Before Namath, before the Heidi Game, before the guaranteed Super Bowl victory, there were the New York Titans. Remember the Titans? They played to meager crowds and mediocre results in the decrepit Polo Grounds. The organization, a charter member of the American Football League in 1960, was in constant danger of bankruptcy. After struggling for three seasons, the Titans would finally be assumed by the league. New owners were found, the franchise was renamed the Jets and a new stadium would welcome the team in 1964. The revised edition of this award-winning book covers the turbulent history and eventual crash landing of the team that would become the New York Jets. The early days of the upstart AFL are also explored, as are the league's constant feuds with the Titans' underfunded and overbearing owner, Harry Wismer. Four appendices with team results, rosters and statistics are included.

Crash of the Titans: The Early Years of the New York Jets and the AFL, rev. ed.

William J. Ryczek

McFarland

Winner, Macmillan-SABR Baseball Research Award  On May 4, 1871, Bobby Mathews pitching for the Kekiongas of Fort Wayne, Indiana, faced James "Deacon" White, the catcher for Forest City of Cleveland. On the pitch, White laced a double into right field at Fort Wayne's Hamilton Field. Thus was the beginning of the National Association, baseball's first professional league. This is a history of a loose alliance of mostly hard-drinking, undisciplined players, and driven, sometimes irascible, owners. It is the story of the Wright brothers (George and Harry) who brought fundamentals to the game that are still used, and players such as Albert Spalding who won 207 games during the league's existence. The appendix provides season by season batting averages and pitching records for each team, as well as the Association's all-time leaders in batting average, pitching wins, and hits. Originally published in 1992 by McFarland, this paperback reprint is published by Colebrook Press.

Blackguards and Red Stockings: A History of Baseball's National Association, 1871-1875

Sports & Outdoors

Baseball

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by William J. Ryczek. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

Books by William J. Ryczek

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by William J. Ryczek. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

Crash of the Titans: The Early Years of the New York Jets and the AFL, rev. ed.

Blackguards and Red Stockings: A History of Baseball's National Association, 1871-1875