Bush League, Big City

Bush League, Big City PDF

Author: Michael Sokolow

Publisher: State University of New York Press

Published: 2023-04-01

Total Pages: 395

ISBN-13: 1438493053

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Bush League, Big City tells the interwoven stories of two low-level minor league baseball teams brought to New York City in the late 1990s. It also illuminates the history of the New York-Penn League, America’s oldest and longest-running minor league, from its inception in 1939 until its abrupt contraction by Major League Baseball in 2020. With an eye for details and firsthand accounts by many of the baseball people involved, Michael Sokolow tells the story of two franchises that went in very different directions, as the Cyclones achieved astronomical success while Staten Island’s ‘Baby Bombers’ sank under the weight of debt and recriminations. Along the way, the book visits small communities in upstate New York, New England, and Canada, introduces the multimillionaires who came to dominate small-time baseball ownership, and tells the tale of two of the most expensive minor-league baseball stadiums ever built. It also sheds light on the complex, behind-the-scenes influence of New York City politics, as the indomitable will of Mayor Rudy Giuliani reshaped the geography of both the city and professional baseball. Bush League, Big City is a compelling examination of both the power and limits of nostalgia in a sport that is increasingly focused on the bottom line.

Bush League Boys

Bush League Boys PDF

Author: Toby Smith

Publisher: UNM Press

Published: 2014-11-15

Total Pages: 270

ISBN-13: 0826355226

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This loving tribute to the defunct minor league teams of New Mexico and west Texas resurrects a forgotten period of baseball history. Through oral histories of players, umpires, fans, sportswriters, and team officials, Toby Smith brings to life the West Texas–New Mexico League, the Longhorn League, the Southwestern League, and the Sophomore League from 1946 to 1961, when the last of them folded. Star players Joe Bauman and Bob Crues get special attention, along with assorted brawls, a fatal beaning incident, home runs, and marriages conducted at home plate. Anyone who loves baseball will enjoy this delightful book.

Becoming Big League

Becoming Big League PDF

Author: Bill (William) Mullins

Publisher: University of Washington Press

Published: 2013-06-18

Total Pages: 361

ISBN-13: 0295804734

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Becoming Big League is the story of Seattle's relationship with major league baseball from the 1962 World's Fair to the completion of the Kingdome in 1976 and beyond. Bill Mullins focuses on the acquisition and loss, after only one year, of the Seattle Pilots and documents their on-the-field exploits in lively play-by-play sections. The Pilots' underfunded ownership, led by Seattle's Dewey and Max Soriano and William Daley of Cleveland, struggled to make the team a success. They were savvy baseball men, but they made mistakes and wrangled with the city. By the end of the first season, the team was in bankruptcy. The Pilots were sold to a contingent from Milwaukee led by Bud Selig, who moved the franchise to Wisconsin and rechristened the team the Brewers. Becoming Big League describes the character of Seattle in the 1960s and 1970s, explains how the operation of a major league baseball franchise fits into the life of a city, charts Seattle's long history of fraught stadium politics, and examines the business of baseball. Watch the trailer: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7hwhl5sLoQs&list=UUge4MONgLFncQ1w1C_BnHcw&index=1&feature=plcp

Stadium Games

Stadium Games PDF

Author: Jay Weiner

Publisher: U of Minnesota Press

Published: 2000

Total Pages: 550

ISBN-13: 9780816634347

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"Stadium Games begins with the events leading to the arrival of the Twins and Vikings to the state in 1961 and traces subsequent controversies about professional sports in the region up to the present. Weiner discusses the factors that make Minnesota the poster child for the nation's stadium debates - the recent departure of the North Stars hockey team, the near departure of the Timberwolves, the strong opposition of taxpayers, and the apparent greed of team owners. Stadium Games reveals the behind-the-scenes deals and inside scoop on what went wrong in the recent unsuccessful campaign for a new ballpark, divulging how public relations experts failed and how government leaders conspired to fake out Minnesota's citizens."--BOOK JACKET.Title Summary field provided by Blackwell North America, Inc. All Rights Reserved

The Baseball Fan's Bucket List

The Baseball Fan's Bucket List PDF

Author: Robert Santelli

Publisher: Running Press

Published: 2010-03-09

Total Pages: 288

ISBN-13: 0762440317

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No sports fans are more in touch with the history and ephemera of their game than baseball fans. Hitting the sweet spot of our national pastime, The Baseball Fans Bucket List presents a list of 162 absolute must things to do, see, get, and experience before you kick the bucket. Entries range from visiting Elysian Fields in Hoboken, NJ (site of the first pro baseball game), to starting a baseball card collection; experiencing Opening Day; attending your favorite teams Fantasy Camp; reading classic books like Ball Four, and much more! Each entry includes interesting facts, entertaining trivia, and practical information about the activity, item, or travel destination. Also included is a complete checklist so the reader can keep a running tally of their Bucket-List achievements. With todays tabloid stories of steroid abuse and off-the-field shenanigans encroaching on baseballs idyllic charm, this unique guidebook encourages readers to celebrate all thats good about being a fan.

Left on Base in the Bush Leagues

Left on Base in the Bush Leagues PDF

Author: Gaylon H. White

Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield

Published: 2019-05-30

Total Pages: 381

ISBN-13: 1538123665

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There was a time when no town was too small to field a professional baseball team. In 1949, the high point for the minor leagues, there were 59 leagues and 464 cities with teams, two-thirds of them in so-called bush leagues classified as C and D. Most of the players were strangers outside the towns where they played, but some achieved hero status and enthralled local fans as much as the stars in the majors. Left on Base in the Bush Leagues: Legends, Near Greats, and Unknowns in the Minors profiles some of the most fascinating characters from baseball’s golden era. It includes the stories of players such as Ron Necciai, the only pitcher in history to strike out 27 batters in a single game; Joe Brovia, one of the most feared hitters to ever play in the Pacific Coast League (PCL), who had to wait 15 years for a shot in the majors; and Pat Stasey, a mellow Irishman who “Cubanized” minor league baseball in Texas and New Mexico, helping to bring down the walls of segregation. Compelling and timeless, their stories touch on many issues that still affect the sport today. Left on Base in the Bush Leagues provides an entertaining glimpse into a time when baseball was a game and the players were regular guys who often held second jobs off the field. Featuring hundreds of personal interviews with the players, their teammates, managers, and opponents, this bookcreates a colorful tapestry of the minor leagues during the 1950s and 60s.

Bob Breitbard: San Diego's Sports Keeper

Bob Breitbard: San Diego's Sports Keeper PDF

Author: Dan Fulop

Publisher: Author House

Published: 2012-06-30

Total Pages: 171

ISBN-13: 1477243968

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Bob Breitbard: San Diegos Sports Keeper, chronicles the life and accomplishments of a visionary sportsman and great San Diego icons. An all-star in San Diegos sports lineup for more than half a century, Breitbard was involved in the local sports scene as a player, coach, team owner, builder, booster and benefactor of institutions and organizations that helped make San Diego a major-league city. Breitbard followed his football playing and coaching days at Hoover High School and San Diego State College by becoming the guardian and promoter of the citys sports scene. In 1946, he founded the Breitbard Athletic Association to honor local high school, amateur and professional athletes, and later established the Breitbard Hall of Fame. The Foundation developed into the San Diego Hall of Champions, which today is the nations largest multi-sport museum and a shrine to honor local high school, amateur and professional sports stars- hometown heroes of the past, present and future. Breitbard was the driving force behind the building of the San Diego Sports Arena and the owner of its original tenant, the Gulls of the Western Hockey League, and the expansion NBA Rockets. Breitbard was also one of the founding members of the Greater San Diego Sports Association, a group that helped build San Diego Stadium, bring the Chargers and major-league Padres to town, establish and support the Holiday Bowl and other first-class sports events and facilities. Much more than just a uniquely dedicated caretaker of San Diegos sports, the kind and generous Breitbard was a local treasure that helped make San Diego the wonderful city it is today.