About this item
Why does a curveball curve? What is a “can of corn”? Why was Joe DiMaggio called the “Yankee Clipper”? Who wrote “Take Me Out to the Ball Game”? How many times did Ty Cobb steal home?In this reissue of Baseball Miscellany, the fascinating history and lore of our national pastime is finally revealed! For example, the reason a curveball curves is that its spin drags a layer of air across one surface of the ball faster than it does across the opposite surface. A “can of corn” is slang for an easy-to-catch fly ball, the term originating from a general store clerk reaching up and dropping a can from a high shelf. Sportswriters dubbed Joe DiMaggio the “Yankee Clipper” because he glided about the outfield with beauty and grace, like a clipper ship on the ocean.
About the Author
Since 2007 Matthew Silverman has written Mets Essential, 100 Things Mets Fans Should Know and Do Before They Die (hardcover 2008, paperback 2010) , Shea Goodbye (with Keith Hernandez) , New York Mets: The Complete Illustrated History, and Best Mets. He is also author of Baseball Miscellany and Golf Miscellany. He has co-authored Mets by the Numbers, Cubs by the Numbers, and Red Sox by the Numbers. He blogs regularly at metsilverman.com.
An avid baseball fan growing up in White Plains, New York, Silverman went on to be a newspaper reporter and editor before joining Total Sports Publishing, eventually becoming associate publishing and heading the reference division. He was managing editor for Total Baseball, Total Football, and was lead editor for Baseball: The Biographical Encyclopedia, a volume of 2,000 baseball biographies. The Village Voice wrote, "It's possible that the last time so much essential information was gathered in one volume was The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire."
Silverman also served as managing editor for books on the Packers, Cowboys, 49ers, and Steelers, among other teams, plus Total Super Bowl. He later served as managing editor for first editions of The ESPN Baseball Encyclopedia and The ESPN Football Encyclopedia, along with subsequent editions. He edited all four editions of the Maple Street Press Mets Annual with Greg Spira. He lives in High Falls, New York.
