Baseball For Dummies [Paperback]

Joe Morgan (Author), Richard Lally (Author), Sparky Anderson (Foreword)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 5, 2005

“Joe Morgan again shows himself a rare bird: an ex-jock with savvy and the ability to communicate it.”
—People

“This book has something for everybody, from longtime fans to Little Leaguers.”
—New York Newsday

Baseball For Dummies, Third Edition, is for baseball fans at all levels, from players and coaches to spectators who love the game. Baseball Hall of Fame player and ESPN baseball analyst Joe Morgan explains baseball with remarkable insight, using down-to-earth language so everyone from the casual observer to the die-hard fan can gain a fuller appreciation of the sport. This updated edition features:

• Everything you need to know about the game, from what it takes to play each position and how to hit and run the bases to what to watch for in the game and how to appreciate the finer points of the sport
• Coverage of new star players, new stadiums, and game milestones
• The lowdown on today’s baseball Web resources
• The latest on stats and sabermetrics
• The inside story on the new steroid rules

From how to throw a knuckleball or hit an inside pitch to how to keep a scorecard or pick a winning fantasy league team, Morgan covers all the bases, showing you how to get the most out of the game. You’ll see how to:

• Improve your hitting, pitching, and fielding
• Find a team to play on, from Little League on up
• Evaluate stats, players, and records
• Coach or umpire effectively
• Get more out of a trip to the ballpark

Complete with Morgan’s personal lists of top-ten pitchers, fielders, and relievers, as well as new quotes from Derek Jeter and Keith Hernandez, Baseball For Dummies gives you all the inside tips, facts, and stats so you can play like a Major Leaguer!

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Baseball is another solid hit in the popular Dummies series. With its chatty style, snappy graphics, and enjoyably informative top-10 lists, the book sticks to the Dummies format better than most pitchers follow their catchers' signs, a plus to be sure. The real plus, though, resides in the deftness of Joe Morgan's voice. The former Hall of Fame second baseman-turned television analyst has proven himself a natural communicator in the booth; he comes across just as comfortable, informative, and thorough in print. His enthusiasm spills over, but not at the expense of his broad knowledge. Morgan, naturally, covers the bases--hitting, pitching, fielding, running, coaching--with plenty of whys teamed up with the requisite how-tos. For added expertise he calls on fellow pros such as Hall of Famer Bob Gibson and MVP third-baseman Ken Caminiti. Deceptively sophisticated, Baseball for Dummies is a marvelously good-natured introduction to the game, but it also hurls enough insight to hook baseball's more advanced students. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From the Back Cover

Covers new star players, new stadiums, and game milestones

Get all the inside tips, stats, and facts and play like a Major Leaguer

Let Joe Morgan take you out to the ballpark in this update of his classic guide to the National Pastime. From how to throw a knuckleball or hit an inside pitch to how to keep a scorecard or pick a winning fantasy league team, he covers all the bases — and shows you how to get the most out of the game.

Discover how to

• Improve your hitting, pitching, and fielding
• Find a team to play on, from Little League on up
• Evaluate stats, players, and records
• Coach or umpire effectively
• Get more out of a trip to the ballpark

Praise for Joe Morgan and Baseball For Dummies®

"Joe Morgan again shows himself a rare bird: an ex-jock with savvy and the ability to communicate it."
— People

"This book is a grand slam."
— Pete Rose

"This book has something for everybody, from longtime fans to Little Leaguers."
— New York Newsday

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 456 pages
• Publisher: For Dummies; 3 edition (January 5, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0764575376
• ISBN-13: 978-0764575372
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 7.5 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (30 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #31,115 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #65 in Books > Sports & Outdoors > Baseball

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

40 of 41 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Good Material, but Not For Dummies, August 3, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Baseball for Dummies (Paperback)

This book has some good stuff, but it's definitely not for dummies, at least not for a baseball virgin like me. The presentation is extremely unclear and there are a lot of omissions in the main text (like, what on earth is an RBI?). After I read the book I still felt like a virgin, so I bought a copy of "Complete Idiot's Guide for Baseball," which is much better and cheaper, too.

33 of 34 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Tries to cover too many bases, May 8, 2004

By 

Robin Currier - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Baseball for Dummies (Paperback)

This book is fun to read and very well written. However, it seemed to try too hard to suit all audiences. The danger in that, of course, is that it doesn't do a great job for any one type of reader. I got this book for the basic baseball knowledge it contains--I recently got "hooked" on baseball, and wanted to know more about the rules, how to keep score, how statistics are computed and what they mean. And there is some of that in this book. However, a great deal more of the book is aimed at little leaguers--how to pick out equipment, how to practice, and so on. Then there are the sections on great players. I think the readers who pick up this book are going to want more in-depth information on the particular area they are interested in. So, this book may be your first book on baseball, but it won't be your last! Just whets the appetite, so to speak.

The book tries to do too much, and would have better served the reader by concentrating on one area. Nonetheless, Joe Morgan comes across as very knowledgeable and a great guy!

13 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Best Baseball How-To Book Ever!, May 8, 2002

By 

Bruce Byerling (New Hampshire) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Baseball for Dummies (Paperback)

Joe Morgan was a small man who became a Hall of Famer and the greatest second baseman ever by dint of hard work and intelligience. In Baseball for Dummies he translates that intelligience into a comprehensive primer that will captivate baseball novices and diehards. Joe starts with the basics ("This is a baseball..") and gradually moves the reader up to the more nuanced aspects of the game. The book is accessible to anyone who can read, yet it never talks down to the reader. And the prose is lively enough to interest even the most casual fan.
I've seen the other books that try to reveal how baseball should be played. None of them are as informative or focused as the terrific guide.