Full Description
One of the greatest pitchers of his era, William Arthur "Candy" Cummings was born in 1848, when baseball was in its infancy. In the 1870s, Candy's invention, the curveball, played a transformative role and earned him a place in the Hall of Fame. Drawing on extensive research, this first full-length biography traces Candy's New England heritage and chronicles his rise to the top, from pitching for amateur teams in mid-1860s Brooklyn to playing in the National Association of Professional Base Ball Players--the first major league--and then the newly-formed National League. A critical examination of the evidence and competing claims reveals that Cummings was, indeed, the originator of the curveball.
Contents
Table of Contents
Acknowledgments
Preface
Author's Notes
1. Origins
2. Brooklyn
3. The Crucible of Baseball and the Birth of the Curveball
4. The Seminarian and the Silver Ball
5. From the Stars to the Excelsiors
6. Candy Debuts the Curveball
7. The Ins and Outs of the Curveball
8. Curveball Claimants
9. Hop-Scotching to the Stars
10. A Star with the Stars
11. Candy Goes Professional
12. Candy Becomes a Lord
13. Candy's a Pearl
14. Hose of a Different Color
15. In a Whole New League
16. A Tale of Two Cities
17. After the Big Leagues
18. The Skipper
19. (Semi-)Retirement from Baseball
20. Ninth Inning
21. Monuments
22. Candy's Legacy
Chapter Notes
Bibliography: Books, Scholarly Papers, Articles, Monographs
Index
