Howard Bryant

In "The Last Hero", Bryant chronicles Aaron's childhood in segregated Alabama, his brief stardom in the Negro Leagues, his complicated relationship with celebrity, and his historic rivalry with Willie Mays--all culminating in the defining event of his life: his shattering of Babe Ruth's all-time home-run record. Bryant also examines Aaron's more complex second act: his quest to become an important voice beyond the ball field.

"Few names in the history of baseball evoke the excellence and dynamism that Rickey Henderson's does. He holds the record for the most stolen bases in a single game, and he's scored more runs than any player ever. "If you cut Rickey Henderson in half, you'd have two Hall of Famers," the baseball historian Bill James once said. But perhaps even more than his prowess on the field, Rickey Henderson's is a story of Oakland, California, the town that gave...

Presents a history of America's pastime that discusses many of its most notable players, teams, rivalries, and moments, from Jackie Robinson's breaking of the color barrier to the home run race between Sammy Sosa and Mark McGwire.

An anthology of top-selected sports writing from the past year is culled from hundreds of national, regional, and specialty publications as well as a variety of leading sports blogs.