Museum’s Authors Series Programs Bring Latest Baseball Stories to Cooperstown

Lectures, Book Signings Held Throughout the Summer at Hall of Fame’s Bullpen Theater

(COOPERSTOWN, NY) – The timeless stories of the National Pastime are told every day in Cooperstown. But during the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum’s summer Authors Series programs, individual tales of the game’s fascinating past come to life through the writers who have chronicled that history.

The Hall of Fame will host 13 Authors Series events throughout the season, bringing noted baseball authors to Cooperstown for special lectures and book signings. Among the highlights of the 2017 Authors Series is an appearance by former Yankees public relations director and best-selling author Marty Appel as well as former big leaguers Bernie Carbo and John D’Acquisto.

The Authors Series programs are held in the Museum’s Bullpen Theater at 1 p.m. and are included with Museum admission.

Authors will discuss their work and take questions from the audience in the theater program, then sign copies of their books for fans in the Atrium. Seating in the Bullpen Theater is available on a first-come, first-served basis.

The schedule for the summer includes:

 June 14 – Frick: Baseball’s Third Commissioner, by John Carvalho
John Carvalho’s engaging biography of Hall of Famer Ford Frick provides a detailed narrative of the career of the man who supposedly put an asterisk next to Roger Maris’ home run record, but never actually did. In actuality, Frick oversaw the game during a time of pivotal change that included the growth of television coverage, continued integration of the game, West Coast expansion, and labor unrest.

 June 17– Casey Stengel: Baseball’s Greatest Character, by Marty Appel
The latest book from award-winning author Marty Appel, this new biography of Hall of Famer Casey Stengel offers fresh insight into a baseball icon. Appel digs into Stengel’s quirks and foibles, unearthing a tremendous trove of stories, perspective and history.

 June 21 – Game Worn: Baseball Treasures from the Game’s Greatest Heroes and Moments, by Stephen Wong
Authored by lifelong collector Stephen Wong, Game Worn is a richly illustrated exploration and first-of-its-kind study of the world’s most coveted and precious baseball uniforms worn by major league players during the 20th century. This coffee table book features many of the game’s most historically significant uniforms, along with jackets, caps, and other treasured collectibles.

 June 28 – The Pride of the Yankees: Lou Gehrig, Gary Cooper, and the Making of a Classic, by Richard Sandomir
New York Times writer and columnist Richard Sandomir presents the full story behind the pioneering movie that detailed the courageous life of Lou Gehrig. Filled with larger than life characters and unexpected facts, The Pride of the Yankees shows us that Samuel Goldwyn had no real desire to make a baseball film but was persuaded to strike a hasty agreement with Gehrig’s widow, Eleanor. As Sandomir lays out in full detail, Hollywood legend Gary Cooper had little prior knowledge of baseball, but managed to become a quick study on how to play the game.

 July 5 – 42 Faith: The Rest of the Jackie Robinson Story, by Ed Henry
Journalist and baseball fan Ed Henry, the White House correspondent at the Fox News Channel, reveals for the first time the backstory of faith that guided Jackie Robinson into the baseball record books and the annals of civil rights history. Through recently discovered sermons, interviews with Robinson’s family and friends and even an unpublished book by the player himself, Henry details a side of Jackie’s humanity that few have seen.

 July 6 – Redbird Relics, by Brian Finch
Redbird Relics is a beautifully illustrated volume that celebrates the rich history and heritage of one of the game’s most storied franchises. In this 144-page hardbound volume, author Brian Finch takes readers inside the incredible collection of memorabilia from the St. Louis Cardinals Hall of Fame and Museum, while telling a series of engaging stories about everyone from Frankie Frisch to Albert Pujols.

 July 12 – The Last Innocents: The Collision of the Turbulent Sixties and the Los Angeles Dodgers, by Michael Leahy
The winner of the Casey Award as the best baseball book of 2016, The Last Innocents relives the riveting odysseys of seven members of the Dodgers during the 1960s. Award-winning journalist Michael Leahy examines the fortunes of Hall of Famer Sandy Koufax and six other players – Jeff Torborg, Wes Parker, Maury Wills, Dick Tracewski, Tommy Davis and Lou Johnson – who encapsulated the broad spectrum of 1960s America: white and black, Jewish and Christian, pro-Vietnam and anti-war.

 July 19 – Fastball John, by John D’Acquisto and David Jordan
In what some reviewers have called a modern day version of Ball Four, Fastball John recounts the triumphs and travails of former major league pitcher John D’Acquisto. Assisted by co-author David Jordan, D’Acquisto looks back at a professional career that began as the first-round draft choice of the San Francisco Giants in 1970. The book tells the story of what it was truly like to be a major league player in the 1970s and 80s.

 July 26 – Saving Bernie Carbo, by Bernie Carbo and Peter Hantzis
During the 1970s, there might not have been a more colorful character in baseball than Bernie Carbo. While Carbo is best remembered for hitting a dramatic pinch-hit home in Game 6 of the 1975 World Series, his life has embodied so much more, from controversy to tragedy to success, all of it detailed within the pages of Saving Bernie Carbo.

 July 27 – The New Baseball Bible, by Dan Schlossberg
The latest offering from prolific author and travel writer Dan Schlossberg, The New Baseball Bible provides something for everyone, regardless of your team allegiance. This wide-ranging book covers the beginnings of baseball, rules and records, indelible moments in history, the language of the game, superstitions and traditions and today’s game.

 August 2 – The Passion of Baseball: A Journey to the Commissioner’s Office of Major League Baseball, By Bob Wirz
Mixing humor with nostalgia, longtime baseball executive Bob Wirz recalls a career that started as the first publicist in the history of the Kansas City Royals and included a long tenure as the chief spokesman for the commissioners Bowie Kuhn and Peter Ueberroth. Wirz’ career within the game included regular visits to the World Series, the All-Star Game and the Hall of Fame’s Induction Ceremony.

 August 9 – Finley Ball: How Two Baseball Outsiders Turned the Oakland A's into a Dynasty and Changed the Game Forever, by Nancy Finley
Nancy Finley tells the compelling story of a losing team that became a 1970s dynasty, thanks to the unorthodox strategies and stunts of two very colorful men. When Charlie Finley bought the A’s in 1960, he was an outsider to the game – an insurance salesman with a larger-than-life personality. He brought his cousin Carl on as his right-hand man, moved the team from Kansas City to Oakland, and pioneered a new way to put together a winning team.

 August 16 – Hank Greenberg in 1938: Hatred and Home Runs in the Shadow of War, by Ron Kaplan
From his first day in the big leagues, Hank Greenberg dealt with persecution for being Jewish. The Hall of Famer always did his best to shut out the bigotry, but in 1938, that would prove more difficult than he could have imagined. Author Ron Kaplan examines Greenberg’s 1938 season in incredible detail.

For more information on Hall of Fame programs, please visit www.baseballhall.org/events.