A Baseball Book of Days: Thirty-One Moments That Transformed the Game

Almost anywhere on a calendar you can pinpoint the date of a memorable baseball moment: Jackie Robinson’s first game, Eddie Gaedel’s only game, the sale of Babe Ruth to the Yankees and the clause that might have prevented it. These and dozens more are recounted in this book chronicling hallmark days.

From the first no-hitter in modern baseball (maybe) to the deep roots for the first night game in the major leagues, this book provides a detailed narrative of the game’s most important moments, told in 31 singular, remarkable days. Covering the long path to integration, the rise of Dominican players in the game and the infamous banning of the spitter, this calendar of the diamond covers baseball from every angle and in every month of the year.

Phil Coffin is a longtime editor at The New York Times and has been a member of the Society for American Baseball Research since 1994. He lives at the Jersey Shore.