Monthly Archives: November 2011

Ballparks Then and Now by Eric Enders: a short review

Excellent pictures. But not otherwise worth your time.

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The 1987 Bill James Baseball Abstract: a review

This edition of the Abstract begins with two long essays–a rather dull 18-page project about ways to validate various analytical methodologies, and a fascinating 41 page essay which purports to be about Rookies but which is actually about comparing careers using similarity scores. Bill explores lots of possibilities in this essay, which has more breadth than depth, but enough substance to satisfy almost everyone.

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A Ball Player’s Career by Adrian C Anson: a review

An oddly interesting book. Now, more than a century later, Pop Anson’s remembered mainly for his racism, and because he had approximately 3,000 hits (the total depends on what you count, actually, and in this case it’s fair to debate the margin). In his time, he was considered a formidable player, and an excellent captain (manager), albeit grouchy and rough-edged. Neither is a well-rounded image.

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Black November by Andrew Klekner Kantar: a short review

It’s OK: A barebones retelling of the story of the wreck, with enough context in several dimensions. But I’m clearly not the target audience.

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Electronic Computers by Saul Rosen: a review

This is easily the best short survey of the early history of computing I’ve seen, and is well worth a read. It’s an excellent 30 page survey of electronic computing history through the late 1960s, with most significant projects and companies briefly sketched and their contributions–and failures–described. The essay is organized by technological era (vacuum tube, transistor, early ICs), with each era’s discussion organized by company or project. Some effort is made to put each project into historical and technical context.

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1973 Baseball Research Journal: a review

This second BRJ edition has more substance than the first, right from the first article where David Voigt put the 1972 baseball strike into historical context. John Tattersall’s offering discussed leadoff homeruns, and Fred Lieb presented a fine portrait of Hal of Fame historian Ernie Lanigan.

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