The Minors: The Struggles and the Triumph of Baseball's Poor Relation from 1876 to the Present

Chronicles the turbulent rise, decline, and revival of the minor leagues from the nineteenth century to the present

This impressive history of baseball in the smaller towns and cities of the U.S. is divided into three sections. The first covers the years from 1877 to 1920, when the modern game was evolving and the general outlines of major and minor leagues were taking shape; the second treats the period from 1920 to 1950, the golden age of the minors; the third is devoted to the expansion of the majors and the rise of television, both of which all but destroyed the minors, reducing the number of leagues from 59 to 21. Sullivan ( The Dodgers Move West ) has done his research well, examining not only the so-called "high" minors like the International League and the American Association but also lower-profile teams like those in Shamokin, Pa., and Calumet, Mich. Photos not seen by PW.
Copyright 1990 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Sullivan, author of The Dodgers Move West (LJ 6/1/87), has written a history of minor league ball that is intended to present a sampling of memorable minor league players, teams, and games. Sullivan's thesis is that despite the fact that the minors have always been considered secondary to the majors, the minors have a rich history of their own, and many minor league teams (e.g., the Pacific Coast League) could have become major league clubs if the owners of first the National League and then the American League (itself created from minor league teams) had allowed them to. Instead, major league teams were for decades confined to the Northeast until the Athletics, Dodgers, and Giants moved west at the expense of strong minor-league franchises. Sullivan argues that the minors are still where the beauty of the game can be rediscovered. Recommended for public and academic libraries.
- Jeffrey R. Herold, Bucyrus P.L., Ohio
Copyright 1990 Reed Business Information, Inc.