K: A History of Baseball in Ten Pitches

When I played baseball, I was a catcher. So naturally, I thought all pitchers were a little crazy. All catchers see pitchers as emotional toddlers, upset at either the umpire or his defense; they never seemed to take responsibility for giving up the lead.I think all non-pitching players are jealous of the pitcher. They really get all the attention. I was definitely jealous. I wish I could throw heat and then follow it up with a nasty 12-6 curveball. But I could not throw hard, at least not accurately and consistently. My curveball looked more like a lobbed volleyball.This book highlights ten popular pitches: fastball, curveball, knuckleball, splitter, screwball, sinker, changeup, spitball, and cutter. Each chapter presents the story of each pitch, usually the historical and apocryphal narratives. The chapters also include interviews with pitchers old and new.One thing you learn quickly: everyone thinks some pitch is the most important, most devasting pitch in the world. Which is true and unexplainable. How is it that Mariano Rivera can throw pretty much the same pitch over and over and still be the best in baseball?This book had me torn. I felt like every chapter could be its own book, and there are several books out there that do. However, I also found each chapter lacking. I felt like I read ten long blog posts and not one book.All in all, a good but not great book.

There are many ways to watch a baseball game. The casual viewer simply watches the interplay between pitcher, batter and fielders. Whether the batter gets a hit or not seems simply a matter of chance.Following the expansion of Rotisserie leagues, analytics has allowed non-athletes another way of viewing the game. Statistics like WHIP or WAR enables one to chart the prowess of each pitcher or batter more accurately. Now the battle between pitcher and batter seems less a matter of chance and more a matter of probabilistic calculation.But there is a yet another way of watching the game. It is to understand the mechanics of how the pitcher chooses a pitch, grips a ball and the corresponding reaction of the batter.It is this view that K provides. If you are interested in learning what options are in a pitcher’s repertoire and how the sword fight between pitcher and batter persists pitch by pitch then you will enjoy K.Of course, all of this is illuminated by anecdotes from the greats of the game both past and present. If you don’t know baseball lore then K will be mostly unreadable. But given how many people still watch baseball and how many people still read books, I suspect most readers will have enough baseball knowledge to appreciate the book.A delight for baseball aficionados, this is a book for all those who want to watch the game with insight into what is really going on between pitcher and batter. Maybe not a classic but a genuine contribution to understanding a game which seems to have had so many books written about it that nothing more could be said. Highly recommended to fellow fans of the national pastime.

Tyler Kepner’s K: A veritable time machineThose of us who have had the good fortune to pitch a baseball in competition at any level should enjoy Tyler Kepner's inside view on the art of pitching. His book, K: A History of Baseball in 10 Pitches, covers various kinds of pitches, ball grip and release, finger pressure, and body mechanics, as well as the major-leaguers that mastered the art of delivering each of ten pitches. But that’s not all.Anecdotes from the great pitchers of the game, both past and present, spice-up the author’s narrative making the book an enjoyable read from start to finish. It was hard to put down as it rekindled fond memories of wins, losses, championships, and friendships of long ago.I had a baseball in hand as I read this well written book—learning the proper names for pitches I threw from the mid-1940s to the mid-1950s without the help of any kind of pitching coach that proliferate in today's game.. For me, the book was a veritable time machine. It literally transported me back to the days of my youth and early adulthood when I had a tryout with the Chicago White Sox in 1950 at age 19. If I only knew then what I know now.If you love baseball, you will enjoy this book while gaining a deeper understanding of the game and its players, as well as pitching strategy and tactics.

Each section of the book is a combination of "old style" baseball stories plus some good explanations of modern theories of velocity, spin, and movement metrics. I really enjoyed Kepner's stories of many non-Hall of Fame pitchers, because baseball is about much more than the "stars".By design, the book is not very coherent. It is really a collection of ten separate essays, each one about a different pitch -- its history, how it is thrown, and why many pitchers use it. There are some contradictions throughout the book. For example, four different chapters (curve, slider, changeup, and screwball) each claim that *this pitch* is the most effective off-speed pitch. Also, it would have been fun to hear more stories about when a supposedly super pitch doesn't work: fastballs with no movement, hanging curve balls, epic home runs, sign stealing, pitchers who tip off their pitches, and so on.

I believe this may be the best book ever written about pitching because it traces the history of ten different pitches that have actually been used in the game of baseball. Who ever knew there are actually ten pitches? This book traces the history of each of these pitches and the pitchers that used them on the Major League level. It also describes how each pitch is thrown. Simply a great book for any baseball enthusiast.

Though used, the book was in like new condition. I'm just starting to read it now and too early to tell on how good it will be. Book seems to talk about the art of pitching, quoting many major leaguers from years past to the present. Not disappointed yet.

Informative. Compelling. A "can't put it down delight".

Nice cover & very easy to read w) large print- bought for my older family member & they love it!!

Remplie d'histoires intéressante, belle découverte.

It's a book - I am reading it!

maitrise de l anglais recquis, livre tres intéressant retraçant l évolution des différents lancers du baseball, indispensable pour les passionnés