Saturday Diversion: Baseball's Return
Books and movies on America’s national pastime, along with some spring training recommendations in Florida.
Play Ball!
Opening Day for all 30 teams in Major League Baseball (MLB) is next Thursday, March 28, marking the transition from winter to spring and the annual return of a sport with a storied history that is a key part of America’s heritage.
The season will run through the fall, with the last possible game on Saturday, November 2, if there’s a Game 7 in the World Series. That means the baseball season is shorter than America’s general election campaign for president this year, with Election Day on November 5.
MLB teams are playing games in four international destinations this year. Americans playing baseball overseas is not a new thing: it was done way back in 1889, when a world promotional tour staged a game in front of Egypt’s Pyramids, among other locations around the world.
There’s nothing like taking in a game on a sunny day, but here are five books and five movies to give you a feel and get you in the mood for the baseball season ahead:
Five Books on Baseball
The Boys of Summer (1972)—This classic written by Roger Kahn ,an author who covered the Brooklyn Dodgers as a reporter in the 1950s, tells the story of what it was like to play the game back then and what happened to these players after their glory days were over.
Moneyball: The Art of Winning an Unfair Game (2003)—Author Michael Lewis tells the story of how a team disadvantaged by a low payroll wins more games than expected by looking beyond the usual metrics for success and finding players others had overlooked. It was turned into a 2011 movie.
The Catcher Was a Spy: The Mysterious Life of Moe Berg (1994)—Nicholas Dawidoff’s biography of a man who played Major League Baseball in the 1920s and 1930s and later served as a spy for the Office of Strategic Services during World War II. A movie was made in 2018 based on the book.
Big Hair and Plastic Grass: A Funny Ride Through Baseball in the Swinging ‘70s (2010)—A colorful account by Dan Epstein ( that weaves together popular culture and what was happening in baseball during the decade when I was born and first started watching the game.
Class A: Baseball in the Middle of Everywhere (2013)—Tracking a team playing in the lowest rungs of professional baseball in a small town in Iowa, author Lucas Mann offers insights on the gaps between the haves and have nots in America.
Five Movies on Baseball
Baseball by Ken Burns (1994)—This nine-part documentary (with two additional episodes released in 2010) offers a complete history of the game from its origins in the 19th Century into the early years of the 21st Century.
The Natural (1984)—Robert Redford stars as Roy Hobbs, a fictional baseball player who has a storybook ending to his baseball career in mid-20th Century America.
Field of Dreams (1989)—A sentimental fantasy-drama starring Kevin Costner and James Earl Jones that tells the story of how baseball is a key part of some American families.
The Pride of the Yankees (1942)—A tribute to Lou Gehrig, the New York Yankees star played in the movie by Gary Cooper.
42 (2013)—A biopic about Jackie Robinson (portrayed by the late Chadwick Boseman), the first black athlete to play Major League Baseball in 1947.
Extra Innings
Spring Training Recommendations for Naples and Fort Myers, Florida
MLB teams get ready for the long season by training and playing pre-season games in the late winter and early spring in various locations in Florida and Arizona. Earlier this month, my son and I went to a few games in Florida’s Grapefruit League, where we saw games in the home ballparks of the Minnesota Twins and Boston Red Sox. I’ve been to spring training games in other parts of Florida before, and this coming week I’ll see a game in Arizona during a week of vacation.
If you make it to Fort Myers and Naples, here are some recommendations for places to eat:
Pizza! Get lunch at Uncle Rico’s, located at 2960 Cleveland Ave Fort Myers, FL 33901.
Dinner: Head for a steak at Jimmy P’s Charred, at 1839 Tamiami Trail N, Naples, FL 34102.
Breakfast and coffee:
Pick up a dozen small donuts at Peace Love and Little Donuts, 2622 Tamiami Trail N, Naples, FL 34103.
Grab a cup of coffee at Kunjani Craft Coffee, 780 Seagate Dr, Naples, FL 34103.
And on the restaurants - you might not believe it, but some people actually travel to Florida outside of spring training.
Yes indeed - I had Angell on the longer list but you make a great point.