Haunted Baseball: Ghosts, Curses, Legends, and Eerie Events

by Mickey Bradley, Dan Gordon

A collection of "otherworldly" stories collected from baseball players, stadium personnel, umpires, front-office folks, and fans, which explores the sometimes amusing and sometimes spooky connection between baseball and the paranormal.

Genres: Baseball, Sports, Nonfiction, Ghosts, Folklore, Paranormal, History

288 pages, Paperback

First published August 1, 2007

Reviews

[Aurora · Rating 2 out of 5]

If you are a baseball fan you will enjoy this book. If you are a fan of ghosts and paranormal this is only a mildly interesting book. However, if you are a baseball and ghosts/paranormal fan then you will be thrilled to read this book of happenings at baseball parks around the country. My guy, who reads sporadically, watches baseball fanatically, and placidly follows me on my haunted excursions read this book as fast as possible and then wanted to chat about it!

[Kay · Rating 4 out of 5]

Totally fun to read, it relates stories about curses, ballpark hauntings, and superstitions of players and fans! I had some really good laughs over the Cubs curses and hauntings! You go ghosts!

[Chuck Neumann · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked this book about baseball and ghost stories, paranormal actions and curses. I was rather surprised that the authors did not cover the Pfister Hotel in Milwaukee, that hotel is famous for its ghosts and many players have encountered them while visiting the city to play the Brewers. Perhaps they cover that in another book. They did discuss a haunted hotel, the Vinoy Hotel in St. Petersburg. Many of the 29 stories covered were quite interesting, including an old field in St. Petersburg that was a spring training field for nearly a century. Many spirits have been seen there, believed to be Babe Ruth and Casey Stengel among others. Other stories are shakier, including a seagull that landed near Jim Thome in Cleveland. Was it the spirit of the late trainer Jim Warfield? Some think so, but the bird first showed up while Mr. Warfield was still alive so I have my doubts. While many stories were short on scares all most all were interesting stories. The book also tells us that if we want our ashes spread our on the infield of a baseball stadium, many parks allow that. The book was a fun read and an enjoyable one, especially for baseball fans.

[Josh Hitch · Rating 3 out of 5]

An ok book with stories involving stadiums or players dealing with so called supernatural happenings. Could be hauntings or curses, sometimes its just those that past on just looking out for their team still living. Most of the stories are well told, some stretch the term haunted quite a bit but again all in all I wasn't bored.

Recommend for something different if you enjoy reading history of the sport. Might run across a few you haven't heard before or maybe a different take on the ones you have heard.

[Peter · Rating 5 out of 5]

The book is nicely written. It is more about baseball legends and superstition than ghosts, although there are a few ghost stories to it. It is quite an enjoyable book for a baseball fan.

[Lorna · Rating 3 out of 5]

Kind of interesting, I was expecting more. I honestly only read the chapters pertaining the the Red Sox.

[E · Rating 1 out of 5]

If you're going to title a book Haunted Baseball, maybe you should talk about baseball. Just sayin'

[Boris · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’m a fan of baseball history and very interested in paranormal phenomena which made “Haunted Baseball” a fun and interesting read. Like everywhere else, baseball has its reputedly haunted places, superstitions, urban legends and paranormal anecdotes. Baseball players are probably as superstitious as sailors though many if not most deny it.

In the realm of superstition there was more background on the Chicago Cub’s “the curse of the goat” which made for an amusing read. The book of course touched on the curse of the Bambino, the ‘Sox selling Babe Ruth to the Yankees. Babe Ruth’s reported ghost also makes an appearance.

There are intriguing stories like the premonition Roberto Clemente’s son had prior to Clemente making his final flight in a dilapidated older airplane for relief of the Nicaragua earthquake victims in 1972. His 8 year old son who warned him was not aware that his father was about to the take the flight.

Fun and informative read.

[Jeff · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a pretty good book. I enjoy ghost stories (even those that are allegedly true), and I love baseball, so tales of people seeing ghosts of old baseball legends is a double plus for me. I enjoyed most of the book, although it got a little tiresome during part where it was trying to convince me that the Diamondbacks spoiled things for the Yankees in the 2001 World Series because the Yankees deserved to win because of 9/11 and blah, blah, blah. I'm sorry. The Yankees NEVER deserve to win. There was also the bit where the "ghosts" of the people killed in the 9/11 attacks were helping them win during the playoffs.

Especially entertaining were the sections dealing with "curses." There are some that I never knew about, and it was fun learning about those. There was also a whole chapter on the Cubs and the Curse of the Billy Goat. I had sketchy information on that, and it's a little more clear now.

And the whole Devil Rays thing? Kind of spooky, actually. It's true...they were terrible the whole time they were called the "Devil" Rays...never got higher than next to last place. Soon as they dropped the "Devil" from their name, next thing you know, they've won the ALCS. And they've been contenders ever since.

The Angels also seem to be under a "curse" of sorts, and it's not a funny one. They have been plagued with injuries, but they've also been plagued with deaths. It's unnerving how many of their up and coming stars have died early in the season, and, since this book was published in 2007, the most recent death last season of young pitching phenom Nick Adenhart in a hit-and-run crash in the 2009 season. Of course, this curse doesn't seem to be keeping them from losing...

In all, Haunted Baseball is a very entertaining book, especially for an avid baseball fan.

[Yuhan]

First of all, I would like to apologize for being so significantly overdue for the length of time it took me to finish this book. Second of all, I'm not going to lie, but I didn't find this book entertaining. Third of all, I would like to post my opinions:

Maybe it is because I was never a baseball fan, I did not quite understood when the book talks about "Babe Ruth" or "Yankees" but I had been a horror-genre lover ever since I began reading. But this book certainly does not provide a good horror theme because the stories were very...unrealistic and unintelligent, and I'm being honest. The stories are sort of mini episodes of "Ghostly Encounters" or "Mystery Hunters" that would corresponds much better on TV.

[Peggy · Rating 5 out of 5]

I started this little gem in March and finished when I was out in AZ for Dodger spring training games. Here you can discover a field in Florida where many a baseball great roams the field, or you can learn about that baseball caught at Wrigley Field and they actually took it to a hotel before they drilled a hole in it to put some powder and let it explode-all to get read of the Cub curse that has plagued the team, so some say, since the 1940s. You can learn a lot about player superstitions too. It was a wonderful good read-all based on fact. The reference material at the end of the book is quite impressive. I hope before the season ends-I read the second book the authors published. If you like baseball, check this book out.

[Michelle · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book was a disappointment for me. The second and third hand stories of ghosts, hexes and curses became tedious after a while. The most interesting chapters were the ones on the history of the "curses" that affect various teams. The most interesting being the history of the the Cubs "Billy Goat" curse. I was also partial to the information on the Red Sox. Since this book was published, at least 1 "cursed" team has gone on to win the World Series. That team would be the San Francisco Giants. Another cursed team, the Rays went on to the World Series but lost to the Phillies. For Cubs fans, there's always next year.

[Scott L. · Rating 2 out of 5]

I really wanted to like this book - but unfortunately it did not meet my expectations. First of all, the author tried to do too much in too little a book. I thought it was a paranormal investigation book, but basically it's not - its just a gathering of stories and personal experiences. Also, the author strangely divides the book - and about a third of the book is paranormal stories; a third is about supposed "curses" on teams; and the remaining third is about individual curses. The result is a book that has multiple personalities; and often it is difficult to figure out which personality is supposedly being talked about. I cannot recommend this book.

[Tracy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Don't let the title fool you. Yes, there are some ghost stories but better yet, stories about history of teams, "cursed", and general folklore we baseball fans adore. I think baseball players and fans are some of the most superstitious people around. I thoroughly enjoyed it!! The authors did some major research. I cannot wait to read their second book! Wonderful read.

[Michael Brockley · Rating 2 out of 5]

I'm a baseball fan and a ghost story fan and this book left me indifferent. It contains everything it promised: Ghosts, curses, legends and eerie events. HAUNTED BASEBALL By Michael Bradley and Dan Gordon functions as a series of short stories and vignettes. Maybe the supernatural beings that haunt baseball are not five-tool ghosts.

[Lonnie · Rating 3 out of 5]

interesting book. Really enjoyed the different hauntings but after awhile some started sounding alike. Same with the curses. Overall a good book for anyone interested in some of the myths hanging over baseball.

[Barb · Rating 2 out of 5]

Had a Union College connection, so I tried it out. Authors couldn't seem to decide what kind of book they wanted it to be and it seemed a bit sloppy, almost like they tried to please everyone (all 800) they interviewed.

Still, as a baseball fan, I enjoyed the stories about the game's history.

[Rob C. · Rating 5 out of 5]

awesome book that mixes new players experiences with the legends of the game...really really interesting read

[Amy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting!

[Katie · Rating 3 out of 5]

entertaining ghost stories connected to baseball. Helps explain Yankee's current losing season: opposing teams no longer as intimidated by Yankees.

[Heather · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lots of fun info, some sad/melancholy stories. You don't have to be a baseball fanatic to enjoy this book, although it helps somewhat.

[Diane · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting baseball facts, some creepy and some laughable !!

[Hugo Mejia · Rating 4 out of 5]

I Love baseball Love ghost stories, Get the best of both worlds with this book. I love the stories in this book.