Baseball Fiction Roundtable (The Cooperstown Review)

The BaseballFiction

Hall of Fame:

PreliminariesCompiled by Paul Adomites

( imtributors: Peter Carino, Gene Carney, Pete Cava, Jim Distelhorst,lui hard Gaughran, Jack Kavanagh, Nancy Jo Leachman, StephenI . - /ni ian, Andy McCue, Andrew Milner, Jim O'Donnell, Bobbyriij'inger, Luke Salisbury, Mark Schraf, Clifford Wexler.

( )NE OF THE MOST SUCCESSFUL pieces in THE REVIEW (althoughin its previous incarnation as "The SABR Review of Books") was" I 110 Essential Baseball Library," in which we surveyed a panel of

I T i t s to determine which baseball books no self-respecting experti < n i K I possibly do without. Now we're doing the same for baseball fic-M M I i. The members of the panel all have remarkable credentials fortickling this chore, and as wj expected, they responded in gloriousl . i I lion: intelligent, opinionated, insightful and rude all the things\\v want from our critics.

(. )ur plan is to create a true "Baseball Fiction Hall of Fame," which

THE FORUM OF BASEBALL LITERARY OPINION 45

is where all our readers come in. Check out this "preliminary" articleand let us know what you think of the opinions voiced here. Wherethere is true consensus, we will make appropriate decisions andannounce the first entries into "The Hall" in next year's issue. Thereaders of this publication are the most literate baseball fans in theworld, so we suspect any author receiving "Hall" status will berespectful of the high honor it represents.

[he participants in this survey were asked to select their choicesfor the top nine works of baseball fiction of all time, annotate theirlists, and then mention any other works they felt deserved comment,good or bad. All in all 60 books were mentioned by the 14 panelists;19 were listed only in "the second string" category.

Then we asked, "How do you define a baseball novel?" Plenty ofbooks have baseball references; plenty have the Game as a back-ground. Does a baseball novel have to have on-field action, or arereferences to the Game enough? Here's what they said.

What Defines A Baseball Novel?

On this subject (unlike others) the panel largely agreed on a basicconcept: that to be a "baseball novel" the baseball in the book has tobe essential to the book. If the role baseball played could have beentaken by the film industry, or soccer, the novel doesn't pass the test.Clifford Wexler put it this way: "A baseball novel uses baseball as thefield upon which the narrative plays itself out. On or off the field, inthe dugout or the executive suite, in the mind or in the heart, base-ball must be at the center of the novel. [And] the novel must be trueto the game."

Mark Schraf said the judgment had to be made on whether thebook "Has to do with the magic of the game...baseball must make adifference, an impact, on the lives written about." More than onepanelist agreed with Nancy Jo Leachman, who said, "If you have toask, the answer is no." But Andrew Milner took it an intriguing step

46 THE COOPERSTOWN REVIEW

Iiirrher: "[In a true baseball novel] the conflict is between those char-;u tors who love and enjoy the game on an innocent level, and thosewho would simply exploit the sport."

The Rankings

Although many members of the panel preferred not to rank theiri lioices within the top nine, of those who did, only four books wereh i i deserving of the handle "Best of All Time": Four panel memberslisted Robert Coover's "The Universal Baseball Association, J. HenryW;mgh, Prop.," as the best. Two chose Mark Harris's "The South-I'aw," and one Harris's "Bang the Drum Slowly." Bernard Malamud's" I IK- Natural" also received one "best" ranking. If we apply a some-w l u i arbitrary point system (10 points for being named "Best Base-h.i l l Novel Ever," 5 for each mention in the top nine, and 1 for men-1 1 < i n in the second string, seven novels clearly outdistance the pack.In order of points:

1. "The Universal Baseball Association, J. Henry Waugh, Prop."by Robert Coover.

2. "The Celebrant," by Eric Rolfe Greenberg.}. "The Natural," by Bernard Malamud.4. "The Southpaw," by Mark Harris.5. "You Know Me, Al," by Ring Lardner.6. "Shoeless Joe," by W.P. Kinsella.'/. "Rang the Drum Slowly," by Mark Harris.11 was only the four votes for "all-time best" that kept Coover's

\v, H k in front of Greenberg's. "The Celebrant" was ranked among thetop nine baseball novels of all time by thirteen of the fourteen panelmi inhrrs .

I I tTi ' are comments on "The Celebrant." Schraf: "It's what itn n .ins to be a fan." Milner: "1^ all likelihood the best baseball novel. ' I i I K - M I all. This works on so many levels." McCue: "An immenselyI ' i ' w r i l u l novel examining heroism and obsession." O'Donnell:

1 I n i s i symbols abound in a well-crafted novel that could just as

ip i ly lu- called 'Jews for Christy.'" On the somewhat troubling subject


of the novel's religious allusions, Bob Plapinger commented, "I justignored that part."

Coover's novel brought out some fascinating concepts on the partof the panelists. Luke Salisbury feels that "UBA" is far and away thebest baseball novel ever. He says, "Baseball fiction is 'Ernie Banksand eight other guys.'" Jim Distelhorst seemed to agree: "The ulti-mate baseball book although it contains no real baseball at all!"Mark Schraf talked about the "incredibly vibrant depiction of thestrength of 'the inner game of baseball' (the one in our mind's eye)."Milner: "I always thought Waugh went a bit far myself. Until I joineda Fantasy League." Leachman: "Coover can write. But I have neverbeen able to forgive Henry for not caring about the game of baseballitself."

Jim O'Donnell calls Coover's book "The preeminent baseballnovel. No other writer has explored as effectually...the seductive dan-ger in baseball's hold on the imagination."

Lehman: "Baseball fan as God; God as an Obsessive-Compul-sive...Why not? after all, 'In the Big Inning was the Word...'" Gaugh-ran: "A novel about a game that tries to replicate a game, but mostlyan important examination of the need to control, and when neces-sary to revise, the 'fictions' by which we all live."

"The Natural" is a work that appears on most lists, yet many pan-elists noted they had included it because of its historical importanceas the first "literary" baseball novel. The comments were not univer-sally praiseworthy. Wexler: "Captures the essence of the game as wewould like to imagine it, in a perfect blending of form and style."Milner: "It has the universal issues of guilt and human fallibility thatMalamud focused on in subsequent fiction." Cava: "The ultimatebaseball novel, cleverly intertwining classic mythology with baseballlegend." Carino: "Taken as the dark myth it is, this is a wonderfulbook."

But Gaughran feels it is "weighed down by mythic correspon-dences." Schraf: "Although flawed in many places...Malamudexplores 'baseball as mythology' with elan." Salisbury: "It works asthe deep male fantasy of the envious, deadly, random femme fatalewe secretly fear hunts our balls but I never liked the baseball."Andy McCue felt "The Natural" missed the point altogether. "It


I ' imgs that real overblown, Armageddonish football mentality toKiseball. It's too bad that Malamud's great books weren't about base-bftll."

Two authors appeared most often: Mark Harris and W.P. Kinsella.I n n O'Donnell created a special category of "Sustained Achieve-ment" for those two, Philip Roth and Ring Lardner.

/"YI though Kinsella was most often mentioned for "Shoeless Joe,"w i l l ) his other works frequently considered secondary, Harris, on the. i i l i c r hand, placed two novels ("The Southpaw" and "Bang theI 'mm Slowly)" in the Big Seven, and received top-nine votes for "ItI nuked Like Forever," and "A Ticket for a Seamstitch" as well. BobPhipinger said, "I can't choose between 'em." Andy McCue said "I'ml i . ' I ' P Y 10 have any of the Wiggen books at the top of the list,". u l d i i i g , "In Wiggen's voice, Harris found a way to bring togetherl u - . e l i a l l ' s rural roots and its metropolitan present, and to illuminatei I n - society around the game as well as the game itself." SteveI r l im;m (probably not realizing his opinions were shared by many oni l n panel) defensively said, "So I like the Henry Wiggen stories. So. i n inc."

| nn I )istelhorst felt that "The Southpaw" is "the best 'coming of.11:1 ' baseball novel." Mark Schraf liked the way "Bang the Drum' l i i v v l y " explores the human psyche. Peter Carino noted that "ItI nuked Like Forever" is "An excellent chronicle of a skilled athlete i i i n i n g to terms with his mortality. It also anticipates much of the1 ' i i i . n i u t i o n of the game to money and television." Bob Plapinger

i - i l : "Henry dealing with the end of his career, trying to last onemi i n - season.,trying to figure out what happens next."

I l i e oldest fiction to make the list, Ring Lardner's work, particu-I . H l y "You Know Me Al," "set the direction for much baseball-fictioni l i i i lullowed," according to Clifford Wexler. Jim O'Donnell thinksi I n .11 liievement is even larg,;: "It established the subgenre of base-I ' i l l I n l ion , albeit in a sardonic vein," according to Jim O'Donnell.I i i I - Kavanagh stated unequivocally, "This is the funniest baseballl " i . " Andrew Milner noted that "this novel clearly establishes that


the Chicago White Sox had already caught America's literary fancybefore 1919...In Jack Keefe, Lardner created the stereotype wepretty much retain it today of the innocent rookie called up tothe Big Show." Pete Cava underscores that idea: "Those who knowLardner's stories and who have listened to interviews on ESPN'sSportsCenter know that Jack's spiritual descendants are alive andwell, and wearing big league uniforms."

If points had been distributed for the total works of a single author,W.P. Kinsella would have led all others. "Shoeless Joe" tied "UBA,""The Natural," and "You Know Me, Al" with nine mentions in thetop nine (behind only "The Celebrant"). Kinsella also received top-tier votes for "The Iowa Baseball Confederacy" and "The Thrill ofthe Grass," a collection of short stories. Andy McCue prefers Kinsel-la's short fiction to his novels.

Richard Gaughran feels that "Shoeless Joe" is "probably responsi-ble for igniting what seems to be the baseball fiction explosion of thelast ten or twelve years."

Six panelists felt the need to comment on the sentimentality of"Shoeless Joe," but few felt it got in the way. Peter Carino said "attimes it gets downright hokey, [but] it spins a good yarn and is beauti-fully written." Jack Kavanagh referred to it as "a bit cutesy and pre-tentious but it comes off!" Mark Schraf: "I don't find this novelsaccharine."

Nancy Jo Leachman has a personal stake in the book. "I 'discov-ered' 'Shoeless Joe' immediately following its publication andinstantly felt I had a personal stake in the book. As its literary famespread and then its rebirth due to the movie, I became distressed. 1didn't want to share it I suspected very few people out there wereas worthy of this book as I. Such a spiritual book shouldn't beallowed to become desecrated by being popular with the masses.How thoughtless of Kinsella to let everybody else read it, too."

But the panel was far from unanimous. Luke Salisbury had strongfeelings: "'Shoeless Joe' blazed an economic trail for baseball fiction,and did it the old fashioned away: trivialize, sentimentalize, and sell.


> . I iinaltz it and they will come... 'Shoeless Joe' is certainly one of thei I N K - most important baseball novels. It tells us too much about whattOO many of us really want."

Si i-ve Lehman listed "Shoeless Joe," but added, "Almost disquali-i n - t l Uvause of the embarrassing Salinger peroration on how baseballI i . i i k i - M s back to a time of innocence and goodness and motherhood. 1 1 H I moral purity. So do diapers, but that doesn't mean we sentimen-i 1 1 1 .'.i' incontinence. It was worse having a black man say it in then i i p v i c . How come Satchel and Josh and Mule and Oscar, et al.,w r i r i i ' t invited to the Field of Dreams, hmmm?"

[Speaking of films, there was no agreement among the panel abouti l i c i | i i a l i t y of the films made from the novels on the list.]

I ILarry Stein's "Hoopla" received four votes for the top nine, butI ! M i i - was disagreement on whether it or Brendan Boyd's "Blue Ruin"u i i I n - IK-tter Black Sox novel.

I I n - only other novel to receive more than three votes for rankingM M . . M I ; i IK- top nine is a surprise. Douglass Wallop's 1954 fantasy

I I n V - . n t he Yankees Won the Pennant." Luke Salisbury calls thisH i . 1 1 i l r nl the decade, along with 'Rock Around the Clock.'" This

. ' I , I t i i one, plans to dust that one off and read it again. Especiallyi n . t Andrew Milner has identified several unsettling links to the

I I U . I Y I > y s young detective series.i : i l other works were rated highly enough by our panel to

i i ' M in t he top nine rankings of three of them. Darryl Brock's "If II I i \ i i i i i - i Back" (of which Pete Cava says, "Brock has contemplated

. l u i ' l . . . I can't wait"), Philip Roth's "Great American Novel"( In . I i Andrew Milner called "side-splittingly hilarious, in small

i " ) , . u u l panelist Luke Salisbury's "The Cleveland Indian," whichi V l r i ' u I I H i noted was "in the tradition of classic American novels> l " i i p l i a plot linking a white Protestant male and a non-whiteI "

MM i u i Ouik'ley, author of the highly respected non-fiction workI I n ' mi lked Pitch," received mention for two of his novels, "The

i n i l * n l t i i r d House of David" and "Today's Game."

t-Ti i K FORUM OF BASEBALL LITERARY OPINION 51

Although the survey didn't ask about them, books for young read-ers were also called out for special notice by several panelists. NancyLeachman talked about "Baseball Saved Us," by Ken Mochizuki withillustrations by Dom Lee. The tale of baseball in the Japanese-Amer-ican internments camps during World War II, it was selected as oneof best children's books of the past year. As Nancy says, "It's a mov-ing story, well told and beautiful illustrated; it's a story of baseball as agreat equalizer; it educates on an unfortunately neglected part of ourhistory...and there are no others anything like it."

A,Lndy McCue said of John R. Tunis, "I think this list must recog-nize the powerful place in our lives occupied by the baseball fictionwe read as children. It helped form the picture frame through whichwe viewed the game and measured what actions within it wereappropriate."

And again, even though the question wasn't asked, several pan-elists mentioned baseball mysteries: Jim Distelhorst chose Loren D.Estleman's "King of the Corner" as best ever. Nancy Jo Leachmanpreferred "Strike Three You're Dead" by Richard Rosen. She explains"It's the best because baseball knowledge truly does play a part in fig-uring the motive. A fan will figure it out before a non-fan."

Other interesting comments about multiple vote-getters. AndrewMilner on Jerome Charyn's "The Seventh Babe": "One great modernbaseball novel you almost never hear anything about. "

Richard Gaughran on Dom DeLillo's novella "Pafko at the Wall":"A major voice in contemporary American literature fictionalizesarguably the most dramatic moment in baseball history with J.Edgar Hoover, Jackie Gleason, Frank Sinatra, the Cold War, and anawestruck but resourceful boy!" Of Peter Lefcourt's "The DreyfusAffair," Nancy Jo Leachman said, "If it weren't against my creed tobe judgmental, I'd say baseball needed this book."

Books which received more than one vote for the top tier includ-ed "The Brothers K" by David James Duncan, "Prospect" by Bill Lit-tlefield (of which Jack Kavanagh says: "It'll make a fine movie -will someone please discover this?"), John Hough's "The Conduct of


I hi ' ' . imi ' ," and Damon Rice's "Seasons Past." Michael Shaarai n u l l . H dl' "The Killer Angels," the basis for the film "Gettysburg")in r I veil two mentions for "For the Love of the Game," as did DonaldI I ' . ' "The Dixie Association" and Jane Leavy's "Squeeze Play."

i 11 hooks received no front runner votes, but were mentionediil lrn in i l u - second tier: James Brashler's "Bingo Long" and Barbara1 In i ; . n nil 's "She's On First" were listed five times each. Among

1 1 i ol short fiction, four books of short stories, both by individualsi iu l ' ompilations, received votes: Jerry Klinkowitz's "Short Season,"

i i l l Mnssner's "Hitting into the Wind" (reviewed in this issue),I i ' h . i l l : I I H | the Game of Life," and "Tales of the Diamond."

\ i u l ;is the last word, leave it to our longtime friend JackI ' m . i i ; l i lo try and create an all-new subgenre. "Most of the Put-I M M I ,. i irs |of team histories] seem to be heavily loaded with fiction,

I 1 1 . i n k s io the panelists for their exceptional work. Now it's timei"i \ M I I i . i speak up What books do you think belong in The Base-I ' i l l In l ion Hall o f Fame?


Documents

Baseball Fiction Roundtable (The Cooperstown Review)