Below I’ll give you my selections for the best Baseball History books by a few categories. I will cover these and other great books more in depth later.
- 1. The Glory of Their Times: The Story of the Early Days of Baseball Told by the Men Who Played It (Harper Perennial Modern Classics) (2010)
- 2. The Lords of the Realm: The Real History of Baseball (1995)
- 3. Baseball: A History of America’s Game (Sport and Society) (2018)
- 4. Baseball: An Illustrated History (2010)
- 5. Baseball: A History of America’s Favorite Game (Modern Library Chronicles) (2008)
- 6. Incredible Baseball Stats: The Coolest, Strangest Stats and Facts in Baseball History (2019)
- 7. The Everything Kids’ Baseball Book: From Baseball’s History to Today’s Favorite Players–With Lots of Home Run Fun in Between! (2016)
- 8. Baseball and America (2018)
- 9. Baseball History: The History of Baseball Along With Fascinating Facts & Unbelievably True Stories (Best of Baseball History Stories Games) (2017)
- 10. The Baseball Maniac’s Almanac: The Absolutely, Positively, and without Question Greatest Book of Facts, Figures, and Astonishing Lists Ever Compiled (2016)
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1. The Glory of Their Times: The Story of the Early Days of Baseball Told by the Men Who Played It (Harper Perennial Modern Classics) (2010)
Baseball was different in earlier days—tougher, rawer, more intimate—when giants like Babe Ruth and Ty Cobb ran the bases. In the monumental classic The Glory of Their Times, the golden era of our national pastime comes alive through the vibrant words of those who played and lived the game….
2. The Lords of the Realm: The Real History of Baseball (1995)
Baseball has always inspired rhapsodic elegies on the glory of man and golden memories of wonderful times. But what you see on the field is only half the game.In this fascinating, colorful chronicle—based on hundreds of interviews and years of research and digging—John Helyar brings to vivid life the extraordinary people and dramatic events that shaped America’s favorite pastime, from the dead-ball days at the turn of the century through the great strike of 1994. Witness zealous Judge Landis banish eight players, including Shoeless Joe Jackson, after the infamous “Black Sox”…
3. Baseball: A History of America’s Game (Sport and Society) (2018)
In this fourth edition, Benjamin G. Rader updates the text with a portrait of baseball’s new order. He charts an on-the-field game transformed by analytics, an influx of Latino and Asian players, and a generation of players groomed for brute power both on the mound and at the plate. He also analyzes the behind-the-scenes revolution that brought in billions of dollars from a synergy of marketing and branding prowess, visionary media development, and fan-friendly ballparks abuzz with nonstop entertainment. The result is an entertaining and comprehensive tour of a game that, whatever its changes, always reflects…
4. Baseball: An Illustrated History (2010)
The acclaimed nationwide best seller and companion volume to Ken Burns’s grand-slam PBS documentary—updated and expanded to coincide with the broadcast of a new, two-part Tenth Inning that looks back on the age of steroids, home-run records, the rise of Latino players, and so much more.With a narrative by Geoffrey C. Ward, a preface to the new edition by Ken Burns and Lynn Novick, a new chapter by Kevin Baker, and an introduction by Roger AngellEssays by Thomas Boswell, Robert W. Creamer, Gerald Early, Doris Kearns Goodwin, Bill James, David Lamb, Daniel…
5. Baseball: A History of America’s Favorite Game (Modern Library Chronicles) (2008)
Baseball is a narrative of America’s can-do spirit, in which stalwart immigrants such as Henry Chadwick could transplant cricket and rounders into the fertile American culture and in which die-hard unionist baseballers such as Charles Comiskey and Connie Mack could eventually become the tightfisted avatars of the game’s big-money establishment. It’s a celebration of such underdogs as a rag-armed catcher turned owner named Branch Rickey and a sure-handed fielder named Curt Flood, both of whom flourished as true great men of history. But most of all,…
6. Incredible Baseball Stats: The Coolest, Strangest Stats and Facts in Baseball History (2019)
As America’s pastime since the mid-1800s, baseball offers the sights, sounds, and even smells that are deeply entrenched in our culture. But for some, the experience can be less sensory. Some, such as Ryan Spaeder and Kevin Reavy, live for baseball statistics. Stats give the game historical context and measurables for past, present, and predictive analysis.Incredible Baseball Stats, newly updated, helps tell unique baseball stories, showcasing extraordinary stats and facts in baseball history, through the 2018 season.For example, in 2015, the Nationals’ Bryce Harper broke out in a major way. He batted .330/.460/.649…
7. The Everything Kids’ Baseball Book: From Baseball’s History to Today’s Favorite Players–With Lots of Home Run Fun in Between! (2016)
Play ball! From the backyard to the ballpark, The Everything Kids' Baseball Book, 9th Edition captures all the action, fun, and excitement of America's favorite pastime! Sports reporter Greg Jacobs gives you all the know-how you need to bat a thousand–from learning how to keep score on a scorecard to tips on developing your fielding and hitting skills. You'll learn all about: With more than 30 puzzles and activities, along with baseball trivia and the rules of the game, this book delivers one grand slam after another!…
8. Baseball and America (2018)
Baseball has been a part of America s history for 150 years; it s embedded in its toughest times and helped it heal when not much else would do. It s also responsible for uniting people of all ages, races, and religions across the nation to support a favorite team. Baseball and America is a celebration of those times. A celebration of the nostalgia certain players and teams evoke for older fans, while also teaching a newer generation about the different hardships baseball and America have faced together. Full of history, photographs, and trivia Baseball and America is the perfect teaching tool…
9. Baseball History: The History of Baseball Along With Fascinating Facts & Unbelievably True Stories (Best of Baseball History Stories Games) (2017)
Would you love to know the incredible and exciting history of baseball?Whether you want to (1) learn incredible and interesting facts about baseball history, (2) discover some of baseball’s greatest events and stories, or (3) be thoroughly entertained as you learn how baseball has evolved over the years, this book will teach you everything you need to know.See what happens inside the game.This book is about what makes baseball the sport it is today. We’ll take you inside a game to see what individual players are thinking. You will visit the early days of the sport to see some of the…
10. The Baseball Maniac’s Almanac: The Absolutely, Positively, and without Question Greatest Book of Facts, Figures, and Astonishing Lists Ever Compiled (2016)
An addictive read that is sure to spark conversation wherever baseball is spoken, this updated edition of The Baseball Maniac’s Almanac is part reference, part trivia, part brain teaser, and absolutely the most unusual and thorough compendium of baseball stats and facts ever assembled—all verified for accuracy by the Baseball Hall of Fame. In its pages, renowned sportswriter Bert Randolph Sugar presents thousands of fascinating lists, tables, data, and stimulating facts. Inside, you’ll find:Highest batting averages not to win batting titlesHome-run leaders by state of birthPlayers on last-place teams leading the league in…
Best Baseball History Books You Must Read
We highly recommend you to buy all paper or e-books in a legal way, for example, on Amazon. But sometimes it might be a need to dig deeper beyond the shiny book cover. Before making a purchase, you can visit resources like Genesis and download some baseball history books mentioned below at your own risk. Once again, we do not host any illegal or copyrighted files, but simply give our visitors a choice and hope they will make a wise decision.
The Negro Baseball Leagues: Tales of Umpiring Legendary Players, Breaking Barriers, and Making American History
Author(s): Bob Motley, Byron Motley
ID: 2819283, Publisher: Sports Publishing, Year: 2020, Size: 26 Mb, Format: epub
They Said It Couldn’t Be Done: The ’69 Mets, New York City, and the Most Astounding Season in Baseball History
Author(s): Wayne Coffey
ID: 2353404, Publisher: Crown Archetype, Year: 2019, Size: 22 Mb, Format: epub
K: A History of Baseball in Ten Pitches
Author(s): Tyler Kepner
ID: 2374135, Publisher: Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group, Year: 2019, Size: 50 Mb, Format: epub
Please note that this booklist is not final. Some books are truly record-breakers according to The New York Times, others are written by unknown authors. On top of that, you can always find additional tutorials and courses on Coursera, Udemy or edX, for example. Are there any other relevant books you could recommend? Drop a comment if you have any feedback on the list.