How did "America's National Game" evolve from a gentlemen's pastime in the 1850s to a national obsession in the Roaring Twenties? What really happened at Cooperstown in 1839, and why does the "Doubleday legend" persist? How did the commissioner system develop, and what was the impact of the "Black Sox" scandal? These questions and many others are answered in this book, with colorful details about early big league stars such as Mike "King" Kelly and pious Billy Sunday, Charles Comiskey and Ty Cobb, Napoleon Lajoie and "Cy" (Cyclone) Young. The author explores historically the four major periods of transformation of the game: the Gentlemen's Era, the Golden Age, the Feudal Age, and the incipient Silver Age. Attention is given to the changing face of the major league spectacle, the evolving style of the game, and the changing interests of players, fans, and owners, along with influential innovators and their innovations. There are a number of surprises in the book. For instance, several black players made the big leagues in the 1880s, only to be driven out by a rising tide of Jim Crowism. For three generations black players were to be confined to their own clubs and leagues. American baseball history reflects the nation's economic and social history, as author Voigt graphically demonstrates. On the fans' side, mass attendance at ballgames reflects the rise of cities and the dilution of a work ethic with pursuit of leisure; on the owners' and players' side, organized baseball reflects the developing tension between big business and skilled employees. The result-despite ups and downs-is a typical American success story.
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About the Author
David Quentin Voigt has written five books on baseball history, plus American's Leisure Revolution on the sociology of leisure and sport. After earning an M.A. in American history at Columbia and a Ph.D. in social science at Syracuse, Dr. Voigt returned to his hometown of Reading, Pa., as professor of sociology and anthropology at Albright College.
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4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
When it was fun!!!!,
By A Customer
This review is from: American Baseball. Vol. 1: From Gentleman's Sport to the Commissioner System (American Baseball Series) (Paperback)
A fascinating look at the birth of the national pastime. It is paticularly interesting in the way the author finds the roots of the game in the in the growth of (a la Weber) leisure time among the growing middle class during the mid to late 19th century. The volume also does a terrific job in giving the reader a sense of what was expected of terms of players, fans, and umpires in the early days of the professional game. I have just purchased the second volume and look foprward to the third voulme as well. A must for any hardcore Baseball historians!
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Detailed and Interesting History,
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This review is from: American Baseball. Vol. 1: From Gentleman's Sport to the Commissioner System (American Baseball Series) (Paperback)
Voigt's three-volume work on the history of American baseball, of which this is the first, is excellent reading. The information is fascinating and, more importantly, it's well-documented. This volume is divided into four sections: The Gentleman's Era; Baseball's Golden Age; Baseball's Feudal Age; and, The Return of the Old Order. One of the many things I enjoyed about this book is that the author covers not only baseball, the owners, the players, and the umpires, but he covers the fans, the stadiums, the popular songs, the equipment, the rules, you-name-it. An informative, interesting read.
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baseball barons, commercial baseball, league magnates, baseball promoters, players revolt, league men, reserve clause, pitching distance, league directors, playing talent, association era, base ball player, reserve rule, baseball men Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
New York Clipper, Sporting Life, American Baseball, The Sporting News, Reach's Official Base Ball Guide, Spalding's Official Base Ball Guide, National League, Daily Globe, American League, Harry Wright, World Series, George Wright, Beadle's Dime Base Ball Player, National Agreement, Players League, Free Press, Baseball's Cast of Characters, The Interlopers, The Big Leaguers, President Young, Baseball Comes of Age, American Association, White Stockings, Mike Kelly, America's New Heroes Browse Sample Pages:
Front Cover | Table of Contents | First Pages | Index | Back Cover | Surprise Me!
baseball barons, commercial baseball, league magnates, baseball promoters, players revolt, league men, reserve clause, pitching distance, league directors, playing talent, association era, base ball player, reserve rule, baseball men Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
New York Clipper, Sporting Life, American Baseball, The Sporting News, Reach's Official Base Ball Guide, Spalding's Official Base Ball Guide, National League, Daily Globe, American League, Harry Wright, World Series, George Wright, Beadle's Dime Base Ball Player, National Agreement, Players League, Free Press, Baseball's Cast of Characters, The Interlopers, The Big Leaguers, President Young, Baseball Comes of Age, American Association, White Stockings, Mike Kelly, America's New Heroes Browse Sample Pages:
Front Cover | Table of Contents | First Pages | Index | Back Cover | Surprise Me!
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