Swinging For The Fences

This book tells the great stories of baseball's past, from establishment of the colour line and the early formation of the barnstorming teams to dazzling hits by black heroes that led the Twins to victory over the Cardinals in 1987. Each chapter focuses on one key player and gives readers an intimate look at the national pastime as it has evolved over the last century. These are stories of the bonds that formed between players, of legendary moments in baseball's past, and of real people whose love of the game kept them playing against tough odds. Featured here are Hall of Famers like Willie Mays, Roy Campanella, and Kirby Puckett and great players like Walter Ball, John Wesley Donaldson, and Bud Fowler, who, because of their race, never made the stats books.

Steven R. Hoffbeck is a history professor at Minnesota State University?Moorhead and the author of The Haymakers: A Chronicle of Five Farm Families (Minnesota Historical Society Press), which won the Minnesota Book Award in 2001. A lifelong fan of America?s game, he lives in Barnesville, Minnesota. Contributors include: Dan Cagley, Teri Ann Finneman, Ted Genoways, Peter Gorton, William D. Green, Jim Karn, Kwame McDonald, Kyle McNary, Joel A. Rippel, and Jay Weiner.