1950's Sports | "On Baseball"

Essay

By: Jacques Barzun

Date: 1954

Source: Barzun, Jacques. "On Baseball." In Barzun, Jacques. God's Country and Mine: A Declaration of Love Spread with a Few Harsh Words. Boston: Little, Brown, 1954. Reprinted in Baseball Reader. New York: McGraw-Hill, 1983, 35–39.

About the Author: French-born Jacques Barzun (1907–) is a prominent writer, educator, and historian associated with Columbia University since attending there in the 1920s, having served as the provost 1958–1967. He has written a great deal on American culture and life, as well as numerous books on education.

Introduction

The 1950s were a critical time for baseball. When the soldiers came home after World War II (1939–1945), professional baseball exploded—with huge attendance increases, unprecedented minor league expansion, and greater interest in the game from the American...