100 Years of the World Series

In 1903, the first World Series (originally called the""World's Series"") ended five games to three--in a best-of-nine series--with a Boston Pilgrims win over the Pittsburgh Pirates. In this comprehensive retrospective, Enders (Ballparks: Then and Now; Play Ball!) uses that series to begin his historical jog around the bases. He labels the first decade and a half of baseball""The Deadball Era"" (1903-1919), a time when baseball experienced an expansion of teams and a change in philosophy (""the question was not whether you could hit home runs, but whether you could get a bunt down and steal bases""). From there, Enders guides readers through""Baseball Between Wars"" and""The Free Agent Era"" (1976-1994) to""The Reign of the Sluggers"" (1995-2002). The book includes more than 600 photos, both black and white and color, of the teams and players in action--along with sidebar statistics of every World Series.