Rob Neyer’s “Big Book of Baseball Blunders”

Neyer, a senior writer for ESPN.com and author of a handful of books on baseball, has put together an incredible collection of blunders throughout the history of the game. Those blunders; stupid trades, team collapses, and bonehead player mistakes. Neyer writes about so many different mistakes made throughout the history of the game that have defined a General Manager’s career, ruined a season for a team, or made certain players infamous in their time.

The book, choc full of sarcasm and wit, analyzes these blunders and offers a look into what could have been if it hadn’t been for certain trades, signings, or season collapses. Neyer also offers an in-depth look into some of baseball’s most notorious ‘bad moves never made.” He provides mistakes from almost every team in Major League history, simply because no matter how successful a franchise has been or currently is, at one point during their existence there were dark days.

Some of the most notable blunders in Neyer’s book include:

• The 1964 season for the Phillies and their historic collapse.
• The trade that sent Frank Robinson to the Orioles in exchange for Milt Pappas.
• Why did Pedro Martinez throw another pitch in Game 7 of the 2003 ALCS?
• The trade that swapped Jay Buhner for Ken Phelps.
• What really caused the 1919 White Sox to ‘throw’ the World Series?
• The trade then sent Steve Carlton to the Phillies in exchange for Rick Wise.
• Bad draft picks, or players who were left for later rounds who became stars.

So if you are looking for a book that focuses on the dark times of many major league teams, then “Big Book of Baseball Blunders” from Rob Neyer is the right one. Neyer also wrote “Big Book of Baseball Lineups,” “Baseball Dynasties,” and “Guide to Pitchers.” Neyer, a senior writer for ESPN.com, is full of baseball stats and information and presents it in all of his books with satire and sarcasm so fans can laugh at the shortcomings of their team.