Selling Baseball: A Book Talk with Author Jeffrey Orens

The nineteenth century was a time of rapid growth and development for the game of "base ball," and players George Wright and Albert Spalding were right in the thick of it. These two young men, the first superstars of the professional game, won the hearts of a country in search of a unifying spirit after a devastating civil war.  Their rise as players and businessmen mirrored the rise of a nation that would lead the world in the coming century.

Through a PowerPoint presentation, as well as excerpts from his book, “Selling Baseball: How Superstars George Wright and Albert Spalding Impacted Sports in America” , author Jeffrey Orens will discuss the birth and maturation of baseball in the mid- to late-1800s as seen through their careers. 

Both men were stars on the field, then each retired and entered the sports equipment business and became hugely successful, in the process popularizing other sports such as tennis, golf, and hockey. They were friendly rivals for over forty years, both inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame for their accomplishments. While they came from starkly different backgrounds—Albert was a young, gangly pitcher from the country’s rural heartland and George the consummate athlete from the New York City area—their captivating performances on the field, along with their promotion of the game and of sports equipment, fed the public’s insatiable appetite for leisure-time pursuits and helped grow professional baseball to unprecedented heights.

George Wright and Albert Spalding’s stories are masterfully woven together in Orens’ book to paint a sweeping picture of the early days of professional baseball, the evolution of sports as a business, and the advancement of sports equipment and the sporting goods industry. Booklist has recently given the book a "Starred Review," terming it "a sneaky good baseball history."

Whether you're a sports enthusiast, an American history buff, or interested in biographies of people who have impacted American culture, this presentation will be something you won't want to miss. Copies of the book will be available for purchase.

Jeffrey Orens is a member of the Society for American Baseball Research (SABR) and his work has appeared in History Magazine, True West Magazine, and other historical publications. He is also the author of The Soul of Genius: Marie Curie, Albert Einstein and the Meeting that Changed the Course of Science. Orens resides in New Jersey.