Dingers!: A Short History of the Long Ball

by Peter Keating and Eden O'Neill

No single act in sports has had as great an impact on our culture, our language, and our imagination as the home run. So how come weve had to wait so long for the definitive biography Dingers tells... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1933060093
• ISBN13: 9781933060095
• Release Date: May 2006
• Publisher: ESPN Video
• Length: 182 Pages
• Weight: 0.69 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.7" x 6.1" x 7.3"

Customer Reviews

Keating "Goes Yard" With This book

Dingers is obviously a book about the home run and its effect on baseball. Keating traces the history of home runs in baseball, from the "Dead ball" era of baseball's early years through the "Hyper Inflation" era of the late 90s, and to the current era which seems to indicate a "coming back to earth" (no pun intended) phase for home run hitting. Along the way, the book has all kinds of interesting facts and figures about home runs, everything from most HR's by position, the oldest player to hit a homerun (Julio Franco, are you listening?), most career grand slams, most HR's by a teenager (Ed Kranepool, where are you now?), and so on. There's also lots of sidebars about famous (and no so famous) HR hitters, famous games involving HR's (and no, most did not happen at Coors Field!). The history Keating writes about here does not make any conclusions and is clearly not meant as a serious study on the topic, but more of a fun and quick look at the phenomena of home runs and how much the fans enjoy them. "Chicks dig the long ball," that 1999 TV commercial stated but I think it's safe to say guys like them too. Watching the flight of a home run ball as it leaves a park is always great fun, and so is this book.

Keating Tags One

This is a fun read--written for everyone who loves the game of baseball, and especially those who feel a thrill when they hear that "pock" sound when a slugger connects on the sweet spot of his bat, and the ball soars into the sky and the crowd roars. Here are lots of fun facts connected with round trippers--probably all the record combinations you've ever thought of (HRs and stolen bases), and many you haven't (HRs and low batting averages). I've followed the game all my life, and I learned a lot. Keating covers the history of the game, going decade by decade, showing who hit how many. Along the way, he spotlights certain sluggers. With some of the text, Keating is the writer, in other places, he is the editor. But the overall impression is a seamless storytelling. One thing I was reminded of while reading this book: baseball is a good way to teach children math. Many a boy has learned a love of statistics while looking up his favorite player's numbers. This is a good book to read while watching Bonds chase the Babe and good ol' Henry Aaron.