****** - Verified Buyer
4.5
"Total Baseball" is fantastic, pure and simple. It does have its short-comings, of course (for example, I agree that full, basic fielding statistics are a necessity, especially since the authors' fielding runs statistic is very flawed; it would also be great if the book had a catalog of trades, like the "Encyclopedia" has had), but it more than makes up for these minor faults with some of the best statistics available and almost 300 pages devoted to original history, analysis and opinion. This book helps settle old arguments, but it never fails to incite new (but always more informed) feuds as well. New hall-of-fame caliber players (just look at Cupid Childs's stellar career!) make themselves known to the reader, and inspire further investigation into the history of the game: Why has Childs been overlooked? How did he turn the still evolving rules of the 1890s to his advantage?) This is truly a Bible, and, along with fresh "Baseball Prospectus" editions in the years that intervene between new editions, makes up the cornerstone of my baseball library.
