Full Description
Baseball at its best is a combination of chess match and gladiatorial combat, waged over a long season but turning on split-second decisions and physical instincts. The 1916 season demonstrated the drama that made the sport the national pastime: tight pennant races, multiple contenders, record-breaking performances, and controversy, both on and off the field. Ten of the 16 teams battled for first place, four pitchers started and won both games of a doubleheader, Babe Ruth pitched on Opening Day, and players from the Federal League became the sport's first free agents. The book features full rosters, player biographies, statistics, photographs and an appendix of the sportswriters who chronicled the season.
Contents
Table of Contents
Preface and Acknowledgments
I. "Carrigan's news was unbelievable, but it was true."
II. "He couldn't hit an elephant with a banjo."
III. "A new order was at hand."
IV. "I'd like to do it for Rowland's sake."
V. "A perfect imitation of a left handed fat lady sweeping out a mouse."
VI. "Imbued with the idea the pennant is theirs."
VII. "All of them were wild with enthusiasm."
VIII. "Third in the National League, this day and date, with much thirdness."
IX. "A less courageous outfit would have curled up and died."
X. "Like a thunderstorm, the riot broke out."
XI. "There was not much fight in them after that."
Epilogue
Appendix A: Team Rosters and Final Statistics
Appendix B: Sportswriters
Chapter Notes
Bibliography
Index
