The Team-By-Team Encyclopedia of Major League Baseball

By Dennis Purdy and Tony La Russa

The obsessive reference for every baseball nut, THE TEAM-BY-TEAM ENCYCLOPEDIA OF MAJOR LEAGUE BASEBALL is a comprehensive, original, devour-it-like-salted-peanuts single-volume encyclopedia that marries history and statistics and delivers them team by team. Organizing by teams gives the wide view--how do the Murderer's Row Yankees compare to the Big Red Machine? The long view--what team has given the Red Sox the most trouble over the last 100 years? And the hidden view--name the team that went through all the 1990s without a Gold Glove winner. It's how the game is played, and now, finally, it's presented in the way the game is best understood. Created by baseball historian Dennis Purdy, a true buff's buff, THE TEAM-BY-TEAM ENCYCLOPEDIA offers the history of every existing major league baseball franchise told through narrative, bios, anecdotes, photographs, and the most comprehensive team statistics ever assembled in a single book. Every year's record, standing, attendance, and primary starting lineup for each of baseball's 30 franchises. Top-10 leader lists for every major category (and some minor ones), plus all-time won-loss records versus all opponents. All the awards--MVP, Rookie of the Year, Cy Young, Gold Glove. Manager records. Post-season records. Even retired uniform numbers. But the stats are just the beginning--each chapter contains entertaining thumbnail biographies of every franchise's key players, recalling, for example, how the game's greatest shortstop, Honus Wagner, was ecruited when spotted throwing rocks across a river. And sprinkled throughout are spicy team facts, bizarre anecdotes, statistical anomalies, and little-known gems--like what Babe Ruth said to Lou Gehrig after hitting his "called shot" homerun in the 1932 World Series.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0761139435
• ISBN13: 9780761139430
• Release Date: July 2006
• Publisher: Workman Publishing
• Length: 1166 Pages
• Weight: 3.35 lbs.
• Dimensions: 2.3" x 6.3" x 9.2"

Customer Reviews

The baseball fiends love it!!

It is complete, detailed, extensive and a must for any baseball nut. I bought two of these encyclopedias for gifts, and gave them to my two favorite men at the same time. One of the guys already has a walking baseball encyclopedia inside his brain, but I have to tell you, they have more fun with that volume than a pair of kids giggling over something they're not supposed to have found!

One of My Favorite Baseball Books, You''ll Love It!

What a great addition to any fan's library, The Team By Team encyclopedia of Major League Baseball is much more then a useful reference guide. It's got everything from statistics to in-depth biographical information and team history. The amount of information is staggering and it's filled with lots of photos of team memorabilia, legendary moments and important players and managers (the baseball cards are a particularly nice touch). The Team History & Significant Player's section for each team is my favorite part as you can easily trace the greatest players of a franchise's history and it isn't completely made up of the usual Hall of Famers & MVP's. I often find myself picking it up off the shelf to brush up on my baseball history or a quick stat check. At $22.95 it is a must buy!

Tremendous!!

Here one thick volume (1166 pages) compiles most every historical fact a baseball fan might want about each of the major league franchises from the original teams to those expansion additions. The book is nicely organized with a written review of each team followed by top team and individual statistics both traditional and newer. These statistics are shown both for team history as well as by season. Also included are the yearly starting lineups both hitting and pitching as well as the list of past managers. Each chapter ends with written comments about that teams best players. A great reference.

By Far the Best Baseball Book in Print!

This is the best baseball book ever! Not only is it beautifully organized and rich with facts, but it's so well written! As someone who came late to baseball, I find the book hard to put down. IF you can only buy one baseball book, this is it--it's a major reference for any fan, and it's going to make a great holiday gift too. Get your copy before they're all gone!

Great Book

This Book is great has interesting team history stats easy to read if you like baseball history this book is for you