Analytics, technology, and the most ambitious rewrite of the rulebook in fifty years have reshaped baseball. Benjamin G. Rader’s account of the American pastime moves from diamonds scratched out of commons and corn fields to the multimedia theme parks doubling as today’s baseball stadiums. The fifth edition follows the long arc of the game’s history into the third decade of the twenty-first century, an era rich in innovation but even richer from revenue streams undreamt-of by the plutocrats of old. Rader brings readers up to date with looks at the Astros cheating scandal, on-the-field changes from power pitchers to ghost runners, data-driven player development and career rebirth, and the one-of-a-kind Shohei Ohtani.

Engrossing and complete, Baseball, Fifth Edition, offers a comprehensive tour of the game and its place within American society and culture.