Award as handed out by Spitfall Magazine for his long-awaited (by me at least) new book Power Ball: Anatomy of a Modern Baseball Game.

Those of you who have been following this blog for a while know how much respect I have for Neyer’s work, especially Rob Neyer’s Big Book of Baseball Legends: The Truth, the Lies, and…

Neyer to receive Casey Award

Congrats to Rob Neyer, who was recently named winner of the 2018 Casey Award as handed out by Spitfall Magazine for his long-awaited (by me at least) new book Power Ball: Anatomy of a Modern Baseball Game.

Those of you who have been following this blog for a while know how much respect I have for Neyer’s work, especially Rob Neyer’s Big Book of Baseball Legends: The Truth, the Lies, and…

What’s your baseball “beach reading?”

Since I began working at Trader Joe’s I find my time for intellectual pursuits such as reading and writing greatly curtailed. Truth is, I’m usually just too damn tired by the time I get home to delve into anything that requires too many brain cells. Since I only get a half-hour for lunch, there’s not enough time to get any real reading done, but I’m trying.

I think the best way to do that is to…

What’s your baseball “beach reading?”

Since I began working at Trader Joe’s I find my time for intellectual pursuits such as reading and writing greatly curtailed. Truth is, I’m usually just too damn tired by the time I get home to delve into anything that requires too many brain cells. Since I only get a half-hour for lunch, there’s not enough time to get any real reading done, but I’m trying.

I think the best way to do that is to…