Shoeless Joe is a 1982 magic realist novel by Canadian author W.P Kinsella which became better known due to its 1989 film adaptation, Field of Dreams. We were delighted to welcome back Ash Day to the show to discuss the book, the film, and the 1980s farming crisis, which was fuelled by a combination of factors but perhaps chiefly by exports becoming limited by the US grain embargo on the Soviet Union.... Please take a minute to rate and review the podcast, and please don't hesitate to get in touch with feedback and to suggest future content for the pod either via our website (www.RTGPod.com) or on Twitter @RTGPod. Hope you enjoy the show! (oh, and btw the actor who played Karin in the film, and who later appeared in Girls and Transparent amongst other shows, was Gaby Hoffman - it’ll make sense when you hear the episode)

Reading the Game

Episode 20 - Shoeless Joe

Baseball For Kids is packed full of fun information for kids learning about baseball, getting them up to speed on the game’s origins and bringing them up to date with all of the key events in the history of the game. Author Adam C. MacKinnon is a contributing baseball writer for Baseball Almanac and Call to the Pen, and founder of Romantic About Baseball, a baseball blog and podcast, and he was generous enough to join us on the show to talk about the book. Please take a minute to rate and review the podcast, and please don't hesitate to get in touch with feedback and to suggest future content for the pod either via our website (www.RTGPod.com) or on Twitter @RTGPod. Hope you enjoy the show! 

Episode 19 - Baseball For Kids

Combining statistical analysis, common sense, and a host of intangibles, Brian Wright’s book Met’s All-Time All-Stars constructs a Mets line-up for the ages. An obvious must-read for fans of the Amazin’ club, the book is also an interesting resource for any baseball history buff. We were delighted to welcome Brian to the show to discuss the book’s inception and main themes, and to chat about the process of writing the book, as well as some of his choices. Please take a minute to rate and review the podcast, and please don't hesitate to get in touch with feedback and to suggest future content for the pod either via our website (www.RTGPod.com) or on Twitter @RTGPod. Hope you enjoy the show! Here’s a link to Brian’s website where you can get copies of both his books on the Mets. 

Episode 18 - New York Met's All-Time All-Stars

Conflict is journalist and author Ryan Ferguson’s tell-all account about how he committed the unspeakable act of switching allegiances from the Red Sox to the Yankees. Part memoir, part history, and tackling difficult topics such as mental health, racism, class, identity and domestic violence, Ferguson pours his heart onto the page, spitting the truth on a lifetime of pent-up insecurity and secrecy. We were delighted to welcome Ryan to the show to discuss the book’s inception and main themes, and to grill him (warmly and kindly obvs!) on his controversial admission. Please take a minute to rate and review the podcast, and please don't hesitate to get in touch with feedback and to suggest future content for the pod either via our website (www.RTGPod.com) or on Twitter @RTGPod. Hope you enjoy the show!

Episode 17 - Conflict

In his remarkable book from 1990, author Robert Whiting offers an intriguing and often humorous look at the differences and similarities between the national obsession over baseball in Japan and in the United States and a detailed account of the game of 'besoboru'. To discuss the book we were thrilled to be joined again by John McGee from Bat Flips & Nerds, who was making his second appearance on the show after talking about Bottom of the 33rd in May 2019. Please take a minute to rate and review the podcast, and please don't hesitate to get in touch with feedback and to suggest future content for the pod either via our website (www.RTGPod.com) or on Twitter @RTGPod. Hope you enjoy the show! ------------------ Here are links to the Bat Flips & Nerds website and podcast, they've been smashing it lately with the calibre of their guests. Here's a link to the Leron and Leon Lee's No. 12 smash hit 'Baseball Boogie' on YouTube, just in case there's not enough of it in the show itself!

Episode 16 - You Gotta Have Wa!

The Wax Pack chronicles author Brad Balukjian’s remarkable road trip across the US  in the summer of 2015, spanning 11,341 miles through thirty states in forty-eight days to tell the stories of a set of players who turned up in a random pack of 1986 of Topps baseball cards. We were delighted to be joined by the author to find out what inspired his trip and how he came to bring the book to publication, and also by Rob from Bat Flips & Nerds and @BubbaOnBaseball to discuss the book in depth. Please take a minute to rate and review the podcast, and please don't hesitate to get in touch with feedback and to suggest future content for the pod either via our website (www.RTGPod.com) or on Twitter @RTGPod. Hope you enjoy the show! ------------------ Here's a link to buy the book in the USA. Here's a link to buy the book in the UK. Here's a link to the Rob’s excellent Bat Flips & Nerds podcast episode featuring Brad. Here’s a link to the Pandemic Baseball Book Club. 

Episode 15 - The Wax Pack

Astroball is the definitive account of the Houston Astros' unexpected rise to win the 2017 World Series, by the writer who famously predicted it three years earlier on the cover of Sports Illustrated. Somewhat overshadowed by the subsequent scandal surrounding the Astros, the book is nevertheless an insightful and gripping read, and one which chronicles one of the most remarkable reversals of fortune in baseball history. We were thrilled to be joined by the author, Ben Reiter, who told us the story of how the book came together, and also by Bill Metzger, from the Crawfish Boxes - an Astros fan community website - for the roundtable discussion section of the show. Please take a minute to rate and review the podcast, and please don't hesitate to get in touch with feedback and to suggest future content for the pod either via our website (www.RTGPod.com) or on Twitter @RTGPod. Hope you enjoy the show! ------------------ Here's a link to buy the book in the USA Here's a link to buy the book in the UK Here's a link to the Crawfish Boxes, the SB Nation Astros Community site.

Episode 14 - Astroball

The Incredible Women of the AAGPBL by Anika Orrock is a remarkable book - one that seamlessly weaves together the history of the league with the voices of the women involved and the broader societal context of the 1940s and 1950s in America, with a unique and evocative illustrative style. After a great chat with Anika about her wonderful book, we were lucky to be joined by Leslie Heaphy, Vice-President of SABR and Chair of the SABR's Women in Baseball Committee, for a discussion about the book and more broadly about the role of women throughout baseball's history. Here's a link to buy the book in the UK  Here's a link to buy the book in the USA from the publisher, Chronicle Books  Here's a link to the AAGPBL's website   Here's a link to SABR's Women in Baseball Committee   Here's a link to Anika's website  

Episode 13 - The Incredible Women of the AAGPBL

This episode we are talking about the book ‘Will Big League Baseball Survive: Globalization, the End of Television, Youth Sports, and the Future of Major League Baseball’ by Lincoln A. Mitchell, a fascinating 2016 book which examines the extent to which MLB can continue to thrive in its current form, and analyses some of the key factors likely to threaten the future health of the sport.  We were fortunate to speak to the author, Lincoln Mitchell, about the book, and we chatted about the book’s main theses, and also (topically) about the likely longer-term impact of the coronavirus on baseball. As mentioned at the end of the episode, we will be giving away a couple of copies of the excellent 'Baseball Life Advice' by Stacey May Fowles. To enter you need simply to mention the podcast in a positive light on Twitter, remembering to tag us (@RTGPod).  You'll get a raffle ticket for every mention you do, so feel free to go nuts! We will ship worldwide, over land and sea (and Leicester!), and will announce the winners after the competition closes at 12pm UK time on Sunday 17th May 2020. Please take a minute to rate and review the podcast, and please don't hesitate to get in touch with feedback and to suggest future content for the pod either via our website (www.RTGPod.com) or on Twitter @RTGPod. Hope you enjoy the show! 

Episode 12 - Will Big League Baseball Survive?

A book of essays on a journey through baseball fandom, Paddy Johnston's beautifully written Stealing Home features brilliant illustrations by Samuel C. Williams and Rozi Hathaway, and was published in 2019. We invited Paddy and Sam on to the show to discuss the book and to talk a bit about their love of baseball and what they miss about the game in 2020.  Please take a minute to rate and review the podcast, and please don't hesitate to get in touch with feedback and to suggest future content for the pod either via our website (www.RTGPod.com) or on Twitter @RTGPod. Hope you enjoy the show! --------- Here’s a link to Good Comics, where you can purchase a copy of the book (inside which Sam *might* draw a little illustration!) Here's where you'll find Paddy, Sam and their baseball film podcast, Big Boys Don't Bunt, on Twitter. 

Episode 11 - Stealing Home

Covering in depth the history of baseball in 41 European countries, Josh Chetwynd's Baseball in Europe is a comprehensive, thoroughly researched, and highly entertaining read - ideal both for fans of European baseball and those completely oblivious to the sport on the continent. Fresh from a break of six months, (in which we welcomed Steve's second daughter, Bonnie, into the world!) we are delighted to be back discussing baseball books again! After a chat with the author about how he researched and wrote the book and the current health of European baseball, we were joined by Philipp Wuerfel from Mister-Baseball.com for the round-table part of the show.  Please take a minute to rate and review the podcast, and please don't hesitate to get in touch with feedback and to suggest future content for the pod either via our website (www.RTGPod.com) or on Twitter @RTGPod. Hope you enjoy the show! --- Here’s a link to Josh's website. Here's a link to buy the book in the USA from the publisher, McFarland Books. Here's a link to buy the book in the UK from Blackwell's Books. Here’s a link to Mister-Baseball.com, a veritable treasure trove of information on European Baseball.

Episode 10 - Baseball In Europe

In her remarkable 2017 book, Stacey May Fowles shows us how we can use the lens of baseball to examine who we are. The book has been described as a passionate ode to baseball, its culture, and its community, which both celebrates and challenges the game – and reminds us why it really matters. We were delighted to be joined by Stacey and in the first part of the episode we chatted about her writing process and some of the book's main themes, before being joined by Paddy Johnston from the ‘Big Boys Don’t Cry’, and ‘Big Boys Don’t Bunt’ podcasts, for the round-table part of the show. Please take a minute to rate and review the podcast, and please don't hesitate to get in touch with feedback and to suggest future content for the pod either via our website (www.RTGPod.com) or on Twitter @RTGPod. Hope you enjoy the show! Here’s a link to Stacey’s website, from which you can subscribe to her newsletter. Here’s a link to subscribe to Paddy’s newsletter, Stealing Home.

Episode 9 - Baseball Life Advice

When it was first published in 1970, Ball Four stunned the sports world. The commissioner, executives, and players were shocked. Sportswriters called author Jim Bouton a traitor and a "social leper." Commissioner Bowie Kuhn tried to force him to declare the book untrue, but fans loved the book and many critics hailed it as an important social document. 50 years after his chronicling of the 1969 season, and just months after Bouton’s passing, we were thrilled to be joined by Mark Blakemore to discuss and celebrate Ball Four, as one of the most loved and significant baseball books ever written.

Episode 8 - Ball Four

The MVP Machine is a 2019 book about how innovations in science and technology have launched a movement which is revolutionising player development.  Co-authored by Ben Lindbergh, a staff writer for the ringer and host of the Effectively Wild podcast, and by Travis Sawchik, a staff writer for Five Thirty Eight, the book aims to transform our understanding of teaching and talent. We were delighted to be joined by Ben Lindbergh and in the first part of the episode we chatted about his writing process and some of the book's main themes, before being joined by Russell Eassom for the round-table part of the show. Please take a minute to rate and review the podcast, and please don't hesitate to get in touch with feedback and to suggest future content for the pod either via our website (www.RTGPod.com) or on Twitter @RTGPod. Hope you enjoy the show!  

Episode 7 - The MVP Machine

The Art of Fielding is a 2011 novel by American author Chad Harbach. It focuses on the fortunes of shortstop Henry Skrimshander and his career playing college baseball with the fictional Westish College Harpooners. We were delighted to be joined by the author himself and in the first part of the episode we chatted about his inspiration and the long process of bringing the book to publication as well as some of the book's themes. We were also joined by Ash Day (@AshDay29) for the round-table part of the show, in which we discussed the book in some length, and got slightly introspective about confronting failure and being in the presence of greatness, amongst other things! It would be lovely if everybody could rate and review the podcast wherever you get your podcasts. We love seeing the feedback chiefly because it is nice seeing positive things written about yourself, but also because it increases the exposure of the podcast on different platforms and helps to expand our audience as we march ever onward towards global podcast domination! Apple Podcasts listeners can leave a review here. Don't forget to check out the website, and give us a follow on Twitter @RTGPod - please don't hesitate to get in touch with feedback and to suggest future content for the pod. Hope you enjoy the show!

Episode 6 - The Art of Fielding

The podcast on which baseball fans discuss the baseball books they love. Each episode hosts Phil (@MrPhilipStone) and Steve (@BushLeagueSteve) are joined by guests to discuss a baseball book in depth.

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Reading the Game

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