Baseball

DK Eyewitness Books

by James Kelley

Celebrate America's National pastime in pictures: the history, the heroes, the gear, and the games.

Here is an exciting, photo-filled guide to the world of baseball, the historic sport known as America's National Pastime. Eyewitness Baseball includes everything from Babe Ruth's bat to the trophy held aloft by the World Series champions. Beautiful full-color photographs of legendary baseball heroes, historic and modern baseball equipment, and rare artifacts from the earliest baseball teams combine with stories about today's home-run heroes to paint a vivid picture of America's oldest and most beloved sport. See rare memorabilia, home fun hitters, and the World Series trophy. Learn how to turn a double play and the true identities of "the Iron Horse" and "Mr. October." Discover the Baseball Hall of Fame, what it takes to win the World Series, and much, much more!

Genres: Sports, Reference, Baseball, Nonfiction

64 pages, Hardcover

First published March 1, 2000

Reviews

[Autumn Kearney · Rating 5 out of 5]

In honor of today’s all-star game I read DK’s Baseball book. I have never met a book by that publisher that I didn’t love. This one is no exception. The photography is stunning! I highly recommend this book to baseball lovers everywhere.

[PRASANNA · Rating 5 out of 5]

nice good

[Indah Threez Lestari · Rating 3 out of 5]

363 - 2020

[Anthony Morello · Rating 4 out of 5]

Eyewitness Baseball is a complete informational text about the game from its root to its national prominence. The book beginnings with the history of the game using text, photos, and captions describing its early beginnings. From there it moves into every aspect of the game using the same formula describing those involved with the game, batting, fielding, the minor leagues, the Negro Leagues, and youth baseball amongst others. The informational text pays tribute to why baseball is "America's Pasttime" and what's made it great. The book concludes with information on the MLB schedule, resources from the MLB, and a glossary describing the terms of baseball used throughout the book.

This is a great informational text for older elementary students interested in all aspects of the game of baseball. It follows the same formula that has made Eyewitness Books successful in creating informational texts for students, using headings and text, cropped photos with captions, additional resources on the subject, and a glossary to define terms. As a fan of baseball I really saw this a a complete text to talk about the game and its history for young readers and would recommend it for students from 4th grade and up. The one aspect I felt it missed on was the minimal detail it gave to Jackie Robinson and the integration of baseball, which is an important aspect of today's game young readers should know about. I read the 2010 edition of EW Baseball, which has been previous edited and will hopefully be reissued soon for current young readers.

[Krista · Rating 5 out of 5]

DK Eyewitness titles are usually no brainers - not much reviewing and just straight to the shelves. However, as a baseball enthusiast, I couldn't resist glancing through a few pages and now, I am so glad that I did! Everything you finally wanted to learn about the game in a fun and easy to consume format; from the breakdown of teams in the leagues, to the mathematics of baseball and calculating player stats, to finally seeing what the inside of a baseball looks like - this book has it all and during those long days of summer, this will definitely be a book that I share with the little sluggers! And, as a die-hard Cincinnati Reds fan, I was thrilled to see my team mentioned more than once throughout the book. First and foremost, there is a fantastic two page spread of Red Legs history, highlighting the 1869 team as "barnstormers" responsible for making the game professional and what we know it to be today. Names pop again, most notably in the section of "Baseball's All-Time Greats" recognizing Johnny Bench as "the best overall catcher ever". And slow down or you might miss a cameo from Joey Votto, our star First Baseman on page 19! Other can't miss headers include the History of the Negro League and Women in Baseball - did you know there is currently a female pitcher playing for a Japanese Minor League team? If this book doesn't get you singing "Take me out to the ball game", nothing will!

[Chris · Rating 3 out of 5]

A very good book on baseball, I read it back in 2008 after becoming very interested in baseball during a visit to the States.

The book highlights all the main rules of the game although not every rule is mentioned (baseball is quite a complex sport) the uniform, kit and alot of history about how the game developed and who its heroes were. There are some great photos included which helps visualise the game. There is also information regarding leagues and the different teams with some limited background.

Unfortunately this issue is a few years old now so some of the teams mentioned don't even exist anymore (the Montreal Expos for one) the game has changed its structure somewhat and there are some questionable anecdotes inside including the story as to how the game of baseball was developed.

Since this book was written condeming evidence has emerged to suggest that baseball was in fact invented in Guildford, Surrey many many moons ago rather than being developed in the US. This will upset many people but make no mistake; baseball is as American as Apple Pie and we Brits wouldnt dream of taking that away from you. The English invented the sport but the Americans have developed it into the sport I know and love today!

A good book for a general overview of baseball but not a book to rely on if you need more detailed information on the subject.

[Meagan · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this book as my non-fiction/non-biography selection for my children's literature course. It is quite a wide ranging, but fairly basic, introduction to all aspects of baseball. I didn't personally enjoy reading it very much because it has no narrative at all, it's more like a text book with lots of labeled diagrams, call out boxes etc. However, I can definitely see the value of this book in a classroom. For one thing, I think it could have appeal for almost all ages of kids. A first-grader who liked baseball would enjoy looking at all the detailed pictures and diagrams. And it could have reading appeal all the way up through middle school because there is nothing babyish about it at all. There are lots of "Eye Witness" books on many topics, and I think they could be the kind of books that certain kids would find interesting who perhaps did not like many other kinds of books.

[The Reading Countess · Rating 4 out of 5]

*Donated by student at book fair
A complete peek at all things baseball, the history behind America's pasttime was my favorite. From the author's own great grandfather included in a photo insert, to the Cincinnatti Red Stockings, to "Base Ball's" original spelling, this informational text has it all. Sure to appeal to my boy readers, but interesting enough to use as a mentor text to teach informational text features, Kelley's Baseball hit this one out of the park.

[Kara · Rating 4 out of 5]

I picked this book up in my Children's Literature class and I absolutely loved it! I am sure it doesn't hurt that I am huge baseball enthusiast, but I think even someone who knows nothing about baseball, let alone sports, would like this book. The language is simple, the history is great and the photographs are amazing.

[Jacob Woods]

This book told my everything about general baseball. It was telling me about the uniforms, hats, helmets, gloves, bases, etc. If you really want to learn about basic baseball this is the book for you.

[Michelle · Rating 3 out of 5]

Informational book. Great table of contents. Lots of detailed information. Book is not set up like a storybook, instead it is full of pictures and tidbits of information. Would be great for students looking for some facts about baseball.

[Cory · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an amazing book! I Loved the pictures and the explanations of historical events. There is also a ton of random information that brings together many of the rules and changes to the game over time.

[Jen H · Rating 4 out of 5]

A nice book for younger baseball enthusiasts or older kids looking to learn more about the game.

[Henry · Rating 4 out of 5]

I learned a lot about baseball. Albert Pujols was my hero, but he gave up on his own team.

[Logan Leftridge · Rating 1 out of 5]

I don't like to play baseball games. There were not enough girls in this book.

[Drew D. · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book showed me alot about the history of baseball. I would compare it too the book The Texas Rangers by Mark Stewart

[Beth Pearson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Boys would love this book! Maybe good to use as a research project.

[Bryanzk · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good to get a grip