
The Soul of Baseball
A Road Trip Through Buck O'Neil's America
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Narrated by:
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David Sadzin
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By:
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Joe Posnanski
About this listen
When legendary Negro League player Buck O'Neil asked Joe Posnanski how he fell in love with baseball, the renowned sports columnist was inspired by the question. He decided to spend the 2005 baseball season touring the country with the 94-year-old O'Neil in hopes of rediscovering the love that first drew them to the game.
The Soul of Baseball is as much the story of Buck O'Neil as it is the story of baseball. Driven by a relentless optimism and his two great passions - for America's pastime and for jazz, America's music - O'Neil played solely for love. In an era when greedy, steroid-enhanced athletes have come to characterize professional ball, Posnanski offers a salve for the damaged spirit: the uplifting life lessons of a truly extraordinary man who never missed an opportunity to enjoy and love life.
©2007 Joe Posnanski (P)2020 TantorListeners also enjoyed...
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The Boys of Summer
- The Classic Narrative of Growing Up Within Shouting Distance of Ebbets Field, Covering the Jackie Robinson Dodgers, and What's Happened to Everybody Since
- By: Roger Kahn
- Narrated by: Phil Gigante
- Length: 15 hrs and 10 mins
- Unabridged
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This is a story about young men who learned to play baseball during the 1930s and 1940s, and then went on to play for one of the most exciting major-league ball clubs ever fielded, the team that broke the color barrier with Jackie Robinson. It is a story by and about a sportswriter who grew up near Ebbets Field, and who had the good fortune in the 1950s to cover the Dodgers for the Herald Tribune. This is the story about what happened to the team when their glory days were behind them.
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Classic book!
- By Christopher Arthur on 11-19-17
By: Roger Kahn
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Watching Baseball Smarter
- A Professional Fan's Guide for Beginners, Semi-experts, and Deeply Serious Geeks
- By: Zack Hample
- Narrated by: Barry Abrams
- Length: 5 hrs and 31 mins
- Unabridged
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This smart and funny fan's guide to baseball explains the ins and outs of pitching, hitting, running, and fielding, while offering insider trivia and anecdotes that will appeal to anyone - whether you're a major league couch potato, lifelong season ticket-holder, or a beginner. Combining the narrative voice and attitude of Michael Lewis with the compulsive brilliance of Schott's Miscellany, Watching Baseball Smarter will increase your understanding and enjoyment of the sport-no matter what your level of expertise.
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No New Information
- By amarkstone on 12-15-17
By: Zack Hample
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The Bad Guys Won
- A Season of Brawling, Boozing, Bimbo Chasing, and Championship Baseball with Straw, Doc, Mookie, Nails, the Kid, and the Rest of the 1986 Mets, the Rowdiest Team Ever to Put on a New York Uniform - and Maybe the Best
- By: Jeff Pearlman
- Narrated by: Jeff Pearlman
- Length: 10 hrs and 2 mins
- Unabridged
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It was 1986, and the New York Mets won 108 regular-season games and the World Series, capturing the hearts (and other assorted body parts) of fans everywhere. But their greatness on the field was nearly eclipsed by how bad they were off it. Led by the indomitable Keith Hernandez and the young dynamic duo of Dwight Gooden and Darryl Strawberry, along with the gallant Scum Bunch, the Amazin's left a wide trail of wreckage in their wake-hotel rooms, charter planes, a bar in Houston, and most famously Bill Buckner and the hated Boston Red Sox.
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Maybe 3.5
- By Lifeisshort on 02-15-22
By: Jeff Pearlman
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Tales from the Deadball Era
- Ty Cobb, Home Run Baker, Shoeless Joe Jackson, and the Wildest Times in Baseball History
- By: Mark S. Halfon
- Narrated by: Michael Butler Murray
- Length: 8 hrs and 4 mins
- Unabridged
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The Deadball Era (1901-1920) is a baseball fan's dream. Hope and despair, innocence and cynicism, and levity and hostility blended then to create an air of excitement, anticipation, and concern for all who entered the confines of a major league ballpark. Cheating for the sake of victory earned respect, corrupt ballplayers fixed games with impunity, and violence plagued the sport. At the same time, endearing practices infused baseball with lightheartedness, kindness, and laughter.
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Enlightening History
- By Ray R. on 09-17-19
By: Mark S. Halfon
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Stealing Home
- Los Angeles, the Dodgers, and the Lives Caught in Between
- By: Eric Nusbaum
- Narrated by: David Owen Nelson
- Length: 8 hrs and 37 mins
- Unabridged
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Dodger Stadium is an American icon. But the story of how it came to be goes far beyond baseball. The hills that cradle the stadium were once home to three vibrant Mexican American communities. In the early 1950s, those communities were condemned to make way for a utopian public housing project. Then, in a remarkable turn, public housing in the city was defeated amidst a Red Scare conspiracy.
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Once Upon a Time at Dodger Stadium
- By James Gamble on 03-06-21
By: Eric Nusbaum
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Baseball
- By: Geoffrey C. Ward, Ken Burns
- Narrated by: Ken Burns
- Length: 6 hrs and 52 mins
- Abridged
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The authors of the acclaimed and best-selling The Civil War, Jazz, and The War turn to another uniquely American phenomenon: baseball. Geoffrey C. Ward's and Ken Burns’s moving and fascinating history of the game goes beyond stolen bases, double plays, and home runs to demonstrate how baseball has been influenced by, and has in turn influenced, American life.
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Abridged
- By David Munoz on 02-15-16
By: Geoffrey C. Ward, and others
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The Inside Game
- Bad Calls, Strange Moves, and What Baseball Behavior Teaches Us About Ourselves
- By: Keith Law
- Narrated by: Rhett Samuel Price
- Length: 8 hrs and 22 mins
- Unabridged
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In this groundbreaking book, Keith Law, the ESPN baseball writer and author of the acclaimed Smart Baseball, offers an era-spanning dissection of some of the best and worst decisions in modern baseball, explaining what motivated them, what can be learned from them, and how their legacy has shaped the game....
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Narrator is negative value compared to replacement
- By Daniel W. Franzen on 11-28-20
By: Keith Law
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The Greatest Summer in Baseball History
- How the '73 Season Changed Us Forever
- By: John Rosengren
- Narrated by: Barry Abrams
- Length: 10 hrs and 52 mins
- Unabridged
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In 1973, baseball was in crisis. The first strike in pro sports had soured fans, American League attendance had fallen, and America's team—the Yankees—had lost more games and money than ever. Yet that season, five of the game's greatest figures rescued the national pastime. Hank Aaron riveted the nation with his pursuit of Babe Ruth's landmark home run record in the face of racist threats. George Steinbrenner purchased the Yankees at a bargain basement price and began buying back their faded glory.
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Terrible, Just Terrible.
- By Anonymous User on 06-12-23
By: John Rosengren
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The New York Game
- Baseball and the Rise of a New City
- By: Kevin Baker
- Narrated by: L.J. Ganser
- Length: 19 hrs and 59 mins
- Unabridged
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Baseball is “the New York game” because New York is where the diamond was first laid out, where the bunt and the curveball were invented, and where the home run was hit. It’s where the game’s first stars were born, and where everyone came to play or watch the game. With nuance and depth, historian Kevin Baker brings this all vividly back to life: the still-controversial, indelible moments—Did the Babe call his shot? Was Merkle out? Did they fix the 1919 World Series? Here are all the legendary players, managers, and owners, in all their vivid, complicated humanity, on and off the field.
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Sure.. Baseball… but so much more!
- By RAY MONTECALVO on 08-25-24
By: Kevin Baker
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October 1964
- By: David Halberstam
- Narrated by: Angelo Di Loreto
- Length: 13 hrs and 54 mins
- Unabridged
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David Halberstam, an avid sports writer with an investigative reporter’s tenacity, superbly details the end of the 15-year reign of the New York Yankees in October 1964. That October found the Yankees going head-to-head with the St. Louis Cardinals for the World Series pennant. Expertly weaving the narrative threads of both teams’ seasons, Halberstam brings the major personalities on the field - from switch-hitter Mickey Mantle to pitcher Bob Gibson - to life. Using the teams’ subcultures, Halberstam also analyzes the cultural shifts of the '60s.
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an excellent baseball book
- By Joe H on 12-31-18
By: David Halberstam
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War on the Basepaths
- The Definitive Biography of Ty Cobb
- By: Tim Hornbaker
- Narrated by: Stephen McLaughlin
- Length: 15 hrs and 3 mins
- Unabridged
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During his 24-year career, Ty Cobb was an MVP, a Triple Crown-winner, and a 12-time batting champion and was elected in the inaugural ballot for the National Baseball Hall of Fame (along with Honus Wagner, Babe Ruth, Christy Mathewson, and Walter Johnson). As someone who retired from the game over 85 years ago, he is still the leader for career batting average; second in runs, hits, and triples; and a mainstay in dozens of other categories.
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Two Cobb Books, One Review of a Maligned Legacy
- By Jonathan Love on 05-17-16
By: Tim Hornbaker
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Ruling over Monarchs, Giants & Stars
- True Tales of Breaking Barriers, Umpiring Baseball Legends, and Wild Adventures in the Negro Leagues
- By: Byron Motley, Bob Motley
- Narrated by: Richard Allen
- Length: 8 hrs and 25 mins
- Unabridged
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The Kansas City Monarchs, the Chicago American Giants, the St. Louis Stars, the Birmingham Black Barons, the Homestead Grays, and the Indianapolis Clowns; for over 50 years, they were the Yankees, Cardinals, and Red Sox of black baseball in America. And for over a decade beginning in the late 1940s, umpire Bob Motley called balls and strikes for many of their games, working alongside such legends as Satchel Paige, Hank Aaron, Ernie Banks, and Willie Mays.
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An Umpire Once Forgotten, Now Memorialized
- By Tony E. on 02-02-16
By: Byron Motley, and others
What listeners say about The Soul of Baseball
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- Patrick J. Kerrison
- 02-04-21
Just what I needed ...
... when what I needed were stories. Stories from a legend who helped me better understand a time I only heard of and know so little about. The narrator was perfect. The writing was lovely. The subject matter was as good as it gets.
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- Gene Bowker
- 05-15-23
Great story
I only really knew of Buck through the Baseball - Ken Burns documentary. The book was a personal journey to get to see the world through his eyes and also to learn a lot of baseball history. The book moved quickly and the combination of time spent alone with Buck and seeing how he was an ambassador for baseball was riveting.
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- Anonymous User
- 03-22-23
best book on Audible
where do I start. Best book I've listened to on Audible. Buck O'Neil... eBay a man what a legacy. Great narration, great man, great story.
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- robert p noble
- 08-07-23
A truly beautiful story !!
A powerful story that extends beyond baseball. It more about how to live a life, with passion, service and love.
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- John
- 11-13-21
What a Man!
This book is based on a year the author spent with Buck O'Neil in his later years. Buck is a legend, having played in the Negro Leagues, coached in the major leagues, and having founded the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum in Kansas City. Buck was instrumental in getting many Negro Leagues players inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame. He appeared on Ken Burns' documentaries and frequently on TV.
More importantly, Buck was just a great human being. His always positive and forgiving attitude will amaze you. Buck lived through a difficult era and experienced many things that would have made almost all of us bitter. He would not let that define him. He saw the best in everyone, and understood that people are not, generally speaking, all good or all bad, and that we all have bad days. Buck could bring out the good in people and turn a person's bad day into a good one.
In an age where people complain about everything and try to cancel others with a different viewpoint, we could sure use Buck O'Neil. Unfortunately, he is no longer with us, but his example shines on. It will be impossible for most of us to live up to it, but we can try.
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2 people found this helpful
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- irish77
- 10-22-22
Amazing!
This is my first audio book and I listened to it while on my walks. I really enjoyed it. The narrator has such a calming and peaceful voice.
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- stephen
- 08-15-20
Awesome inspirational
It is a book describing the Negroleagues through the eyes of Buck O'neal. Good book
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- Red Feather Books
- 03-06-24
A most pleasant listen
I very much enjoyed this look at the life of one of baseball’s greats. It was a great listen and it really touched my heart to hear his story and his attitude toward life.
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- Tommy Stokes
- 01-05-25
A Kansas City Masterpiece
Buck was one of a kind and even though he lived to 94, he was taken from us too soon.
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- Tom
- 12-09-21
A fascinating look at a true Hall of Famer.
I recently saw a presentation through the Baseball Hall of Fame with the author that spotlighted this book and his relationship with Buck O’Neil. Also have been following Bob Kendrick’s Black Diamond’s podcast. Bob is President of the Negro League Museum and a friend of Buck as well. These two gentlemen have peaked my interest in Buck and I strongly recommend this book to anyone who wants to know more about this recently elected member to The Baseball Hall of Fame. Thought I knew about Buck before, learned so much more about him. He was an amazing advocate for the players of the Negro Leagues and a great human.
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4 people found this helpful