Click Here To Purchase From Amazon Watching Baseball Smarter

Author: Zack Hample

Publisher: Vintage Books division of Random House

ISBN: 978-0-307-28032-9

After reading Watching Baseball Smarter, I felt as if I’d been given the secret handshake to a fraternal organization. Zack Hample explains baseball so thoroughly and in such an engaging way that even those who have only a marginal grasp of the game can understand it. Baseball widows take note: read this book and you, too, can know and love baseball!

Although Hample covers some basics, he cautions that the book is not intended to lay the groundwork for the general premises of the game. It takes off from there, delving into some of the more obscure rules, as well as some that can cause a controversy when discussed in polite company (see “designated hitter”).  He also explains some of the history, traditions, etiquette, and just plain fun stuff to know about baseball and the players. For the truly dedicated, he covers statistics and scorekeeping, helping me to unravel at last the code of newspaper box scores.

I was delighted to be able to find tidbits of information that surprised my husband and son, part of that tribe of men who can cite chapter and verse of game lore and season stats. Not surprisingly, they both passed the “Fair Ball Quiz” for umpire wanna-bes with flying colors.

The anecdotal information, the backgrounding that Hample deems “dorky,” is priceless if you are a fan who wants the full-immersion baptism. Some of the stories involve great plays, some recall embarrassing performances, and some sound like the stuff of myth. They all contribute to gaining important insight into the mindset of players, coaches, the owners, and others who make the sport a business, a career, or a way of life.

I especially appreciated the illustrations (by Laura Hartman Maestro) of various pitching grips, as my untrained eye has never been able to distinguish a pitch, much less know the hand manipulation that made it different. Hample further reveals the when and why of various pitches. I could envision a scenario in which I impress my husband with a next-pitch prediction by trading on this insider information.

The chapter on stadiums is disappointingly short, but I would expect Hample to be saving his extensive knowledge of the venues for another book.

One section that is much more thorough and which Hample suggests reading in its entirety is the glossary. I wish I’d had it at my fingertips when one of those “color commentators” made a remark that included references that made me wonder what had just transpired in the game.

Hample, a self-described obsessed fan, is most well known for owning a couple of thousand baseballs that he has caught at major league games. His in-depth study of the game makes this book comprehensive yet succinct. The compact volume could easily serve as a guidebook on a trip to the stadium. Although the book is lacking an index, the table of contents is detailed enough for easy look-up of topics, as I have done when re-reading many of the sections.

Click Here To Purchase From Amazon Watching Baseball Smarter

 The above review was contributed by: Beth Burke is freelance editor, a fiber artist, and a stay-at-home mom. Previous hats she has worn include procedure and proposal writer for government, commercial nuclear, and environmental services concerns; advertising copywriter; newspaper reporter; and college-level writing instructor. 

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