The Sports Encyclopedia: Baseball 2007 [Paperback]

David S. Neft (Author), Michael L. Neft (Author), Richard M. Cohen (Author)

Book Description

Series: Sports Encyclopedia: Baseball | Publication Date: February 6, 2007

The Sports Encyclopedia: Baseball 2007 covers the history of every player, every team, and every season from 1902 through 2006, with detailed statistics and text summaries, as well as full coverage of this year's exciting pennant race.

-Which team became the first in history to come back from a 3-1 deficit to win the World Series?

-Who was the only player to pinch-hit a World Series home run?

-Who became the first to manage five straight pennant winners, and in what years did he do it?

-What 1970s team won a pennant with only one player hitting more than twenty homers, no player driving in eighty runs, no player stealing even ten bases, no player hitting .300, and only one pitcher winning more than fifteen games?

The answers to these and thousands of other baseball questions can be found in this fully up-to-date, fact-filled reference book.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"A fine contribution to baseball statistical sorcery." -The Sporting News
"A must-have for serious baseball fans." -Entertainment Weekly
"Year in and year out, the indispensable reference." -Seattle Times/Post Intelligencer

"One of the handiest and most reliable baseball reference books around." --San Diego Union Tribune

Product Details

• Paperback: 864 pages
• Publisher: St. Martin's Griffin; First Edition edition (February 6, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0312363591
• ISBN-13: 978-0312363598
• Product Dimensions: 10.8 x 8.2 x 2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.8 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,285,456 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Baseball stats from a different perspective, May 12, 2007

By 

J. Moskowitz - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The Sports Encyclopedia: Baseball 2007 (Paperback)

It took quite a while, but I actually read "Sports Encyclopedia: Baseball 2007" from cover to cover. I have gone through quite a few other baseball encyclopedias in the past and this one is certainly "different." Instead of just an alphabetical list of each player, the book goes season-by-season and lists the rosters and statistics of every player that played on the team each year. League leaders in an individual category are highlighted in bold. This gives a different perspective of how, say, a superstar like Willie Mays or Ted Williams fit in with the stats and accomplishments of the rest of the team.
The book is divided into eras (1900-1919, 1920-45, etc.) and for each year, there is a comprehensive summary of key events that took place. At the end of each "era," the players' full lifetime statistics are given.
Every line score of every post-season game is also included and the composite statistics of the players.
At the end of the book are pages of lifetime and season leaders in the major statistical categories, although for post season records, only the World Series ones are included and not the Divisional or League playoff stats.
There is also an interesting two letter code for players' injuries or career interruptions like MS - Military Service or DD - Died During the season.
I can see this book being very helpful for someone putting together a fantasy league for any specific past season as the focus is on that year's rosters and stats only. Or, you can play the 1927 Yankees against the 1969 Mets, for instance.
In essence, while other baseball encyclopdias need 1500 -2000 pages to fit in all the players' statistics, "Baseball 2007" succeeds in doing it in only several hundred pages.
The only thing I think this work is lacking is a magnifying glass to read the quite small print.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A must for baseball nuts and historians., March 20, 2007

By 

Robert G. Martinez "Doctor of Rock" (Brooksville FL) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Sports Encyclopedia: Baseball 2007 (Paperback)

I never get tired of this book. It features every team with every stat of every player from 1901 to the present. If you want to know what Dimaggio batted in 1938, you can look it up, as Casey Stengel once said. Every league leader in his category is highlighted. The most fascinating revelation is that back in old days, players stats often took a drastic downturn after they reached 30, and even before that. Is is better nutrition, training or steroids? Probably all of the above. Anyway, if you're a stats nerd, you will call this your "Baseball Bible". Essential and the ultimate argument settler.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Indespensible, February 20, 2007

By 

R. Riis "rriis" (NY) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Sports Encyclopedia: Baseball 2007 (Paperback)

Although I no longer buy the annual editions (I am down to every other year now), this is still the most indespensible and most referred-to baseball reference I own. With an essay for each baseball season from 1901-2006, individual statistics grouped by year and team, career statistics and leaders, annual leaders, active leaders through the 2006 season, and much more, this is a great browsing book as well, and the price is always a bargain.