Time to PLAY BALL! Legends of Cardinals Baseball Come to Life In New Book
A new baseball book from St. Louis-based Reedy Press is now available for pre-order, just in time for baseball season!
by Julie Lally / photos compliments of Reedy Press
From St. Louis To Cooperstown: Legends Born and Made in the Gateway City, tells the stories of some of St. Louis's most beloved players.
Baseball fans know the heroics of St. Louis baseball legends Hornsby, Dean, Musial, Schoendienst, Gibson,and Brock—or at least they know their names. They must have been great ball players because their images are painted on Busch Stadium’s left field wall honoring their retired uniform numbers and their inductions into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, New York. But the mural highlights only 13 of the 55 players inducted into the Hall of Fame who played for the National League’s St. Louis Cardinals. Who are these other players and what are their stories? And what about the nine men from the American League’s St. Louis Browns whose plaques also hang in Cooperstown?
For nearly a century, baseball was a segregated game. Prior to Jackie Robinson breaking the color barrier in 1947, African Americans’ love of baseball was focused on the many teams of the Negro Leagues. St. Louis had two of the league’s best with the St. Louis Giants and Stars. Thirty seven members of the Negro Leagues have been inducted into the Hall of Fame. Five have ties to the Giants and the Stars. Who were they and what made each of them stand out over the thousands of African Americans playing in the league?
These collective stories go beyond the individual and record-setting careers that made each a Hall of Famer. Walk through the chronology of baseball history and the moments each player had on their roads to Cooperstown. Along the way, find out which former Cardinal held baseball’s career home run record for more than a quarter of a century before being topped by Babe Ruth.
Which player was named after a president and was later played by a future president in his life story? Who had a higher career on base percentage than Babe Ruth and Ted Williams, although he retired 100 years ago? How many games did baseball’s winningest pitcher win in St. Louis? And which St. Louisan reached 300 wins before him? These are just a few of the trinkets of information to be found in this anthology of players who found their way from St. Louis to Cooperstown.
PRE-ORDER LINK - $32
From St. Louis to Cooperstown (Preorder) – Reedy Press
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Ed Wheatley is an award-winning and best-selling author and film producer deeply involved in St. Louis sports. He serves on multiple sports Hall of Fame boards of directors across the St. Louis region. His many published books have received national recognition including Sport Digest’s selection as the best book published on baseball and a nomination for SABR’s (Society for American Baseball Research) Lawrence Ritter Award. His multiple films shown on the PBS network have all received regional MidAmerica Emmy Award nominations, including a win. His films have appeared in the acclaimed National Baseball Hall of Fame’s Annual Film Festival and have provided him multiple opportunities to speak at baseball’s venerable institution in Cooperstown.
BOOK LAUNCH EVENT AND APPEARANCES
Friday, May 2 at 7 pm, Clark Family Library, 1640 S. Lindbergh
Saturday, May 3 at 11 am, Main Street Books, 307 S. Main Street
Tuesday, May 13 at 11 am, Missouri History Museum, 5700 Lindell Blvd.
Sunday, May 18 at 1 pm, Carondelet Historical Society, 6303 Michigan Avenue