BASEBALL IN THE GARDEN OF EDEN
BASEBALL IN THE GARDEN OF EDEN, by the official historian of Major League Baseball, John Thorn, is a fantastic exploration of the myths and facts of the early history of the National Game. Thorn exposes both the Doubleday myth and debunks Alexander Cartwright’s alleged influence on the early game, while at the same time exploring the actual evolution of the sport and the varied cast of characters who made it great. From the Knickerbockers, who were white-collar workers who played the sport for the same reasons that their modern counterparts go to the gym, to the mysterious Magnolia club, composed of gamblers and workmen who left the first baseball ticket behind, to Albert Spaulding, the first great pitching ace, who later became America’s top sporting goods mogul and kicked off the Doubleday legend, we see the game grow and evolve from a transient exercise to a national passion. Highly recommended.