When Baseball Returned to Brooklyn

Major league baseball has a long, rich history in Brooklyn. From the time Brooklyn started play in 1884 until their move west to Los Angeles following the 1957 season, the Dodgers and their predecessors were the emotional center of the borough’s diverse population. But Brooklyn would be without a professional team until June of 2001, when the Cyclones took the field in Coney Island as the Mets’ affiliate for the New York–Penn League.
This work follows the rookie-level club from its formation through it first season. Brooklyn Dodgers Carl Erskine, Duke Snider, Clem Labine, Johnny Podres, Ralph Branca, Joe Pignatano and Clyde King comment on their own minor league days, and their days in Brooklyn. Also included are interviews of Cyclones players and fans of both teams.

Ed Shakespeare, a member of the New Jersey State Bar Association, has seen the Dodgers play at Ebbets Field. He has also written for the theater and on baseball for children. He lives in Lavallette, New Jersey.

Ed Shakespeare
Format: softcover (6 x 9)
Pages: 357
Bibliographic Info: photos, appendix, index
Copyright Date: 2003
pISBN: 978-0-7864-1459-8
Imprint: McFarland

Acknowledgments     vii
Foreword by Carl Erskine     1
Prologue     3
Introduction     15

Spring Training     27
The Players     52
Brooklyn     81
Opening Day     125
Cyclone Road Trip     169
The Media     209
The New York—Penn League     242
The Playoffs     257
The Big Dance     295
Extra Innings     305

Epilogue     312
Appendix     321
Sources     333
Selected Bibliography     335
Index     337

“loving detail”—The SABR Bookshelf.