Amazon.com: The Cheater's Guide to Baseball (9780618551132): Derek Zumsteg: Books

Buy New

or
Sign in to turn on 1-Click ordering.
or
Amazon Prime Free Trial required. Sign up when you check out. Learn More
Buy Used
Used - Like New See details
$2.69 & eligible for FREE Super Saver Shipping on orders over $25. Details

or
Sign in to turn on 1-Click ordering.
 
   
More Buying Choices
Have one to sell? Sell yours here
The Cheater's Guide to Baseball
 
 
Tell the Publisher!
I'd like to read this book on Kindle

Don't have a Kindle? Get your Kindle here, or download a FREE Kindle Reading App.

The Cheater's Guide to Baseball [Paperback]

Derek Zumsteg (Author)
3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (35 customer reviews)

Price: $16.95 & eligible for FREE Super Saver Shipping on orders over $25. Details
o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o
In Stock.
Ships from and sold by Amazon.com. Gift-wrap available.
Only 1 left in stock--order soon.
Want it delivered Tuesday, February 28? Choose One-Day Shipping at checkout. Details

Formats

Amazon Price New from Used from
Paperback, Bargain Price $3.27  
Paperback, April 2, 2007 $16.95  

Book Description

April 2, 2007
Ever see Mike Piazza block the plate? Or Derek Jeter slide hard into second? Illegal. But it happens every game. Baseball’s rules, it seems, were made to be broken. And they are, by the players, the front office, and even sometimes the fans. Like it or not, cheating has been an integral part of America’s favorite pastime since its inception. The Cheater’s Guide to Baseball will show you how cheating is really done. In this lively tour through baseball’s underhanded history, readers will learn how to cork a bat, steal signs, hurl a spitball, throw a World Series, and win at any cost!
They’ll also see the dirty little secrets of the game’s greatest manipulators: John McGraw and Ty Cobb; Billy Martin and Gaylord Perry; Graig Nettles and Sammy Sosa; and, yes, even Barry Bonds. They’ll find out how the Cleveland Indians doctored their basepaths to give new meaning to the term home field advantage. They’ll delight in a hilarious examination of the Black Sox scandal, baseball’s original sin. And, in the end, they’ll come to understand that cheating is as much a part of baseball as pine tar and pinch hitters. And it’s here to stay.

Frequently Bought Together

The Cheater's Guide to Baseball + The Book: Playing the Percentages in Baseball + The Extra 2%: How Wall Street Strategies Took a Major League Baseball Team from Worst to First
Price For All Three: $48.01

Show availability and shipping details

Buy the selected items together
  • In Stock.
    Ships from and sold by Amazon.com.
    Eligible for FREE Super Saver Shipping on orders over $25. Details

  • The Book: Playing the Percentages in Baseball $14.58

    In Stock.
    Ships from and sold by Amazon.com.
    Eligible for FREE Super Saver Shipping on orders over $25. Details

  • The Extra 2%: How Wall Street Strategies Took a Major League Baseball Team from Worst to First $16.48

    In Stock.
    Ships from and sold by Amazon.com.
    Eligible for FREE Super Saver Shipping on orders over $25. Details



Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Baseball blogger Zumsteg (ussmariner.com) argues that cheating-within reason-is not only not a bad thing, it actually makes baseball a more nuanced game. Using a wealth of anecdotal evidence and some statistical analysis, he argues that baseball has evolved hand-in-hand with the aid of its scoundrels, scamps, and shifty characters-and that doctoring the ball or stealing signs necessitates teams, umpires and even fans adopt more complex strategy. Zumsteg draws the line at gambling, game fixing and steroid use, showing little sympathy for the Black Sox and even less for Pete Rose. While baseball aficionados will be familiar with many of Zumsteg's stories, his wit will keep most casual fans entertained. Whether he's describing what might happen in a car crash with Pete Rose ("I admitted that I hit your car ... Can't we stop this witch-hunt and get on with our lives?") or laying blame for the steroid era on everyone from the commissioner to the fans, Zumsteg dispenses with the sanctimoniousness of most current sports writing. Although his prose style and humor are sometimes better suited to the Web (a few lengthy asides come across as amateurish), Zumsteg still creates a funny, honest look at the history of baseball's black arts.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Review

Baseball blogger Zumsteg (ussmariner.com) argues that cheating-within reason-is not only not a bad thing, it actually makes baseball a more nuanced game. Using a wealth of anecdotal evidence and some statistical analysis, he argues that baseball has evolved hand-in-hand with the aid of its scoundrels, scamps, and shifty characters-and that doctoring the ball or stealing signs necessitates teams, umpires and even fans adopt more complex strategy. Zumsteg draws the line at gambling, game fixing and steroid use, showing little sympathy for the Black Sox and even less for Pete Rose. While baseball aficionados will be familiar with many of Zumsteg's stories, his wit will keep most casual fans entertained. Whether he's describing what might happen in a car crash with Pete Rose ("I admitted that I hit your car ... Can't we stop this witch-hunt and get on with our lives?") or laying blame for the steroid era on everyone from the commissioner to the fans, Zumsteg dispenses with the sanctimoniousness of most current sports writing. Although his prose style and humor are sometimes better suited to the Web (a few lengthy asides come across as amateurish), Zumsteg still creates a funny, honest look at the history of baseball's black arts.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
  (Publishers Weekly )

It's been said that an athlete who "ain't cheatin' ain't tryin'" and that "rules are made to be broken." Zumsteg (coauthor, Baseball Prospectus) has written a lively and challenging account of cheating as part of America's pastime, whether it's the habits of particular notables, such as Gaylord Perry and his spitball, or modern day pharmaceutical legerdemain. He also ponders such issues as whether it's cheating to try to bunt to break up a no hitter. No, it ensures that the game evolves and progresses! This one's a sure hit. (Library Journal )

Product Details

  • Paperback: 288 pages
  • Publisher: Mariner Books; None edition (April 2, 2007)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 0618551131
  • ISBN-13: 978-0618551132
  • Product Dimensions: 8.2 x 5.6 x 0.7 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 9.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
  • Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (35 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #562,520 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

 

Customer Reviews

35 Reviews
5 star:
 (24)
4 star:
 (1)
3 star:
 (1)
2 star:
 (2)
1 star:
 (7)
 
 
 
 
 
Average Customer Review
3.9 out of 5 stars (35 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
Share your thoughts with other customers:
Most Helpful Customer Reviews

12 of 13 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Maybe cheaters do prosper, April 10, 2007
This review is from: The Cheater's Guide to Baseball (Paperback)
In Joe Posnanski's 2007 book about baseball ambassador Buck O'Neil, The Soul of Baseball: A Road Trip Through Buck O'Neil's America, Posnanski watches O'Neil, who is watching the steroid hearings:

"... he had known players to bend the rules to win-- they corked bats, spit on the ball, popped amphetimines, stole signals, and even loaded up on coffee for the caffeine. They wanted to win. "The only reason players in my time didn't use steroids," he would say sometimes, "is because we didn't have them.""

As Derek Zumsteg illustrates in 'The cheater's guide to baseball', O'Neil's sanguine sentiment towards winning at any cost goes back to the earliest days of the game's history.

Zumsteg's very first chapter looks at the effect the 1890s Orioles teams had on baseball as it is played today, and goes forward through time from there. He looks at both the practical and the theoretical aspects of cheating, and how cheating as an art form has colored the national pastime. Well-researched history mixes with flights of fancy, how-to diagrams sit next to game photos, and the whole is a tremendously entertaining read. Zumsteg may not paint the Elysian Fields image of baseball, but it is a portrait that Buck O'Neil would both recognize and appreciate.
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews 
Was this review helpful to you? Yes No


7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars Cheater's Guide, a fun read, May 12, 2007
Amazon Verified Purchase(What's this?)
This review is from: The Cheater's Guide to Baseball (Paperback)
Lot's of interesting anecdotes and research. A few edit errors--a story with several names in it is recounted, then wrong name referred to in discussing the event afterwards, for example. And a sometimes full throttle "buncha beer buddies yuk-yukking it" tone that was for me distracting and annoying in the context of an otherwise educating read.
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews 
Was this review helpful to you? Yes No


12 of 15 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars The best baseball book I've read in a while., May 1, 2007
This review is from: The Cheater's Guide to Baseball (Paperback)
As enjoyable as "Ball Four", and easily as eye-opening, this book doesn't get caught up in the glorified, rose-colored-glasses view of the past to which many baseball books fall victim. It is painstakingly researched, and covers some very sensitive, serious subject matter, yet manages to keep a humorous tone throughout. I'm glad Derek didn't shy away from talking about steroids in a candid light, given the hysteria and concern (some of it legitimate, some of it over-blown) surrounding this subject.

Highly recommended for both the casual baseball fan, and the serious aficionado.
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews 
Was this review helpful to you? Yes No

Share your thoughts with other customers: Create your own review
 
 
 
Most Recent Customer Reviews











Only search this product's reviews



Inside This Book (learn more)
Key Phrases - Statistically Improbable Phrases (SIPs): (learn more)
doctoring the ball, rolling signs, fan participation, stealing signs, hidden ball trick, corked bat, trick pitches, illegal pitches
Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
World Series, White Sox, Gaylord Perry, Billy Martin, Hall of Fame, National League, New York, Red Sox, Pete Rose, American League, Major League Baseball, Joe Jackson, Leo Durocher, Ban Johnson, Barry Bonds, Babe Ruth, Eddie Cicotte, Emil Bossard, Albert Belle, Earl Weaver, Fix Backed, Detroit Tigers, Casey Stengel, Jason Giambi, Buck Weaver
Browse Sample Pages:
Front Cover | Table of Contents | First Pages | Index | Back Cover | Surprise Me!
Search Inside This Book:

What Other Items Do Customers Buy After Viewing This Item?


Tags Customers Associate with This Product

 (What's this?)
Click on a tag to find related items, discussions, and people.
 

Your tags: Add your first tag
 

Sell a Digital Version of This Book in the Kindle Store

If you are a publisher or author and hold the digital rights to a book, you can sell a digital version of it in our Kindle Store. Learn more

Customer Discussions

This product's forum
Discussion Replies Latest Post
Super cool 0 Jan 8, 2007
See all discussions...  
Start a new discussion
Topic:
First post:
Prompts for sign-in
 


Active discussions in related forums
Search Customer Discussions
   
Related forums



So You'd Like to...



Look for Similar Items by Category


Look for Similar Items by Subject