At the heart of the book is the story of baseball's evolution in the years following World War II, a period marked by rapid transformation and upheaval both on and off the field. Gietschier delves into the various factors that shaped the game during this time, from the integration of Major League Baseball to the rise of television and the expansion of the sport into new markets. In addition to its exploration of historical events, the book also celebrates the enduring appeal of baseball as a source of joy, passion, and community for millions of fans across the country. Gietschier captures the magic of the game through vivid descriptions of iconic moments, memorable players, and beloved ballparks, reminding readers of baseball's timeless allure.

A good book about the history of the game and some of the main players. I found the section about Landis the first commissioner interesting as he went more into his life He does go over more of the bigger things that happened in the game and with the players. There were some areas I would have liked him to have touched on more but that is just me overall a good and a lot of research went into this book.

This was one of the very few University of Nebraska Press books that I did not enjoy and finish. The top is was of great interest to me but it felt so heavy. I usually don’t mind scholarly books on sports and once I discover the format, I’ll adjust my reading to fit that style, but even after doing so, I could only get to about 33% of this book and stopped. I know the author put a lot of work into this, but it just wasn’t a good read for me. I wish him success for the sales of this book.

Baseball

The Turbulent Midcentury Years

by Steven P. Gietschier

Release date: July 1, 2023


A thouroughly researched, well written history of baseball in 20th century. While reading this I was constantly reminded of Ken Burns fantastic documentary series on baseball; though this book encompasses a compacted scope from the lead up to the great depression through World War 2 and baseballs boom and expansion thereafter rather than the history of the entire sport start to present day.

As a fan and follower of the sport of baseball for my entire life, some of the material I'm familiar with but there was also plenty of fresh material covered here. I particularly enjoyed the author going into the lighting of stadiums and how night baseball was introduced and became the norm; the advent of radio/television and how that relationship developed through baseball. This book also devotes a good portion to baseball's minor leagues and their interaction with the big leagues. The latter portion of the book includes major league baseball's move westward into California as well as the expansion of new teams. The book was full of fascinating information and I thoroughly enjoyed it from start to finish. I would highly recommend it to those who enjoy baseball, history in general, and especially those who enjoy both. Thank you to the publisher University of Nebraska Press and netgalley for access to an advance copy of the book.

This is an amazing book on Baseball,, sociology, and the news of the times. It was not a light, turn page however. This is definitely a book for die-hard historians. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the early read in exchange for my honest opinion.

A terrific baseball history snapshot with an eye to the sociocontextual place of the sport within the framework of society.

While the era of baseball Gietschier is examining is certainly a well-documented one: this is one of the best of a very small number of books that have attempted to take a contextual approach to the evolution of the sport at this time.

This would be a great companion read with Fran Zimniuch’s Baseball’s New Frontier, which is a lovely contextual narrative of the expansion era that immediately follows the mid century years Gietschier has honed in on.

If you’re well versed in baseball history, there will be plenty of material here that is already familiar to you, but Gietschier adds plenty of original analysis to the mix, and his somewhat unique and much-needed approach to baseball history makes for excellent narrative nonfiction.