In nine essays, Tygiel explores developments ranging from the importance of Henry Chadwick's early fascination with baseball statistics to the implications of the careers of Connie Mack, John McGraw, Charles Comiskey and Clark Griffith on baseball's popularity in the early 20th century to the success of rotisserie leagues and fantasy camps in the 1980s. Tygiel, who grew up in Brooklyn as a fan of the Dodgers but now roots for the San Francisco Giants, said his research shows that baseball is more popular than ever although the sport may not be known as the national pastime. Technology has given baseball an added boost. Cable television and the Internet, for example, have made the game more intimate for millions of fans, he said. Baby boomers, he said.
Baby boomers are the last generation raised on only baseball.
They grew up when baseball was king. Tygiel, who teaches American history at S.F. State, is the author of several books on baseball. Tygiel is currently at work on a collection of baseball essays for the University of Nebraska Press and he is writing an introduction for a book on baseball and American culture for the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown. The Society for American Baseball Research, which has nearly 7,000 members, is a nonprofit organization that works to promote baseball history and statistics.