Name: Wichita State Baseball Comes Back:
Brand: John E. Brown
SKU: 9781626193826
Price: 21.99 USD
Availability: InStock

Wichita State Baseball Comes Back:

9781626193826

$21.99

There were no bats or balls on the campus of Wichita State University in the spring of 1977. Five years later, the resurrected varsity baseball program was in the final game of the College World Series, fulfilling the seemingly impossible promise made by Gene Stephenson when he began recruiting players to a place that didn't even have a practice field. Stephenson would lead the Shockers for over three decades, but those first five years with the team set him on the course that put him among the winningest coaches in college baseball history..

Baseball in Asheville

9780738516103

$24.99

Baseball has served as the pastime of preference in Asheville, North Carolina, for more than a century. Nearly anywhere a flat lot can be found in the rolling hills of the Blue Ridge Mountains, baseball has been played by locals and visitors alike, with many of the city's greatest thrills created by the hometown Tourists, who have been mainstays in the professional ranks for most of the past 80 years. Oates Park, where author Thomas Wolfe toiled as a batboy prior to attending the University of North Carolina, served as the home of the Mountaineers, Tourists, and the semi-pro Asheville Royal Giants during the first three decades of the 20th century until McCormick Field was built in the mid-1920s. The ballpark, just south of downtown Asheville, welcomed the likes of Ty Cobb and Babe Ruth during exhibition contests, while future Hall of Famers Eddie Murray and Willie Stargell and current standouts Todd Helton and Juan Pierre honed their skills in the mountains on their way to the game's top level.

Baseball in Long Beach

9780738558233

$24.99

Organized baseball in Long Beach dates to 1910, when
the Long Beach Clothiers of the Southern California
Trolley League played opponents wherever a streetcar could take them. Exhibition games later featured Babe Ruth, Lou Gehrig, Joe DiMaggio, Bob Feller, and other Major League barnstormers. Homegrown talent includes Baseball Hall of Famers Bob Lemon and Tony Gwynn. Pioneering entrepreneur Bill Feistner built the first accommodating baseball park in 1922 at Redondo Avenue and Stearns Street in the shadow of oil-rich Signal Hill. When ballplayers weren't on the Shell Park diamond, they worked the derricks.

Baseball in Trenton

9780738513102

$24.99

Professional baseball in Trenton, New Jersey, stumbled through the twentieth century with sporadic success. The state capital seemed lost amid the professional sports world in New York and Philadelphia. Years later, minor-league baseball returned to the city and to a fan base exceeding most in Double-A baseball.

Baseball in Trenton follows the spurts of success that saw the Senators, Dodgers, Phillies, and Giants place farm teams in the city, producing Hall of Famer Willie Mays and base stealer George Case. In 1993, a group of New Jersey entrepreneurs decided to bring minor-league baseball back to Trenton. The ambitious result was the Trenton Thunder, who became the most successful and consistent minor-league baseball team in the country. Baseball in Trenton is the first history of this incredible rise to glory.

Peverelly's National Game

9780738534046

$24.99

Peverelly's Book of American Pastimes, which covered several sports from badminton to horseracing, is best known for its dominant chapter on base ball, "The National Game." It is the first historical-reference book ever published about the sport, and includes the rosters of the most prominent early clubs with results of games played from their beginnings through 1866. The original 200-page chapter, a seminal work of baseball historiography, is reproduced here in full, supplemented by contemporary images and captions by nineteenth-century baseball historians John Freyer and Mark Rucker.

The Portland Sea Dogs

9780738557120

$24.99

Since the team's arrival in 1994, the Portland Sea Dogs have captured the hearts and loyalty of the citizens of Portland, Maine. More than five million fans have visited Hadlock Field since the Sea Dogs began playing there. In 2006, the Sea Dogs celebrated a landmark victory when they won their first Eastern League title. For the fans, players, and Sea Dog staff, Hadlock Field has become their own "field of dreams," and a place where dreams really can come true.

Reading's Big League Exhibition Games

9781467133807

$24.99

While Reading may be known today for the Fightin' Phils, it has also been the site of 72 games played by 17 major-league franchises and barnstorming teams since 1874. Among the teams that have played in these exhibition games are the Philadelphia Phillies, Philadelphia Athletics, Pittsburgh Pirates, New York Giants, and St. Louis Cardinals, along with appearances by baseball greats Babe Ruth, Lou Gehrig, Mike Schmidt, Ernie Banks, and Rogers Hornsby. Reading fans have looked on as both the 1906 Phillies and A's tried to catch a bunny on the field mid-game, cheered for Christy Mathewson's shutouts, sang "Happy Birthday" to Pete Rose, and watched "Shoeless" Joe Jackson hit a home run.

Baseball in Rochester

9780738511696

$24.99

Few cities can boast of a longer or richer baseball tradition than Rochester, New York. The game's roots in the Flower City can be traced to the early nineteenth century, when a primitive form of baseball was being played on Mumford's Meadow near the Genesee River. Since that time, some of the greatest names in baseball history, including Stan Musial and Cal Ripken Jr., have honed their skills in Rochester. Their exploits, along with those of numerous others, are documented with rare photographs in Baseball in Rochester. Through the years, nineteen people with local ties have been inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame. The Red Wings have won ten Governors' Cups-more than any other International League team-and Rochester has been designated Baseball City, U.S.A., by Baseball America magazine. Baseball in Rochester chronicles not only the superstars but also the quirky characters and moments that make the minor leagues so appealing.

Grand Junction's JUCO World Series

9780738532202

$24.99

Grand Junction accepted a formidable challenge in hosting the fledgling national junior college baseball tournament in 1959. Nearly half a century later, the JUCO World Series and the city of Grand Junction are inextricably linked in one of the country's longest running baseball tournaments. Dedicated leaders and a supportive community have allowed young stars Kirby Puckett, Curt Schilling, David Wells, Eric Gagne, and many others to enjoy this gem of an event on Colorado's Western Slope. Grand Junction's JUCO World Series chronicles the tourney's humble beginnings and lets the reader discover this American tradition that combines local pride with high quality baseball.

Baseball in New Haven

9780738511788

$24.99

Baseball in New Haven uncovers the rich history of the national pastime in the greater New Haven area with images that highlight the sport on many levels. Numerous professional, semiprofessional, and college teams have played here, starting with Yale teams of the Civil War era and early attempts to form an "Elm City nine."

In the early 1900s, George Weiss, later the general manager of the New York Yankees, helped establish New Haven as a baseball town by drawing stars such as Babe Ruth and Ty Cobb for exhibition games. The semiprofessional West Haven Sailors kept that tradition alive in the 1930s and 1940s. That same era was a heyday for Yale, as Yale Field saw legends such as Lou Gehrig and Ted Williams take on the Elis. Ruth returned in 1948 to present a copy of his biography to the Bulldog captain, future president George H.W. Bush. Baseball in New Haven details the return of professional baseball in 1972 with the Eastern League's West Haven Yankees and finishes with the New Haven Ravens, an Eastern League expansion team in 1994.

Newport Baseball History:

9781626194526

$21.99

The City by the Sea boasts an ambitious baseball history dating back to the early days of America's favorite pastime. In 1897, the Newport Colts became the first professional baseball team to ever tie in a playoff series. By the 1900s, baseball was being played daily on open fields and diamonds throughout Newport. The city has sported six major ball fields, including Cardines Field, host to the oldest continuously running amateur baseball team in the country. Discover the humble beginnings of players like Newport native Frank Corridon, who allegedly invented the now outlawed spitball, and the legacy of the great Trojans baseball club. Team up with baseball historian Rick Harris and walk through the history of Newport baseball from amateur games to the major leagues and all the strikes, homers and grand slams in between.

Brown University Baseball:

9781609495015

$21.99

This book will chronicle the history of baseball at Brown University in Providence, Rhode Island. Brown has earned the distinction of being the most influential institution regarding baseball in Rhode Island. Fields, players, coaches are also included. Perhaps the most interesting parts of the book are the stories revolving around students and baseball games. Racial Integration on the ball field at Brown University is also explored, as well as women who played baseball at Pembroke College (Brown's sister college prior to integration of female and male students).

Baseball at Tulane University

9780738542089

$24.99

On a brisk January morning in 1888, nine young men from Tulane University faced off against nine young men from Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge to play base ball. Tulane won 22 to 8 in what was Louisiana's first intercollegiate sporting event, and thus began one of the great sports rivalries in the state's history, a tradition that continues more than a century later. As baseball's popularity grew across America, the game thrived at Tulane, which produced numerous conference champions, scores of professional players, and one president of the American League. Experiencing increased national prominence, the university has announced plans for a major expansion of Turchin Stadium, which is sure to make Tulane's one of the premiere baseball facilities and programs in the country.

Cleburne Baseball

9781467137010

$21.99

Shortly after Cleburne landed the largest railroad shops west of the Mississippi, it set its sights on securing a professional baseball team. Against the odds, Cleburne became a Texas League town in 1906. After the first championship, the Railroaders loaded a train and left Cleburne. The town's professional teams would amass two championships, three pennants and several legendary major league players, including Tris Speaker, before disappearing. Despite lacking a professional club, the town continued to field teams at all levels, until the Railroaders made their triumphant return in 2017. Scott Cain shares a century of Cleburne baseball, including the cowboys who gunned down fly balls to intimidate umps, the pro team that played the Chicago White Sox and the city councilman who was a scorekeeper for the Negro Leagues in the 1950s.

Florida's First Big League Baseball Players

9781596291164

$21.99

In recent years, Florida's playgrounds have produced an abundance of exceptional professional baseball players: Alex Rodriguez, Gary Sheffield, Luis Gonzales and Tino Martinez, to name only a few. Before 1950, however, only twenty-six Florida boys made it to the pros got their shot in the big leagues.

Players like Tampa's Al Lopez, a Hall of Fame member and baseball's first Hispanic manager, and Pensacola native Russ Scarritt, who set the Boston Red Sox record for most triples in a season his rookie year, blazed a trail that has opened the door for many of today's baseball superstars. Florida's First Big League Baseball Players, by baseball historian and enthusiast Wes Singletary, is a narrative journey into the early days of baseball in Florida before 1950.

When this project was undertaken only eight of the original twenty-six players were still living. Written from hours of interviews and presented in a narrative form that is engaging and informative, this collection allows the reader to journey back to a time when the game was more innocent and the heart of the men playing, a little bigger.

Florida's First Big League Baseball Players

Baseball in Kennesaw

9781467105651

$24.99

The town of Kennesaw was officially incorporated in 1887 and organized a baseball team shortly thereafter. In June 1908, the Atlanta Journal Constitution ran a headline, "Hail to the Amateurs--Here's a Good Georgia Bunch," featuring a photograph of the team with "Kennesaw" emblazoned across their jerseys. Kennesaw's former semiprofessional team, the Smokers; its little league parks; four high schools; and Kennesaw State University have contributed to a robust regional baseball culture. These respected and diverse baseball programs have produced many college-level, minor-league, and major-league players.