Great Baseball Books

The Case for those Overlooked by the Baseball Hall of Fame
Kelley, Brent
McFarland, 1992

As overlooked as the players whose stories it tells is this gem of a book. While passionate arguments rage over who should and shouldn't be in the Hall of Fame, Kelley presents entertaining portraits of a number of "borderline" players, from Tony Oliva to Minnie Minoso, from Carl Mays to Babe Herman. Bill James has also written a terrific book on the Hall of Fame, Whatever Happened to the Hall of Fame, Free Press, 1995 (orig. published as The Politics of Glory, 1994) A systematic overview of the history and politics of who is and isn't in the Hall (and who should and should not be in there), this is an enjoyable and thought-provoking book that can will the winter's Hot Stove League embers burning.