Baseball beyond Borders

From Distant Lands to the Major Leagues

By (author) Frank P. Jozsa Jr.

Not available to order

Publication date:

12 September 2013

Length of book:

262 pages

Publisher

Scarecrow Press

ISBN-13: 9780810892460

In 1973, Roberto Clemente was honored as the first baseball player born outside the continental U.S. to be inducted into the Hall of Fame. Born in Carolina, Puerto Rico, the former Pittsburgh Pirate amassed 3,000 career hits and 240 home runs. Since then, eight more international players of Major League Baseball have been voted into the Hall of Fame, including recent inductees Roberto Alomar (Puerto Rico) and Bert Blyleven (Netherlands). These Hall of Famers are but a few of the many non-native players who have contributed significantly to Major League Baseball, dating all the way back to 1876 and up to the present.

Baseball beyond Borders: From Distant Lands to the Major Leagues not only examines the careers of foreign-born and Puerto Rican baseball players, but also goes beyond the players to look at managers, executives, coaches, and officials of Major League Baseball, as well. This book explores the impact and performances of these individuals on MLB and the minor leagues, and their contributions to the expansion and popularity of American baseball in the U.S. and around the world. Baseball beyond Borders offers a historical perspective of when, why, and how emigrants came to play professional baseball in the U.S. and also provides background information on baseball in foreign countries, baseball leagues outside the U.S., and the academies run by MLB on foreign soil.

Featuring photographs, statistics, and bios, this unique book presents a comprehensive look at the impact players and staff born outside the U.S. have had on baseball—both in the U.S. and beyond. Baseball fans and sports historians will enjoy reading Baseball beyond Borders, as will anyone wishing to learn more about the influence of foreigners on America’s national pastime.
This book is. . . an encyclopedia/reference work. . . . Jozsa includes charts, lists of names, countries, major- and minor-league players, executives, managers, the names of those who failed drug tests, and all sorts of disparate information about baseball players whom the author describes as 'foreign-born and Puerto Rican.' There is a chapter about players in the American League, another about the National League, then the minor leagues before he moves to management and baseball operations. . . . There is a bibliography that is comprehensive, with lists of books, articles, and Internet sources, all in English and very useful. Summing Up: Recommended. . . All collections.