ABG is a CASEY Award Finalist!
A Baseball Gaijin: Chasing a Dream to Japan and Back has been named a finalist for Spitball Magazine‘s 42nd annual CASEY Award, which will be given next March to the best baseball book of 2024. I’m honored to be listed along with some really talented authors of books I plan to read soon. Here’s the list of the 10 finalists:
Book signing at IE 66ers Game/San Manuel Stadium
On September 7, I appeared at what was supposed to be the Inland Empire 66ers’ penultimate game of the 2024 season (it wound up the season finale after “wet grounds” forced the Sunday affair to be canceled), a Saturday night game against the Lake Elsinore Storm. My girlfriend, Puneet, and I set up a booth in the concourse, just about 50 feet to the left of the main entrance. Despite the let’s just say “elevated” temperatures, we had a great time interacting with fans and selling some books. Everyone was friendly and interesting, but the highlight may have been one young fan named Ezekiel (easily) convincing his grandmother to get a copy. He admitted that he didn’t read much and said it was largely because he had to be interested and inspired in order to sit down and do it; this story, he said, made him want to read, something that was really nice to hear. Also memorably, we left a copy for Christe Chavez, the daughter of Tony Barnette’s former teammate Jesse Chavez.
A microcosm of the 66ers’ unfortunate season, they would lose the game, actually falling despite one-hitting the Storm; they recorded eight hits to Lake Elsinore’s one, yet wound up losing 3-2, six walks in the sixth and seventh innings leading to their demise. Despite the result on the field, we loved our experience and would be happy to come back next season.
Earlier in the day, we stopped by the Redlands Barnes & Noble located in the Citrus Plaza Shopping Center. There, I signed three hardcover copies for prospective readers visiting the store. Pictured at the very bottom, it was merely a coincidence that I was wearing Heat shorts on an afternoon well north of 100 degrees.
Book signing and presentation at The Open Book Topanga
On Saturday, September 21, 2024, The Open Book Topanga, a used book store located on the second floor of The (Topanga) Village outdoor mall, hosted me for a book presentation and ensuing signing. The presentation featured a rundown of a few relevant topics, a reading of excerpts and a closing Q&A. This was an excellent experience. Thank you to The Open Book and everyone who attended for making it a special afternoon.
Sports Overnight America Interview w/ Fred Wallin
I joined Fred Wallin and co-hosts Laura Snoke & Art Sorce for a spirited 15-minute discussion that begins at the 24:23 mark.
Rogers Hornsby (SABR, Central+South Texas) Chapter’s August Meeting Led by Aaron Fischman
SABR, the Society for American Baseball Research, has a passionate, reliable, fun and dedicated chapter named after Hall of Famer Rogers Hornsby. The chapter generally serves Central and South Texas, but through a mutual acquaintance (Aaron’s dad is longtime friends and Dodgers season ticket-holding partners with Jerry Miller, a beloved member of the chapter), Aaron was invited to lead its August meeting (Saturday, 8/10, at 1 p.m. central) with a discussion of his new book. Embedded below is that discussion, which also includes 10 notable passages from the book as well as some questions and answers sprinkled throughout. Below the embedded YouTube video of the entertaining, action-packed meeting, we’ve pasted Gilbert’s write-up of the event as part of his monthly newsletter. Thank you for having us, Gilbert and fellow Hornsbiers!
And here’s the August newsletter post about the event, among other topics.
