Charles C. Alexander (1) (1935–)

Alexander's biographies of deadball baseballers are legendary. This book is also superbly written, but somehow I found it a little harder go. His story here is of the seasons of 1890 and 1891, the former being the year of baseball's original labor movement, the Players League, the latter the final year of the American Association. This book is more academic, in fact published by a university press, and the author spends more of his space on economics and backroom politicking. His descriptions of game action and pennant races area bit of a job for the 1890 season, juggling as they do three leagues; he tries hard to keep the reader in the narrative, but, though the players' names will be familiar enough to deadball diehards like myself--really the only audience which will be troubled to read this--at many points managers and owners become crucial, and these, especially for the owners, are much less familiar. Don't skip the appendix: it, along with the thumbnail biographies and character sketches he sprinkles throughout his narrative, were my favorite parts of the book.… (meer)