"The End of Baseball" is a fine historical novel by Peter Schilling, one that takes a fascinating "What if" scenario from baseball lore, runs with it, and creates a compelling and credible alternate history. During World War II, maverick owner and noted showman Bill Veeck wanted to buy the struggling Philadelphia Athletics American League franchise and stock the roster with superstars of the Negro Leagues, thus integrating major league baseball years before Jackie Robinson finally became the first black to play when he debuted with the Brooklyn Dodgers.
This didn't happen, of course, but Schilling's story shows what might have happened. It takes a lot of subterfuge and a lot of struggle against the Powers that Be who seek to undermine Veeck's efforts. While the establishment wants to subvert the A's and prevent the successful integration of the sport, Veeck really just wants to sell tickets and win baseball games--with winning baseball games being the bigger deal because it leads to selling tickets, which leads to Veeck showing the profit he needs to get in order to maintain control of the club after his first season as part of the terms of his purchase. It's not that Veeck is as conservative, stubborn or outright racist as some of the Lords of baseball, like imperious commissioner Kenesaw Landis, but race just isn't a big deal to him. He sees an opportunity to get some great talent and create a memorable experience for fans and a winning franchise.
Schilling depicts an entire season through not just Veeck's eyes, but also those of the other main characters, men like troubled Hall of Famer Mickey Cochrane, who manages the team, and of course the black men who form the A's baseball team. It's to Schilling's credit that he makes Veeck such a vivid character while staying true to what we know about this real-life individual but also creates credible versions of African-American men, some characters in their own right like drug addict Josh Gibson and mercurial Satchel Paige, others more identifiable or "average" guys like struggling rookie Artie Wilson.
I was invested in the story right to the end, but I never was quite wrapped up in it up to the point I couldn't put it down. That's not necessarily indicative of any flaw in the book, but I guess I expected to be a little more emotionally hooked by it than I was. However, "The End of Baseball" is an entertaining blend of history--including cameos from men like Walter Winchell--social commentary, and of course baseball, and I give it a strong recommendation to any fan with an appreciation of and interest in the sport's past.
Hey, speaking of Jackie Robinson, last year, I read Jonathan Eig's "Opening Day," an excellent account of the man's groundbreaking 1947 rookie season. It's a well-researched, well-written account of an eventful period, full of detail, anecdotes, and telling glimpses into the world of Robinson himself. Sometimes it's easy to lose sight of Robinson on a basic human level and how he actually lived and handled things as he was making history. Eig, however, provides not just a thorough overview of the '47 Dodgers in baseball terms, but a rewarding look at Robinson the man.
I must confess that while the integration of major league baseball is a pivotal event, one that deserves plentiful scholarship and fictional treatment, I sometimes get a little exasperated when I see just how many books on the topic fill the shelves in the baseball sections at the libraries or bookstores. Not that I resent the books or anything, but sometimes I find myself hoping they're not drowning out other aspects of baseball history I'd like to see represented. But I read and loved Eig's book and never found myself regretting I'd picked it up.
One aspect in particular that impressed me in "Opening Day" was Eig's effort to explore many of the myths and legends that grow over the years as people celebrate Robinson's accomplishments. Eig does a great job at digging for the truth and evaluating the veracity of many of the more notable stories that have become accepted as fact. His skill in this area is one reason why I'm stunned to read all the negative comments about his follow-up, a biography of Al Capone that came out last year. One of the common criticisms I read is that Eig relies on inaccuracies and speculation to build some conclusions that just can't be supported. Well, perhaps Eig's work on Capone is lacking, but I do recommend "Opening Day" as an entertaining and well-sourced piece of history, one that works hard to be a credible record of a widely discussed, vital component of baseball's tradition.
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2 comments:
I haven't seen "The End Of Baseball," but if this indeed is the premise, the author is engaging in some alternate alternate history.
During World War II, Veeck's target was not the Philadelphia Athletics, who were owned by the Mack family and not for sale, but the then-perpetually underfunded Philadelphia Phillies, who were tenants of the A's and were in the midst of a stretch where they finished below .500 for 30 out of 31 seasons (and the lone winning season, 1932, the Phils were a measly 78-76); in many of those seasons, the Phils either finished last, lost at least 100 games, or both. The Phillies' owner, a man named Bill Cox, was found to have bet on baseball games and was removed as owner by commissioner Kennesaw Mountain Landis.
Veeck wanted to buy the Phils, stock them with some Negro League stars (though I don't believe he intended to field an all-black roster), and make them the chief threat to the St. Louis Cardinals, then the National League's dominant team. (This is somewhat similar to what Veeck would do in Cleveland later in the 1940s, as the Indians became the initial AL team to integrate.) Veeck claimed Landis got wind of his plan and made certain he didn't get the Phillies.
I appreciate the comments, and I believe I misrepresented the situation the way I wrote it. Indeed, Veeck in real life did want to buy the Phillies, and in fact in his autobio, he claims that he didn't intend to make an all-black team, and in fact his refusal to make a quota cost him one of his potential backers.
In this novel, though, Veeck does buy the A's from the Mack family, and while I can't recall offhand (I don't have the novel on hand, either) the details of why it's them and not the Phils, there is a plot device built into the story that pressures Veeck to show profit or else the team reverts to the Macks.
Thanks again for reading and for the info. I think I mischaracterized that in compressing everything for this post.
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