Fair Ball, Bob Costas
Fair Ball, Bob Costas
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Fair Ball
A Fan's Case for Baseball

Author: Bob Costas

Narrator: Bob Costas

Unabridged: 3 hr 34 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Published: 07/05/2000


Synopsis

From his perspective as a journalist and a true fan, Bob Costas, NBC's award-winning broadcaster, shares his views on the forces that are diminishing the appeal of Major League Baseball and proposes realistic changes that can be made to protect and promote the game's best interests.

In this cogent--and provocative--book, Costas examines the growing financial disparities that have resulted in nearly two-thirds of the teams in Major League Baseball having virtually no chance of contending for the World Series. He argues that those who run baseball have missed the crucial difference between mere change and real progress. And he presents a withering critique of the positions of both the owners and players while providing insights on the wild-card system, the designated-hitter rule, and interleague play. Costas answers each problem he cites with an achievable strategy for restoring genuine competition and rescuing fans from the forces that have diluted the sheer joy of the game.

Balanced by Costas's unbridled appreciation for what he calls the "moments of authenticity" that can still make baseball inspiring, Fair Ball offers a vision of our national pastime as it can be, a game that retains its traditional appeal while initiating meaningful changes that will allow it to thrive into the next century.

About The Author

Bob Costas has won the Emmy Award as Outstanding Sports Broadcaster eight times and has been named National Sportscaster of the Year by his peers seven times. He has also received Emmy awards for his writing, interviewing, and reporting. His coverage of major sports events includes the World Series, the Super Bowl, the NBA Finals, and the Olympics. In addition to his sports broadcasting, Costas hosted the Emmy Award-winning interview show Later…with Bob Costas on NBC. A native New Yorker, Costas now lives in St. Louis, Missouri.


Reviews

Goodreads review by Will on April 09, 2025

Bob Costas, one of the smartest sports commentators of his time, makes his argument for revenue sharing in baseball and for the elimination of the wild-card from post-season consideration. Basically, he claims that the vast income differential between the large and small market franchises means that......more

Goodreads review by Deacon Tom on May 31, 2021

Ok Fair Ball is And enjoyable read but because it was written in year 2000, it is outdated. So if I transport myself back to the year 2000, I think I have a better understanding of what Barb’s trying to say. In the end baseball is a business and the owners around to make money! Bob is knowledgeable, e......more

Goodreads review by Valerie on March 18, 2012

Bob Costas gets to the meat of a huge problem for baseball. Or rather a series of problems. Baseball is losing its appeal, and its sense of history, and as it loses those it becomes irrelevant. I am a baseball fan because my parents were baseball fans, and because my dad would play catch with me nea......more

Goodreads review by Mark on June 29, 2010

Bob Costas is one of America's best-known baseball, and for that matter, sports broadcasters. He has called numerous World Series, All Star, and League Championship games His book, Fair Ball: A Fan's Case for Baseball offers up thought-provoking and holistic solutions to help restore and maintain co......more

Goodreads review by Longfellow on March 01, 2012

Costas' book is mostly an analysis of the economic and structural organization of MLB, what's wrong with it and how it might be fixed. The focus is on the economic disparity that seems to have increased after the strike of '94-'95, and with it, a loss of competitive balance among the league's teams.......more


Quotes

"Costas is that rare hybrid in sportscasting with converging wit, erudition and superb communication skills."
--Los Angeles Times

"Costas comes out of a tradition of gentle baseball eloquence."
--New York Times

"He is as good a pure broadcaster as I've ever seen."
--Charlie Rose

"Intelligent, witty, good-natured, he is the very antithesis of the shills who dominate most sports programming."
--People

"With his unique ability to weave intellect into a typically anti-intellectual medium, he's the best in the business."
--P.O.V.