He may overstate the extent of the beer-drenched campus baccanalia, but his assertion that schools should be in the business of education and not showbiz is solid. The San Francisco State professor surveys baseball's place in American history from its beginnings in the 1850s to the present. There are some great nuggets in here. The part about how Henry Chadwick helped spur the development of baseball's statistical culture is especially interesting. Very few television ventures have ever been as successful as ESPN, but that success seems to have come with quite a price.
Freeman tells stories of chronically overworked producers and persistent sexual harassment.
The book is most interesting when highlighting the various personalities who have pushed ESPN to sports broadcasting's summit, from executive editor John Walsh to former anchor Keith Olbermann. He discusses the money disparities between large and small markets, talks about why the DH must go, how to best realign the leagues, and how the wild card has changed the game. Costas also makes sincere and clear arguments about why umpires need to enforce the strike zone, instant replay should be used, and why Pete Rose should be in the Hall of Fame.