Olde Tymey Base Ball
I finally got around to purchasing the New Bill James Baseball Abstract, something I've been meaning to do since it first came out in 2000. But I finally had an excuse, namely, I needed a book. And I could probably spend a year reading this one.
One of the best parts are the snippets of newspaper articles from the early days of the game. My absolute favorite so far comes from a profile of a particular player- "....called "Pat" because of his fierce love of shovelling sand, and his carrying of a dinner pail."
Like Bill James said, I guess you had to be there.