William F. McNeil's Books

The Dodgers Encyclopedia

By: William McNeil

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The Dodgers Encyclopedia is the definitive book on Los Angeles and Brooklyn Dodgers baseball. It traces the history of one of Major League Baseball's most successful organizations, from the misty beginnings of its predecessors in rural Brooklyn more than 140 years ago, through their formative years in the major leagues, as a member of the American Association from 1884 through 1889, to a full-fledged representative of the National League since 1890. It covers the exciting and oftenzany years in Brooklyn through 1957, as well as a long and successful sojourn in Southern California during the last half of the 20th century.

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Page Count

498

Publisher

Sports Publishing LLC

Published Date

ISBN 10

1582613168

ISBN 13

9781582613161

Gabby Hartnett

The Life and Times of the Cubs' Greatest Catcher

By: William F. McNeil

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Gabby Hartnett

The Life and Times of the Cubs' Greatest Catcher

By: William F. McNeil

Gabby Harnett is believed by many to be the greatest catcher of all time. This work chronicles Hartnett's life from his early years in Millville, Massachusetts, through his twenty-year career with the Chicago Cubs as player and manager, his time in various capacities in the minor leagues and with the New York Giants and Kansas City Athletics, to his post-major league career as a businessman in Chicago. His childhood, early baseball experiences with the local team and with a nearby prep school, and his first professional baseball season with the Worcester Boosters of the Eastern League are covered in detail. Hartnett's major league career as the catcher for the Cubs is well-documented, including his near career-ending arm injury in 1929, the 1932 World Series that featured Babe Ruth's legendary "called shot," and Hartnett's famous "homer in the gloamin" against the Pittsburgh Pirates that propelled Chicago to the 1938 National League pennant. The author also compares Hartnett's statistics to those of his famous contemporaries, Mickey Cochrane and Bill Dickey, on a year-by-year basis.

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345

Publisher

McFarland

Published Date

ISBN 10

0786481293

ISBN 13

9780786481293

Visitors to Ancient America

The Evidence for European and Asian Presence in America Prior to Columbus

By: William F. McNeil

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Visitors to Ancient America

The Evidence for European and Asian Presence in America Prior to Columbus

By: William F. McNeil

Researchers in American anthropology and archaeology from the late seventeenth century to the present--including Cotton Mather, John Wesley Powell, Thor Heyerdahl, and Betty Meggers, among others--all had discoveries that lead to the following conclusion: America was visited by Europeans well before the time of Christopher Columbus. Divided into two main parts, this work is a comprehensive study of the evidence suggesting that ancient European and Asian mariners visited the United States more than 1000 years ago. The first section is an historical overview of the external evidence that would support the theory of ancient incursions to America. A review of ancient ships and the currents in both the Pacific and Atlantic oceans is offered. The experiences of several seagoing peoples (such as Polynesians and Vikings) are explored. Both legendary voyages and modern adventures of mariners are discussed. Ancient transoceanic stories are also examined. From mammoth stone chambers of New York and New England to inscribed stones found in ancient graves from Minnesota to West Virginia, the second half of the work focuses on the American evidence for ancient visitations to the U.S., primarily in the northeast section of the country. Several alleged ancient sites are also explored in this richly illustrated work.

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319

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McFarland

Published Date

ISBN 10

0786481307

ISBN 13

9780786481309

Baseball's Other All-Stars

The Greatest Players from the Negro Leagues, the Japanese Leagues, the Mexican League, and the Pre-1960 Winter Leagues in Cuba, Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic

By: William F. McNeil

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Baseball's Other All-Stars

The Greatest Players from the Negro Leagues, the Japanese Leagues, the Mexican League, and the Pre-1960 Winter Leagues in Cuba, Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic

By: William F. McNeil

Baseball is played in all corners of the world, so it is no surprise to learn that some of the greatest hardballers of all time never played on a U.S. major league diamond. Who knows what major league records would have been shattered had Sadaharu Oh of Japan, Josh Gibson of the Negro Leagues, Martin Dihigo of Cuba, Francisco Coimbre of Puerto Rico and Hector Espino of Mexico played in the United States. This work is a survey of the greatest baseball players who never played in the U.S. major leagues. The greatest players from the various professional leagues outside organized baseball in the United States are reviewed, and all-star teams are selected for each league. Finally, the author selects an "all-world all-star team" from the individual all-star teams from Japan, Mexico, Cuba, Puerto Rico, the Dominican Republic and the Negro Leagues.

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Page Count

256

Publisher

McFarland

Published Date

ISBN 10

0786407840

ISBN 13

9780786407842

Backstop

A History of the Catcher and a Sabermetric Ranking of 50 All-Time Greats

By: William F. McNeil

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Backstop

A History of the Catcher and a Sabermetric Ranking of 50 All-Time Greats

By: William F. McNeil

It's often said that catcher is the most important, most demanding defensive position in baseball. This view explains why so many light-hitting catchers have enjoyed long--and by all accounts successful--major league careers. Yet arguments over the all-time greats invariably privilege offensive standouts, and even among these players batting statistics are more likely than fielding numbers to affect ranking. So what, historically, have been the expectations for major league catchers, and who stands as the greatest in a more balanced view of offensive and defensive contributions? In Part I of this book, the history of catching and catchers is discussed in detail, with attention to the most celebrated players of each era. In Part II, the author employs sabermetric formulas to rank the 50 greatest catchers since 1920, when changes to the rules, the parks, and the ball dramatically changed the way baseball was played. Also included is a chapter on catchers of the 19th century, deadball era, and Negro Leagues, whose career statistics are either incomplete, inaccurate, or produced under markedly different playing conditions and rules.

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Page Count

268

Publisher

McFarland

Published Date

ISBN 10

0786421770

ISBN 13

9780786421770

Cool Papas and Double Duties

The All-Time Greats of the Negro Leagues

By: William F. McNeil

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Cool Papas and Double Duties

The All-Time Greats of the Negro Leagues

By: William F. McNeil

Many of the great ballplayers of the Negro League have been forgotten simply because baseball's Hall of Fame would not recognize black players until Jackie Robinson and Satchel Paige made their way into the Hall of Fame. For this book, more than 50 former Negro League players and baseball historians were asked to vote for players who they believe should have been included in the Hall of Fame, and to select an All-Time Negro League All-Star Team. In addition to presenting and discussing their choices, the book profiles the lives and careers of the players selected. Appendices include rosters of the players and historians who voted.

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Page Count

257

Publisher

McFarland

Published Date

ISBN 10

0786422297

ISBN 13

9780786422296

Red Sox Roll Call

200 Memorable Players, 1901-2011

By: William F. McNeil

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Red Sox Roll Call

200 Memorable Players, 1901-2011

By: William F. McNeil

Since the Boston Red Sox came into existence in 1901, some of the greatest players ever to step onto a baseball diamond have filled its rosters. Starting with Cy Young, the parade of legendary players included Tris Speaker, Babe Ruth, Jimmie Foxx, Ted Williams, Carl Yastrzemski, Carlton Fisk, Roger Clemens, Pedro Martinez, Manny Ramirez, and David Ortiz, among others. This work profiles 200 of the most memorable players to have donned Boston's red, white and blue. Some, like Williams, enjoyed long, illustrious careers with the Red Sox. Others, like Smokey Joe Wood, shone brightly for only a brief period. Also included are journeymen who became legends as a result of one glorious World Series game, like Bernie Carbo, or players with just one memorable post-season appearance, like Dave Roberts. Together, these legends, idols, and heroes made Red Sox history and forever changed American baseball.

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241

Publisher

McFarland

Published Date

ISBN 10

0786487046

ISBN 13

9780786487042

Freedom by the Sword

The U.S. Colored Troops, 1862-1867

By: William A. Dobak

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Freedom by the Sword

The U.S. Colored Troops, 1862-1867

By: William A. Dobak

The Civil War changed the United States in many ways—economic, political, and social. Of these changes, none was more important than Emancipation. Besides freeing nearly four million slaves, it brought agricultural wage labor to a reluctant South and gave a vote to black adult males in the former slave states. It also offered former slaves new opportunities in education, property ownership—and military service. From late 1862 to the spring of 1865, as the Civil War raged on, the federal government accepted more than 180,000 black men as soldiers, something it had never done before on such a scale. Known collectively as the United States Colored Troops and organized in segregated regiments led by white officers, some of these soldiers guarded army posts along major rivers; others fought Confederate raiders to protect Union supply trains, and still others took part in major operations like the Siege of Petersburg and the Battle of Nashville. After the war, many of the black regiments took up posts in the former Confederacy to enforce federal Reconstruction policy. Freedom by the Sword tells the story of these soldiers' recruitment, organization, and service. Thanks to its broad focus on every theater of the war and its concentration on what black soldiers actually contributed to Union victory, this volume stands alone among histories of the U.S. Colored Troops.

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Page Count

616

Publisher

Simon and Schuster

Published Date

ISBN 10

1510720227

ISBN 13

9781510720220

The Single-Season Home Run Kings

Ruth, Maris, McGwire, Sosa, and Bonds, 2d ed.

By: William F. McNeil

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The Single-Season Home Run Kings

Ruth, Maris, McGwire, Sosa, and Bonds, 2d ed.

By: William F. McNeil

After Babe Ruth erased Buck Freeman's record in 1919, the new mark stood for 34 years before Maris bettered it, defying as he did an incredulous sporting public. And just as fans' anger grew old and Maris was grudgingly credited--or discredited--with an unrepeatable hot streak, along came Mark McGwire and Sammy Sosa, two goliaths who in 1998 and the years just after proved fans wrong again. But when in 2001, only three years after McGwire seemed to put the record beyond reach, Barry Bonds topped him by three. This time fans were staunch in their disbelief, and while many celebrated Bonds' achievement, others questioned its significance. This revised edition of Bill McNeil's Ruth, Maris, McGwire, and Sosa ("libraries especially will want this"--Library Journal) reviews the careers of each home run titan, with special attention to the record-breaking seasons. The cultural and social changes that may have affected both the players' season totals and fan reception are also considered.

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263

Publisher

McFarland

Published Date

ISBN 10

0786481285

ISBN 13

9780786481286

All-Stars for All Time

A Sabermetric Ranking of the Major League Best, 1876-2007

By: William F. McNeil

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All-Stars for All Time

A Sabermetric Ranking of the Major League Best, 1876-2007

By: William F. McNeil

This work uses practical measures to scientifically rank major league players, position by position, according to their offensive and defensive skills. The author has adjusted individual statistics for the era in which the player was active and for the "home park factor" in order to put all eligible players on a level playing field. For each position, the author has identified the top contenders for best offensive, defensive and all-around player, and provides a brief history of each of the candidates.

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247

Publisher

McFarland

Published Date

ISBN 10

0786452463

ISBN 13

9780786452460

Black Baseball Out of Season

Pay for Play Outside of the Negro Leagues

By: William F. McNeil

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Black Baseball Out of Season

Pay for Play Outside of the Negro Leagues

By: William F. McNeil

Negro League ballplayers, earning paychecks comparable to those of blue-collar workers, needed an off-season source of income to make ends meet. Many of them found the answer in baseball, by joining racially integrated barnstorming teams that toured the country after the regular season ended, or by playing in the organized winter leagues that operated in Florida, California, and several Caribbean and Central and South American countries. This history recounts the experiences of American black ballplayers outside of the Negro Leagues--often in places where a lack of prejudice contrasted sharply with conditions at home. Tracing the development of the game in each location and the unique character of each winter league, it details the contributions of the Negro League players and collects their statistics in each of the winter leagues.

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Page Count

245

Publisher

McFarland

Published Date

ISBN 10

1476600627

ISBN 13

9781476600628

Miracle in Chavez Ravine

The Los Angeles Dodgers in 1988

By: William F. McNeil

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Miracle in Chavez Ravine

The Los Angeles Dodgers in 1988

By: William F. McNeil

After winning the 1981 World Series and raising the expectations of management and fans, the Los Angeles Dodgers followed up with six years of disappointing finishes. By the time they ended the 1987 season 17 games behind the hated Giants, general manager Fred Claire had seen enough. Over the winter Claire radically restructured the team, bringing in fiery players like outfielder Kirk Gibson, closer Jay Howell and shortstop Alfredo Griffin to spark the team out of complacency. Led by Gibson and pitcher Orel Hershiser, the upstart Dodgers outlasted Houston in a race for the NL West title and edged a star-studded Mets team in the league championship series. But their best, most dramatic moments came in the World Series, when the Dodgers shocked everyone by bashing the A's of McGwire and Canseco in five games. In the first book-length history of the 1988 Dodgers, author Bill McNeil covers the story from all angles.

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Page Count

217

Publisher

McFarland

Published Date

ISBN 10

0786435011

ISBN 13

9780786435012

The Evolution of Pitching in Major League Baseball

By: William F. McNeil

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The Evolution of Pitching in Major League Baseball

By: William F. McNeil

Are today's major league baseball pitchers better than ever? Or do they pale in comparison to the great hurlers of 20, 30 or 40 years ago? This book tackles a debate that has been traveling baseball circles for several years. With changes in everything from the size of the playing field to the composition of the ball, it's a tall task to compare pitchers over the 170-year history of the sport in America. No stone is unturned as this work delves into every facet from the ancient roots of the game to the bigger size of today's players. The first chapters reach back to the first known "batting contests" in Egypt 5,000 years ago and bring readers to a popular 18th century English game called rounders, which evolved into organized baseball in 19th century America. The following chapters then pace through the changes in rules that helped mold baseball into its modern form, and discusses innovators like James 'Jimmy' Creighton and Asa Brainard, early stars like Cy Young and Walter Johnson, and modern day standouts such as Roger Clemens and Kerry Wood. The book explores rule changes, adaptations to pitching and pitching strategies, and the effect of pitcher injuries and conditioning, among other influences. Fourteen former major league players comment on the game. The final chapter reviews what has happened to major league pitching. Appendices give stats for major league starting pitchers with comparisons by era, list those with more than 5,000 career innings pitched, list relief pitchers and their single season save records, and a look at the increase in major league home runs from 1919 to 2004.

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241

Publisher

McFarland

Published Date

ISBN 10

0786424680

ISBN 13

9780786424689

The King of Swat

An Analysis of Baseball's Home Run Hitters from the Major, Minor, Negro, and Japanese Leagues

By: William McNeil

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The King of Swat

An Analysis of Baseball's Home Run Hitters from the Major, Minor, Negro, and Japanese Leagues

By: William McNeil

Who was the greatest home run hitter of all time? Babe Ruth? Henry Aaron? Willie Mays? Mickey Mantle? How about Negro Leaguers such as Josh Gibson or Norman Turkey Stearnes? Or minor league sluggers such as Joe Bauman who hit 72 four-baggers in 1954? And where does Sadaharu Oh and his 868 homers in the Japanese Central League fit in? Using statistical comparisons and accounting for the variances between players of different eras and levels of competition, this work provides the answer to the question of the greatest home run hitter of all time. The minors, Japanese, Negro and major leagues--both the deadball and lively ball eras--are fully analyzed. The home run hitting careers of the candidates in each league are first compared against other top sluggers in their own league, accounting for such differences as level of competition, size of ballparks, altitude in which the player played most of his games, night baseball and major league expansion. Players from different leagues are then compared to find the one player who stands out as the greatest home run hitter in the game's history. And the answer might surprise you.

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Page Count

216

Publisher

McFarland

Published Date

ISBN 10

0786403624

ISBN 13

9780786403622

The California Winter League

America's First Integrated Professional Baseball League

By: William McNeil

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The California Winter League

America's First Integrated Professional Baseball League

By: William McNeil

This first complete history provides an overview of the league's early years, detailed summaries for the official seasons of 1920 through 1947 and accounts of the exciting pennant races between the Negro league teams and the white professional teams. Appendices provide extensive statistical information."--BOOK JACKET.

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Page Count

340

Publisher

McFarland

Published Date

ISBN 10

0786413018

ISBN 13

9780786413010

The Rise of Mike Tyson, Heavyweight

By: William F. McNeil

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The Rise of Mike Tyson, Heavyweight

By: William F. McNeil

Covering Mike Tyson's rise through the amateur and professional boxing ranks, this book follows the Brooklyn native from his early years as a young criminal in Brownsville to his 1988 heavyweight unification match with Michael Spinks. The book focuses on the Catskill Boxing Club--where boxing guru Cus D'Amato trained the 210-pound teenager in the finer points of the sport and developed his impregnable defense--and on his home life with D'Amato and surrogate mother Camille Ewald and the other young fighters who lived with them. Tyson's boxing education began in the unauthorized "smokers" held every week in the Bronx, matching his skills against older, more experienced fighters. He won the 1981 Amateur Heavyweight Boxing Championship in Colorado Springs at the age of 14 and repeated the amazing feat the following year. By 1985, finding no other challenging amateur competition, he was forced to join the professional ranks where, in November 1986, he became the youngest heavyweight champion in boxing history. Less than two years later, he unified the crown, establishing himself as one of the most dominant heavyweight fighters the sport had ever seen.

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