The Midsummer Classic: The Complete History of Baseball's All-Star Game [Paperback]

David W. Vincent (Author), Lyle Spatz (Author), David W. Smith (Author), Leonard Koppett (Preface)

Book Description

Publication Date: February 1, 2001

Since its inception in 1933, the All-Star Game has become an integral part of baseball. Yet there has been no truly comprehensive source for researchers that includes both a narrative and a play-by-play for each game. Nor have there been more than perfunctory lists for historians to use in determining who among baseball's greats have had an impact on the games.

 

The Midsummer Classic covers each of the All-Star Games and examines All-Star history more extensively than ever before. It not only discusses each game in great detail—with play-by-play, complete roster information, and expanded box scores—but also breaks new ground with a series of itemized lists never before published. The book also includes information on the ceremonies surrounding the games, along with an explanation of how these ceremonies have changed over time. In addition, it explains how the All-Star Game has been influenced by the significant changes that have occurred in baseball over the years, such as the breaking of the color line, expansion, the shifting of franchises, and the introduction of the designated hitter.

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

In former times, baseball books were often folksy, poorly written tales with no real beginning or end. This history is just the opposite, transcending sports literature and moving to a new level. It is a solidly researched book presented in a well-written and easily readable format. The first All-Star game was played in 1933, and the midsummer classic has since become a prominent and positive fixture of the sport. This volume provides a multipage summary of each game with lineups and statistics, as well as exploring the match-ups and the drama behind each showcase game. Highly recommended for most medium and large library collections.
Copyright 2001 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Review

"In former times, baseball books were often folksy, poorly written tales with no real beginning or end. This history is just the opposite, transcending sports literature and moving to a new level. It is a solidly researched book presented in a well-written and easily readable format. . . . This volume provides a multipage summary of each game with lineups and statistics, as well as exploring the match-ups and the drama behind each showcase game. Highly recommended for most medium and large library collections."—Library Journal

(Library Journal )

"The great thing about the All-Star Game is that it serves as a great reward for all the hard work a player puts into his game. The hours over the winter, the six weeks of spring training, and all the extra hours in the cage and video room—it''s all worth it when you get to play in the All-Star Game."—Alex Rodriguez, All-Star shortstop

(Alex Rodriguez )

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Product Details

• Paperback: 612 pages
• Publisher: Bison Books (February 1, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0803292732
• ISBN-13: 978-0803292734
• Product Dimensions: 11 x 7.6 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,070,872 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The reference for All-Star game information, August 8, 2001

By 

Sean Forman - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Midsummer Classic: The Complete History of Baseball's All-Star Game (Paperback)

I collect baseball reference books and this one is right on the shelf closest to my desk by my Total Baseball, my Baseball Encyclopedia and my Baseball Biographical Encylopedia. It contains wonderful leaderboards of all-star information and play-by-play of every all-star game. For instance, the area describing Pete Rose's mad dash home to win the game has the full inning summary: Torre grounds out, Clemente grounds out, Rose singles, Grabarkewitz singles (Rose to 2nd) and Hickman singles (Rose scores). Every inning of every All-Star game has this level of detail. Nowhere else is this information available.

My only complaint is the lack of pictures. While it kept the cost of production down, it does seem to be a feature you would want to have.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Great reference book, but could have been better, March 30, 2001

By 

R. Riis "rriis" (NY) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Midsummer Classic: The Complete History of Baseball's All-Star Game (Paperback)

This book presents each All-Star game (1933-2000) with textual background, box score, rosters & starting lineups, complete play-by-play, and a photo or two. The book has great reference value. The text, though, is fairly wooden : useful but gracelessly flat - a real disappointment considering the colorful and often dramatic subject matter. Still, a highly recommended purchase for all baseball fans, not just historians.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars The Book of Record; Sticks to the Facts, February 5, 2009

By 

Jinkyu - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Midsummer Classic: The Complete History of Baseball's All-Star Game (Paperback)

When I was younger, I used to read The Sporting News Baseball Dope Book to keep abreast of the progression (with statistical history and records) of the MLB All-Star Game. However, The Dope Book was discontinued long before the release of "The Midsummer Classic," and it did not have play by play. I purchased "The Midsummer Classic" primarily because it had very detailed play-by-play of the games, particularly ones I was interested in from prior years. As an encyclopedia, this book is top notch. Its box scores have expanded information, and it is very thorough on rosters, including changes and replacements. "The Midsummer Classic" also gives the year-by-year performances of every All-Star player and pitcher and contains a very drawn-out section on records. The thorough game summaries are detailed and well written, and their opening paragraphs highlight developments that set the stage for the games.

In dramatizing the games and providing color, however, "The Midsummer Classic" falls short. The few photographs included are in black and white, and they show the stars in only small sizes, minimizing the drama of the action. (Well, at least I can report that the editors got Pete Rose crashing into Ray Fosse at home plate in 1970.) Extra elements such as anecdotes, profiles, themes, or other things that would give perspective are missing. There are no special figures, charts, boxes, or varied text sizes or fonts that might showcase interesting players, facts, and events.

Although I do miss whatever color and creativity could have been part of the picture, I definitely value this book for its abundance of detail. It certainly is the absolute book of record for 20th century All-Star Games.