The Baseball Uncyclopedia: A Highly Opinionated, Myth-Busting Guide to the Great American Game [Paperback]

Michael Kun (Author), Howard Bloom (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 11, 2006

Michael Kun — Pulitzer Prize-nominated author — and Howard Bloom — former newspaper reporter and columnist — explain that, contrary to popular belief, a walk is not always as good as a hit. They argue that it’s not always wrong to root against the home team. They contend that the Houston Astros’ jerseys were not the ugliest jerseys ever worn in the major leagues. They rail against the common misconception that Tinkers-to-Evers-to-Chance was a great double play combination. They insist that Shoeless Joe Jackson did not bat right-handed, he did not go barefoot, and he did not refuse to accept money to throw the World Series. They heap scorn upon those who believe Joe DiMaggio was ever “The Greatest Living Baseball Player.” And they offer a sound rebuke to anyone who thinks a baseball book can’t be smart, funny and informative all at the same time.

The Baseball Uncyclopedia is a witty and irreverent guide that debunks some of the mythology, opinions and widely held beliefs about baseball that fans have clung to for generations.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

As a rule, serious baseball fans can never have too much information, so it's unlikely that a devotee wouldn't enjoy Kun and Bloom's hyper-informative volume, which challenges and debunks the beliefs, legends and "common knowledge" that circulate among fans-among other statements both controversial and benign, they claim that "Joe DiMaggio was never the greatest living baseball player," and "Baseball is not a metaphor for life." Throughout their discursive, stat-filled journey from Aardsma to Zwilling, the authors maintain a snide but playful back-and-forth that showcases clearly their obsession for the sport. This is not a book for the casual fan: Kun and Bloom are out to engage in arguments among readers well-versed in the lingo and history of the game, as well as other books in the genre (from the start, there are constant references to the obscure details that fuel authors, such as Bob Buhl, a player best remembered for having gone 0-70 batting for a season). Though a bit juvenile and sarcastic, Kun and Bloom live up to warmest of the baseball fan stereotypes: the wide-eyed idealist whose heart swells for any worthy player, and whose scorn is saved for obscenity-yelling fans, sore losers, or anyone else trying to ruin the game for everybody.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist

Died-in-the-wool baseball fans--let's face it--are often borderline demented. Think sabermetrics (Society of American Baseball Research), fantasy baseball, and Internet chat rooms, where informed, knowledgeable fans argue about the release point of obscure pitchers' curveballs. That large subset of baseball fandom will howl with delight over this serendipitous mishmash of opinion, goofy stats, and baseball minutiae. Hall of Famer Reggie Jackson appeared on The Love Boat. David Justice, a pretty good 1990s outfielder, was married to Oscar winner Halle Berry. When the Yankees had a Jewish player in the 1970s, the team sold knishes along with hot dogs and peanuts, but the player employed to endorse the Jewish snack was a black Protestant, not the Jewish outfielder. Marketing guys: oy vey. There's even an open letter to fans on why worrying about pitch counts (the rationale used to support every idiotic pitching change) will subtract years from your life. This is more fun than a 13--inning, 1-1 pitchers' duel. Wes Lukowsky
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 256 pages
• Publisher: Clerisy Press, Emmis Books (January 11, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1578602335
• ISBN-13: 978-1578602339
• Product Dimensions: 8.8 x 6 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,625,284 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Michael Kun was born on November 28, 1962. He is the son of Richard and Beatrice Kun. He is a graduate of The Johns Hopkins University, as well as the School of Law of the University of Virginia.

Michael sold his first novel, A Thousand Benjamins, while he was in law school. The novel was published in 1990. After many rumors of his death, which can be read right here on amazon.com, Kun returned with The Locklear Letters in 2003.

Since then, Kun has published two more novels -- My Wife and My Dead Wife, and You Poor Monster, the latter of which he used to propose to his wife. He has also published a short story collection, Corrections to My Memoirs, and has co-authored The Baseball Uncyclopedia and The Football Uncyclopedia.

Michael has never had a cavity.

He also has no tattoos or piercings.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Funny and Entertaining, February 3, 2006

By 

Dave B. (Boston, Mass) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Baseball Uncyclopedia: A Highly Opinionated, Myth-Busting Guide to the Great American Game (Paperback)

First off, I have to agree with the last reviewer -- there's no way that the photo of the reviewer named "Tough Girl" is real. Second, I don't read fiction, so I'm sorry if I don't know who Kun is and didn't know how beloved he is; I've read the reviews of his other books on amazon, and it sounds like people really love his novels, even if I'm never going to read them. (Although I might read the one about Heather Locklear now that she's single again.) Third, he and his co-writer Bloom seemed to have a lot of fun writing this book. There is some very funny and entertaining stuff in it. There's also some stuff that isn't as funny or entertaining as it could be, which makes it hard to rate. Some chapters were 5s, some 4s, some 3s, a couple 2s and one 1. All and all, the batting average is very high, so I give it 4 stars overall. Most baseball fans should enjoy this a lot. But some people take the game too seriously -- which is the subject of one of the best chapters, about how baseball is not a metaphore for life --and those people might get a bit angry at all the sacred cows being tipped. I'm just waiting for some diehard Yankee fan to blast these guys for the chapter about Joe DiMaggio, even though I completely agree with them.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Newest Member of Michael Kun's Cult, April 25, 2006

By 

DJ Jazzy Bob (Walnut Creek, CA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Baseball Uncyclopedia: A Highly Opinionated, Myth-Busting Guide to the Great American Game (Paperback)

As a lifelong baseball fan, I approached this book with some amount of trepidation. Poking fun at baseball can be a dangerous thing. You run the risk of ticking people off or, much worse, just sounding stupid. After reading all of the reviews of Michael Kun's books, most of which seem to be from a growing cult of readers, I figured it was worth a try. And I'm very glad I did. The book isn't perfect. Far from it. There are a few sections that didn't work for me at all, and the interplay between Kun and his co-author didn't always work, either. But Kun is so consistent -- and so consistently funny -- that I have gone ahead and ordered all of his other books. I'm not ready to dub him a genius yet, like some of the other customer reviews, but the key word may be "yet."

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A great read, April 27, 2006

By 

Barney (Towaco, NJ) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Baseball Uncyclopedia: A Highly Opinionated, Myth-Busting Guide to the Great American Game (Paperback)

I consider myself a rabid baseball fan, and as such, have prided myself on collecting random baseball factoids through the years... Most baseball fact books are tedious rehashings of standard (and admittedly boring) baseball trivia. We all know that Dave Winfield was drafted in 3 professional sports... We all know that Nolan Ryan struck out the side on nine pitches a gazillion times... We've been ready for something else for some time now. This book is the something else. Not only was it well written and very humorous, but is was entirely filled with original baseball facts and thoughts. Now that's impressive. Kudos to Kun and Bloom, and thanks for the great read.