Tag: sports history

American Legion, Episode 1: An Excerpt from “Cracks in the Outfield Wall”

The following is an excerpt from Cracks in the Outfield Wall: The History of Baseball Integration in the Carolinas by Chris Holaday, which is now available wherever books are sold. In the summer of 1934, six teams of high school–age boys met in Gastonia, North Carolina, for a three-day tournament to decide the Eastern Sectional Champion of American Legion baseball.… Continue Reading American Legion, Episode 1: An Excerpt from “Cracks in the Outfield Wall”

Passion Plays: How Religion Shaped Sports in North America Available as an Audiobook

Passion Plays: How Religion Shaped Sports in North America by Randall Balmer is now available as an audiobook, narrated by Randall, from Audible, Libro.fm, and Kobo. Praise for Passion Plays: “An engaging look at the historical conditions surrounding America’s secular, on-field religions.”—Kirkus Reviews “This entertaining history examines the religious and cultural roots of baseball, basketball, football, and hockey…The illuminating insights… Continue Reading Passion Plays: How Religion Shaped Sports in North America Available as an Audiobook

The Peculiar Passion Surrounding Team Sports

The following is an excerpt from Passion Plays: How Religion Shaped Sports in North America by Randall Balmer, available everywhere books and e-books are sold. To Everything a Season The Peculiar Passion Surrounding Team Sports Competitive team sports developed in North America at a time of rapid social, economic, political, demographic—and religious—change. From the emergence of baseball in the 1840s to… Continue Reading The Peculiar Passion Surrounding Team Sports

How Martin Luther King Jr. Mastered the Masters

The following is a guest blog post from Lane Demas, author of Game of Privilege: An African American History of Golf. This groundbreaking history of African Americans and golf explores the role of race, class, and public space in golf course development, the stories of individual black golfers during the age of segregation, the legal battle to integrate public golf… Continue Reading How Martin Luther King Jr. Mastered the Masters

Staff Picks: 2021 UNC Press Holiday Gift Guide

We hope you’ve got your hot chocolate and eggnog ready for this winter season! Today we wanted to share some holiday gift recommendations from our staff. Don’t forget, we’re having a Holiday Sale too! Save 40% on any of these great stocking stuffers and all of our other UNC Press print books. You’ll also receive free shipping on orders of… Continue Reading Staff Picks: 2021 UNC Press Holiday Gift Guide

Jack A. Draper III: Pibes and Moleques on the Soccer Field: The Parallel Stories of Maradona and Pelé, Argentina and Brazil

Today we welcome a guest post from Jack A. Draper III, translator of The Black Man in Brazilian Soccer by Mario Filho, out April 2021 from UNC Press. At turns lyrical, ironic, and sympathetic, Mario Filho’s chronicle of “the beautiful game” is a classic of Brazilian sports writing. Filho (1908–1966)—a famous Brazilian journalist after whom Rio’s Maracanã stadium is officially… Continue Reading Jack A. Draper III: Pibes and Moleques on the Soccer Field: The Parallel Stories of Maradona and Pelé, Argentina and Brazil