Some interesting stories but nothing really new if you have a pretty good understanding of the game.

For better or worse, this book chronicles the unwritten mores of baseball's past rather than baseball's present. Even during my early days as a baseball fan, Carlton Fisk and Nolan Ryan were considered antediluvian for their adherence to the old definitions of "respecting the game". Nowadays that phrase doesn't mean brushing back aggressive hitters, blocking plays at the plate, and not running up the score... it means not doing anything that might injure the other team's star player, who probably shares an agent with your star player and who accounts for a lot of the team's merch sales.

The authors manage to make concussion-threatening 100-mph projectiles sound adorable and quaint, and they confirm what we've long suspected about baseball fights being largely a form of interpretive dance. It's all good fun and there's nothing too dark about human motivation here. I'd suggest it as a book report subject for a teenage sports fan.

We all know that you never speak of a no-hitter in progress, and a showboat is likely to be drilled by a pitch in his next at-bat, but that is just scratching the surface of the baseball player's unwritten code of conduct. There is some fascinating inside information in this book, most of which is drawn from interviews with actual players, mostly retired, who spill the beans. Very entertaining reading for baseball fans, and a clear reminder of how much the game has changed. Perhaps the biggest surprise to me is the lengths that teams have gone to steal signs, and how it it generally tolerated and considered part of the game. It may be dismaying to some fans to learn that Mantle or Maris may have known many of the pitches heading their way that resulted in home runs, but that just may be the case.

I read this book because I’m interested in the “backstage” aspects of baseball. I did like the examples and learned a lot, but this was not well written. Lots of lists where I’d like more of a story. Also, this is not the authors’ fault, but I would like an update on how many of these codes are still in existence.

Fun quick read. Anyone who loves baseball will love reading this book.

3.5 Stars
This was fun and interesting and you don't have to be a rabid baseball fan to understand or enjoy it. I'm a casual baseball fan at best and I liked this book. It was good to read the stories about some of the players who's names I knew.

Some of the 'unwritten' rules were things I already knew about but others were rather obscure. The authors interviewed many players and had many stories to tell. Some were funny. In the chapter about cheating and stealing signs this one made me laugh out loud.

If the warning works, there's rarely reason to escalate things. Some pitchers, however, like to ensure that their message has been received. In 1993, when Blue Jays pitcher Jack Morris was clued in to the sign-tipping efforts of a baserunner at second, he spun on his heel, walked toward his opponent, and, pointing toward the plate, said, "I'm throwing a fastball and it's going at him. Make sure you tell him that." Then he delivered the pitch, as promised, knocking the hitter down. At that point, Morris made a second trip toward the runner. "Did you tell him?" he yelled. "Did you?"

I liked this one and I'm keeping it out from the library so The Hubster can read it.

Excellent book. Absolutely loved the anecdotes. I think this is a "must read" for all baseball fans. My only complaint is that the book wasn't long enough. I could read these types of stories every day.

Fun book that manages to cover a good chunk of baseball's eras and give you something of a feel for what it's like to be on a major league team. Lots of amusing anecdotes. Definitely worth reading by any baseball fans.

This probably is a two star book at any other time of the year, but I'm ready for some baseball!