Yesterday after stopping for pizza at baseball fan Paulie Gee’s Slice Shop in Greenpoint, my friend Rachel and I sat in a nearby park and discussed the national pastime. Her Red Sox cap worn proudly on her head, we discussed Boston’s sad season, her aversion to Yankee Stadium, and the surprising year the Phillies are having.
On my way home, my mind wandered to how baseball has seeped into popular culture more than any other sport, in the U.S. at least.
My favorite baseball book? In 2004, I listed my favorite baseball books on Largehearted Boy, but my favorite had yet to be published. Chad Harbach’s The Art of Fielding captured both the elegance of the sport as well as its allure to players like nothing else I have ever read.
Baseball movie? It’s an oldie, but Bang the Drum Slowly, the 1973 adaptation of Mark Harris’s novel of the same name is as moving as it is engaging. And features a young Robert De Niro as its star.
There is so much baseball music beyond John Fogerty’s classic “Centerfield.” The Baseball Project, a supergroup consisting of Peter Buck, Mike Mills, Scott McCaughey, Steve Wynn and Linda Pitmon features only baseball-related songs. Smart, funny, and genuinely exciting to listen to, these songs cover everything from Harvey Haddix’s almost-perfect game to Bill Buckner’s famous error to the character that was pitcher Pascual Perez.
Please leave a comment if you’d like to share your favorite work of baseball (or sports) popular culture.
Largehearted Links
How to apply for literary grants and residencies.
Casey Parks interviewed about her new memoir, Diary of a Misfit.
Joyce Carol Oates and Margaret Atwood in conversation.
Lincoln Michel on scandalous novels and the state of shocking literature.
Miguel Syjuco attempts to define “baduy.”
Must-read Frankenstein retellings.
Poets Momtaza Mehri and Warsan Shire in conversation.
Singer-songwriter Courtney Barnett and filmmaker Danny Cohen discuss their new documentary.
A short history of the book blurb.
Last Week on LHB
David Leo Rice's playlist for his novel The New House
Jesse Leon's playlist for his memoir I'm Not Broken
Lauren Acampora's playlist for her novel The Hundred Waters
Lynn Sloan's playlist for her novel Midstream
Toya Wolfe's playlist for her novel Last Summer on State Street
Years ago, it was baseball that introduced me to New York Times. It was baseball that introduced me to international boxing. It was baseball that introduced me to Arthur Ashe, Jimmy Connors, and Chris Evert. Baseball did it through a roommate of mine who came from America and who loved baseball and who loved always reading about baseball statistics on the New York Times and who loved big-time baseball stars.
He always pumped his hands in the air on seeing baseball stars. He always spoke about baseball. He always shouted out the names of baseball stars. On joining him to read about the baseball stars, l always learned about baseball, and not only did I learn about baseball statistics, I always learned about boxing, and not only did I learn about boxing, I always learned about international football.
When I think of international football today, I think about New York Times, I think about Arthur Ashe, and I think about how baseball introduced me to Jimmy Connors and Muhammad Ali and Joe Frazier .