The 34-Ton Bat

The Story of Baseball as Told Through Bobbleheads, Cracker Jacks, Jockstraps, Eye Black, and 375 Other Strange and Unforgettable Objects

Contributors

By Steve Rushin

Formats and Prices

Price

$13.99

Price

$17.99 CAD

Format

Format:

  1. ebook $13.99 $17.99 CAD
  2. Hardcover $39.00 $49.00 CAD

This item is a preorder. Your payment method will be charged immediately, and the product is expected to ship on or around October 15, 2013. This date is subject to change due to shipping delays beyond our control.

An unorthodox history of baseball told through the enthralling stories of the game’s objects, equipment, and characters.

No sport embraces its wild history quite like baseball, especially in memorabilia and objects. Sure, there are baseball cards and team pennants. But there are also huge balls, giant bats, peanuts, cracker jacks, eyeblack, and more, each with a backstory you have to read to believe. In The 34-Ton Bat, Sports Illustrated writer Steve Rushin tells the real, unvarnished story of baseball through the lens of all the things that make it the game that it is.

Rushin weaves these rich stories — from ballpark pipe organs played by malevolent organists to backed up toilets at Ebbets Field — together in their order of importance (from most to least) for an entertaining and compulsive read, glowing with a deep passion for America’s Pastime. The perfect holiday gift for casual fans and serious collectors alike, The 34-Ton Bat is a true heavy hitter.

Genre:

On Sale
Oct 15, 2013
Page Count
352 pages
ISBN-13
9780316200943

Steve Rushin

About the Author

Steve Rushin is the author of Road Swing, which was named “Top 100 Sports Books of All Time”. He previously worked for Sports Illustrated and has filed stories for the magazine from all seven continents, including Antarctica. His work has been anthologized in TheBest American Sports Writing, The Best American Travel Writing and The Best American Magazine Writing collections, with essays appearing in Time magazine and The New York Times. He lives in Minnesota.

Learn more about this author