In this fascinating, colorful chronicle-based on hundreds of interviews and years of research and digging-John Helyar brings to vivid life the extraordinary people and dramatic events that shaped America's favorite pastime, from the dead-ball days at the turn of the century through the great strike of 1994.

But what you see on the field is only half the game. The ultimate chronicle of the games behind the game.- The New York Times Book Review Baseball has always inspired rhapsodic elegies on the glory of man and golden memories of wonderful times. Only time will tell if the move by the MLBPA signals the chance for the first work stoppage since 1995.Paperback. If there’s one thing history has shown, when there has been turbulence within the leadership ranks of baseball, the chance for labor strife can increase. The MLBPA is removing negotiators to try and come into negotiations with the best shot at regaining some footing. It’s acting in the way a free market system manner, but they don’t want to change the system to try and address what they see as problems.” As one insider put it to me, “The players have always wanted a free market system.

From the sounds of it, there’s no want of increasing the percentage of revenue to the players. If the union wants more money going to younger talent, which the league is taking more of an interest in, it comes with the possibility that the money that has gone to veterans may diminish. Commissioner Manfred has said to me that the issue of salaries is one of distribution. What should concern fans of the game is that the union appears to have incredible resolve to dig in and gain ground in areas such as service clock manipulation, the cadence of free agency, and whether clubs are “tanking” in order to procure high draft picks and build rosters largely around prospects.

Marvin Miller was brilliant in being able to keep the players focused. For the MLBPA, maybe the biggest thing that happened prior was hiring Marvin Miller over then former Vice President Richard Nixon, who was exceptionally cozy with MLB’s owners.

Fay Vincent was fired by MLB’s owners because he couldn’t seem to hold the center and leaked information which weakened the owners’ position.

The Lords of the Realm by John Helyar