Final Innings: A Documentary History of Baseball, 1972-2008

With Final Innings Dean Sullivan concludes his four-volume documentary history of baseball, whose three earlier volumes have been called “a broad array of illuminating and often unexpected materials” (Sports Collectors Digest), “an invaluable reference tool” (Newark Star-Ledger), and a “fascinating collection” (Washington Post), in which “ancient myths are shattered and new facts are uncovered” (USA Today Baseball Weekly). Culling the most pertinent, newsworthy, and just plain curious stories from newspapers and periodicals, and putting each into context, Sullivan constructs an informative and entertaining account of Major League baseball from 1972 through 2008. The 105 essays cover key topics such as George Steinbrenner’s purchase of the Yankees, the first free-agent draft, the coming of lights to Wrigley Field, the cancellation of the World Series in 1994, and the BALCO steroid probe. They also bring to light lesser-known gems like the rise of Sabermetrics and the federal injunction against team owners in 1995. Offering a you-are-there view of the events that made baseball into the game we know today, this book gives readers a chance to go back and experience baseball’s recent history as it happened and was reported by many of the game’s finest writers and most prominent voices.