As a part of popular culture, sport has made a deep impression in American life. And nowhere is this clearer than in baseball, the game that seems to transcend generations and has made its way into our language and literature. In The National Game, John Rossi offers not only an expert overview of baseball over the past 175 years; he shows how the game has reflected and contributed to changes in American society over that time. The country grew up playing baseball, Mr. Rossi notes, but the professional game took hold in the cities of the Northeast just as the nation was transforming itself from a rural to an urban society. Essentially a middle-class attempt to create a club sport, the game began early on to integrate immigrant groups_and over the years it became an important pathway to acceptance for all kinds of outsiders. The National Game chronicles baseball's popular successes and financial failures; its interleague wars and continuing struggles between owners and players; and its accommodations to radio and television_without neglecting the colorful players and managers who have won the hearts of fans. For a readable, concise history of the game and its place in American culture, Mr. Rossi's book is hard to beat. With 10 black-and-white photographs.
Fresh and stimulating insights into the relationship between baseball and American culture.--John Curtis "San Diego Union-Tribune "
| Preface | p. vii |
| Origins of the Game | p. 3 |
| Baseball as Big Business, 1876-1891 | p. 25 |
| Coming of Age, 1891-1908 | p. 51 |
| The Wars of Baseball, 1909-1918 | p. 75 |
| Golden Age, 1919-1931 | p. 97 |
| Baseball in Depression and War, 1931-1945 | p. 121 |
| No Golden Age: Baseball, 1946-1960 | p. 147 |
| Coming Apart, 1961-1977 | p. 169 |
| Best of Times, Worst of Times, 1978-1994 | p. 191 |
| The Future of the National Game | p. 211 |
| Notes | p. 219 |
| A Note on Sources | p. 227 |
| Index | p. 236 |
| Table of Contents provided by Syndetics. All Rights Reserved. |
ISBN: 9781566632874
ISBN-10: 1566632870
Audience:
General
Format:
Hardcover
Language:
English
Number Of Pages: 256
Published: 15th February 2000
Dimensions (cm): 22.9 x 15.3
x 2.4
Weight (kg): 0.476