#waalb

I have to wonder how much of Blaseball was inspired by the writings of W.P. Kinsella.

Seriously.  Read this description, and tell me it doesn’t scream “Blaseball” to you:

Shortstops who run with the wolves, painted eggs that reveal deeply disturbing meanings, long-dead Hall of Famers who miraculously return to the game, an Iowa minor-league town with a secret conspiracy: these are the elements from which W. P. Kinsella weaves nine fabulous stories about the magical world of baseball. From the dugouts, clubhouses, bedrooms, and barrooms to the interior worlds of hope and despair, these eerie stories present the absurdities of human relationships and reveal the writer’s special genius for touching the heart.

This is the description Amazon has attached to W.P. Kinsella’s The Dixon Cornbelt League And Other Baseball Stories. (Which is under $3 right now).

Kinsella also wrote Shoeless Joe, which became the film Field of Dreams. And The Iowa Baseball Confederacy. (One of those is cheap right now; the other is full price)

All of these have at least some Blaseball vibes, and - while it’s been a few years since I read any of them - I remember really loving them.

I also loved The House of Daniel by Harry Turtledove. It, too, had some strong Blaseball feeling for me (although I read it before Blaseball existed).