Why We Love Baseball - by Joe Posnanski (Hardcover)

About the Book

"Posnanski writes of major moments that created legends, and of forgotten moments almost lost to time. It's Willie Mays's catch, Babe Ruth's called shot, and Kirk Gibson's limping home run; the slickest steals; the biggest bombs; and the most triumphant no-hitters. But these are also moments raw with the humanity of the game, the unheralded heroes, the mesmerizing mistakes drenched in pine tar, and every story, from the immortal to the obscure, is told from a unique perspective. Whether of a real fan who witnessed it, or the pitcher who gave up the home run, the umpire, the coach, the opposing player--these are fresh takes on moments so powerful they almost feel like myth"--

Book Synopsis

NEW YORK TIMES bestseller

Winner of the CASEY Award for Best Baseball Book of the Year

National Sports Media Association Sports Book of the Year

An NPR "Book of the Day"

#1 New York Times bestselling author Joe Posnanski is back with a masterful ode to the game: a countdown of 50 of the most memorable moments in baseball's history, to make you fall in love with the sport all over again.

Posnanski writes of major moments that created legends, and of forgotten moments almost lost to time. It's Willie Mays's catch, Babe Ruth's called shot, and Kirk Gibson's limping home run; the slickest steals; the biggest bombs; and the most triumphant no-hitters. But these are also moments raw with the humanity of the game, the unheralded heroes, the mesmerizing mistakes drenched in pine tar, and every story, from the immortal to the obscure, is told from a unique perspective. Whether of a real fan who witnessed it, or the pitcher who gave up the home run, the umpire, the coach, the opposing player--these are fresh takes on moments so powerful they almost feel like myth.

Posnanski's previous book, The Baseball 100, portrayed the heroes and pioneers of the sport, and now, with his trademark wit, encyclopedic knowledge, and acute observations, he gets at the real heart of the game. From nineteenth-century pitchers' duels to breaking the sport's color line in the '40s, all the way to the greatest trick play of the last decade and the slide home that became a meme, Posnanski's illuminating take allows us to rediscover the sport we love--and thought we knew.

Why We Love Baseball is an epic that ends too soon, a one-of-a-kind love letter to the sport that has us thrilled, torn, inspired, and always wanting more.

Review Quotes

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER
WALL STREET JOURNAL BETSELLER
NATIONAL BESTSELLER

Winner of the CASEY Award for Best Baseball Book of the Year

Named One of the Best Baseball Books of 2023 by Sports Collectors' Digest

One of AARP's "Books to Give and Get"

Kirkus' Best Nonfiction Book Out This Week

A Kirkus Most Anticipated Book of the Fall

"Mr. Posnanski is a bit like the guy telling baseball stories at a bar--if that guy is clever, funny, not averse to hyperbole, sentiment or numerology, willing to go to great lengths to track down a fact and possessed of a way with words...if you were that kid who felt a surge of gladness when Baseball Digest turned up in the mailbox, and if the game has continued to hold a place in your heart, well, I've got just the book for you." --Wall Street Journal

"Joe Posnanski is baseball's greatest modern-day storyteller, and his passion and expertise leap through every page of this book." --Jonathan Abrams, NYT Editors Recommendations

"Reading Why We Love Baseball is a joy beyond description. Read it, treasure it and share it with your baseball fan friends. It's what baseball was meant to be." --Illinois Times

"The greatest living sportswriter...[WHY WE LOVE BASEBALL] brings the magic back...You deserve a plaque in Cooperstown."--CBS This Morning

"Despite its title, Why We Love Baseball isn't intended solely for readers who love baseball. It obviously caters to the die-hard fan who has fond memories of, say, Kirk Gibson hitting a game-winning home run in the 1988 World Series on two injured legs. But there are also stories that will engage the more casual fan or even nonfan, written in the informative-but-conversational style that Posnanski is known for." --Today.com

"An homage to America's pastime."--AARP, "What to Read in September"

"Speaking of musts: My pal Joe Posnanski's newest, 'Why We Love Baseball.' If you do--and even if you only like it--you'll love this book." --Mike Vaccaro, New York Post

"Joe Posnanski's new book plumbs the depths of history for baseball's touchstone moments... 'Diving in' is what Posnanski does best. He takes a topic--usually baseball, though he's also written books about Joe Paterno and Harry Houdini--and plumbs its depths until the reader is prepared to write their own graduate thesis." --J.P. Hoornstra, The Orange County Register

"Joe Posnanski rummages through the archives of our most storied sport, finding and retelling the narratives that grab your heart and squeeze -- from familiar tearjerks like David Ortiz rallying the crowd just after the 2013 Marathon bombing to lesser-known stories of forgotten heroes and long-gone ballparks." --Boston Globe

"[A] delightful smorgasbord of stories." --Lincoln Journal Star

"Here's the thing about this book... One of the things that happens with sports writers and especially with baseball writers, is that it can get very purple. It can get very romantic. So what I love about this is a potential, like, weakness in sports writing is turned around to be a strength and to be something where you can just allow yourself the sentiment of loving a sport and loving to watch it and kind of this sense that, oh, my God, I love baseball so much. I have choked up multiple times while listening to this book." --Linda Holmes, NPR's Pop Culture Happy Hour

"For those looking to share the magic of the past and the star power of today with a young baseball fan in their life - or an older one- Mr. Posnanski's book would be a can't-gift." --Wall Street Journal, Holiday Gift Guide

"Posnanski shares in barstool-banter style the little things (real and fictional) and the big moments that show why baseball still matters to the people it matters to." --Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Holiday Gift Guide

"Journalist Posnanski (The Baseball 100) hits it out of the park in this rousing celebration of baseball. With the colorful banter of a play-by-play announcer...Posnanski recounts the '50 most magical baseball moments' from across all levels of the game. This will have readers cheering from their seats."--Publishers Weekly (starred)

"The celebrated sportswriter circles the bases, calling out exceptional moments in the history of the game...One of Posnanski's winning ploys is to dig into the archives to find such hidden gems and especially to celebrate the mediocre players who, for one of those magical moments, pulled something out of their caps and hit a surprise homer... A book for any baseball fan to cherish."--Kirkus Reviews (starred)

"A winning collection of baseball moments both inside and outside the lines."--Booklist (starred)

"This work will likely enlighten even the most knowledgeable and die-hard baseball fans."--Library Journal (starred)

"Why We Love Baseball by Joe Posnanski is a collection of 50 baseball moments that illustrate why the sport is so addictive to so many Americans. Each of the short stories are described by Posnanski, meaning they're as funny as they are insightful." --The Arizona Daily Star

About the Author

Joe Posnanski is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of eight books, including Why We Love Baseball, The Baseball 100, Paterno, and The Secret of Golf, and has been named National Sportswriter of the Year by five different organizations. He writes at JoePosnanski.com and currently lives in Charlotte, North Carolina, with his family.