Baseball: The Fans' Game (The SABR Digital Library Book 15)

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In 1939, John Kieran, a famous sportswriter for The New York Times, said of Baseball: The Fans' Game: "Frankly, this is the best book on baseball that I ever read." It remains one of the best and the SABR is proud to have made it available. SABR first published a paperback replica of the original Funk & Wagnalls 1939 edition in 1993, adding an introduction by Mark Alvarez at that time. Now an ebook edition has been made available for for all in digital formats.

Cochrane's book is wonderful for two reasons. First, its tone is real, a true rarity among player-written tomes. Although it's not an autobiography, you'll get a real sense of Mickey Cochrane's personality here, with remarkably little piffle. Second, it's full of nuggets that any baseball fan will treasure. Just look at the topics listed in the table of contents:

I. BECOMING A PROFESSIONAL
The Chronicle of a Major Leaguer in the Making, from College Campus to the Big Show—The Value of Minor League Training

II. WHAT MAKES A PLAYER
Fundamentals of Sound Baseball—Hitting, Fielding, Throwing and Running—The Importance of Confidence—Slumps and How Some Were Broken—Pointers for Outfielders

III. LET'S LOOK AT THE LINE-UP
Fundamentals of Catching—Some Sound Pitching Advice—Footwork and the Line-Up

IV. DEFENSE
The Battery and Its Relation to the Defense—The Benefits of a Good Double-Play Combination—Strategy on the Defense—Some Stories of Babe Ruth

V. BATTING
Cobb's System of Batting-Guess Hitting and Sign Stealing—Cultivating Ability to Take a Strike—Attacking Strategy

VI. HIT-AND-RUN, THE BUNT, SIGNS.
Defensive Strategy Versus the Big Inning—The Hit and-Run and the Big Inning—Stealing Signs and How Some of the Greatest Signal Burglars Work

VII. HANDLING PITCHERS
Getting the Most Out of Your Stuff—Training Pitcher—The Pressure of a Pennant Race on a Staff-Breaking Down the Effectiveness of an Opposing Pitcher

VIII. STRATEGY AND PSYCHOLOGY
Importance of the Bull Pen In Winning-Team Tactics—When to Lift a Pitcher—Type of Relief to Have Ready-Essentials of Good Pinch Pitching—"Jockeying" which Started a Losing Streak

IX. A WORD FOR THE FANS
The Fans Always Write—When Does a Fan Own a Ball Club?—All-Star Teams

X. Epilogue
A City Goes Crazy over a Championship Ball Club—What Makes for Success in Baseball—Never Make the Same Mistake Twice