The Baseball Book of Why: The Answers to Questions You've Always Wondered about from America's National Pastime

by John McCollister

Why do we sometimes refer to a left-handed pitcher as a “southpaw?” Why are major league pitchers normally limited to 100 pitches per game? Why was Jack Roosevelt Robinson the first African-American ever to play as part of an official lineup for a team in Major League Baseball? Why is a baseball field sometimes referred to as a diamond?

This book provides over 100 questions and detailed answers concerning the traditions, rules, and history of the national pastime. Organized by the sport’s five eras—Dead Ball, Live Ball, Golden Age, Expansion, and Steroid Era—it answers questions about hitting, pitching, fielding, base running, managing, scouting and ownership that vex even the most ardent fans of the game. Moreover, this book is an appreciation of how baseball’s traditions began.

Genres: Baseball, Sports, Nonfiction

200 pages, Paperback

Published March 20, 2020

Reviews

[Craig Leimkuehler · Rating 3 out of 5]

There’s nothing new here for long time baseball fans. On the other hand it may be of interest to grade school age children. Most of the anecdotes are one or two pages.

[Chris Heim · Rating 4 out of 5]

As a paperback coming in at just under 200 pages, written in Q&A style with most sections lasting about two pages, this book doesn't demand much from your wallet, your time, your currently compromised intellectual firepower, or even your (also currently compromised) concentration! You'll likely learn quite a few new facts, maybe some stories behind stories you were already aware of, and maybe feel good about the fact that you could have written a few "A's" yourself. Fans of baseball trivia will take special delight in this quick read.

[Ruud Visser · Rating 1 out of 5]

A smattering of baseball trivia presented without any zest. The book is printed with double line spacing to increase the page count in an otherwise flimsy volume. There are more informative books about baseball history, and funnier ones, too.

[Gabriel · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not a lot of information in this book, and the one included is not particularly new or enlightening.

[Brandon Pytel · Rating 3 out of 5]

A quick trivia-type bathroom book that has a couple interesting facts, as well as anecdotes, in it, including why both the National Anthem and Take Me Out to the Ballgame are played at games, why we have a seventh inning stretch (thanks WH Taft), why Wrigley Field is covered in Ivy, and why baseball clubs have spring training.

But it also gives us a handful of history, including some stories of some of the greats, like Ted Williams’ quest for .400, Joe Dimaggio’s record-breaking hit streak, Babe Ruth’s brilliant bat, and Roberto Clemente’s inspiring off the field legacy.

The book more or less accomplishes what it sets out to do: get to the bottom of baseball’s biggest questions, while incorporating history, anecdotes, and rationale to even some of the most head-scratching quirks of America’s favorite pastime.

[Dan Shonka · Rating 4 out of 5]

McCollister's book was a bit misleading in my opinion. There are the subjects I expected: Why are bases 90 ft. apart? Why are lefties called southpaws? . . . and so on. Then, it begins to zig and zag a bit. Why is Pittsburgh's team called the Pirates? (a good one!) Why was Brooklyn's team called the Dodgers? (a pretty well known one.) But then it goes into a mode where McCollister creates Whys to fit some of his favorite baseball memories so he can relate those. And others are simply his opinion, and considering baseball and its inherent leanings toward debate, I shouldn't be surprised. Why will one certain record NEVER be broken? (He chooses DiMaggio's 56 game hitting streak. Really? Not Cy Young's career win total? Not Hack Wilson's single season RBI total? How 'bout the record for highest single season batting average?). Still, as a baseball fan it's a fun and short read, but maybe not very satisfying. A young fan can read it and learn a lot of baseball history, and maybe that's who McCollister was targeting with this book in the first place.

[Tom · Rating 1 out of 5]

Good concept. Terrible research and execution. The only reason I finished it was because it was a short and easy read. I could put it down and not pick it up until weeks later and not miss a beat. But not worth the money I spent on it. I bought this book as it was listed on a "great baseball book" list and if I remember where that list is, I will question everything else on it.

[Lisa Montgomery · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sometimes, I like a book with short chapters and which, to a certain extent, challenges my intelligence. Kind of like "Jeopardy" without the buzzer.
I grew up watching baseball more than any other sport. Mickey Mantle. Pete Rose. Yogi Berra. Willie Mays. Hank Aaron. Ted Williams. Etc.
I am giving this to my grandson, not that he is a big baseball fan, but his mind devours facts.
Worth the cost of the print book.

[Mike · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was charming in a throw back kind of way. It even provided a few baseball stories I hadn't heard before. But it lacked a lot of the rigor a professional sports writer would have brought. Some of the older stories have been proven to be myths which made me feel like I had to take the new-to-me stories with a grain of salt. But baseball is all about story telling. So I guess we should just relax and let the stories wash over us like going to a game with grandpa.

[Josh Davis · Rating 2 out of 5]

Very short chapters and easy to read. McCollister goes rapid-fire through a smattering of baseball history (in no particular order) by answering a number of "why" questions. It was fine, but there wasn't much new in it to me. I might have enjoyed it more if it had been structured in some logical way.

[Aaron · Rating 3 out of 5]

I learned a few interesting tidbits in this book such as the origin of the seventh inning stretch and a ceremonial first pitch. Several of the topics were just stupid (e.g. what does fan stand for? fanatic!). This was a short read, so not a huge waste of time but there has to be better baseball trivia books out there.

[Bruce Sembar · Rating 4 out of 5]

A pretty simple book that probably wouldn't interest a lot of people. But I am an avid fan and enjoyed it. There were many answers to questions of why things are called certain names in the game of baseball.

[Chickens McShitterson · Rating 1 out of 5]

I don’t remember adding this to my wish list, but it showed up one day by someone unknown to me.
It’s great for kids who know nothing of the game; dreadful for adults who know even the slightest.
Filled with questions no one asks, and set in a sans serif typeface that annoys.

[scott · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun and interesting

The topics covered are fun. The information provided for each question is great. The last "Why" sums up every baseball fans opinion

[Micajah Smith · Rating 2 out of 5]

Quick and easy read, but most of this is already known by baseball fans. Some fun anecdotes though (like seventh inning stretch coming from Howard Taft).

[David K · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's fun, but not earth shaking. If you like baseball, it will be enjoyable, even if you are already mostly aware of most of the stories.

[Paula · Rating 3 out of 5]

"Why do we refer to left-handed pitchers as 'southpaws?'"
This is one of the questions answered in this book, which was a fun, pretty quick read. I already knew some of the answers to the "why" questions here, and I didn't much care one way or the other about some of the other questions, but there were enough interesting tidbits presented here to keep me reading.
If you are a super avid baseball fan you might already know all the answers, and if you're not a baseball fan at all this book probably isn't for you. But I liked it.