232 pages
8 tables
When Major League Baseball first expanded in 1961 with the addition of the Los Angeles Angels and the Washington Senators, it started a trend that saw the number of franchises almost double, from sixteen to thirty, while baseball attendance grew by 44 percent. The story behind this staggering growth, told for the first time in Baseball’s New Frontier, is full of twists and unexpected turns, intrigue, and, in some instances, treachery. From the desertion of New York by the Brooklyn Dodgers and the New York Giants to the ever-present threat of antitrust legislation, from the backroom deals and the political posturing to the impact of the upstart Continental League, the book takes readers behind the scenes and into baseball’s decision-making process.
Fran Zimniuch gives a lively team-by-team chronicle of how the franchises were awarded, how existing teams protected their players, and what the new teams’ winning (or losing) strategies were. With its account of great players, notable characters, and the changing fortunes of teams over the years, the book supplies a vital chapter in the history of Major League Baseball.
Foreword
Acknowledgments
Introduction
1. Go West Young Men
2. The Continental League
3. The First Expansion--1961: The Los Angeles Angels and the Washington Senators
4. The First Expansion Part Deux--1962: The Houston Colt .45s and the New York Mets
5. The Second Wave--1969: The Kansas City Royals, Seattle Pilots, San Diego Padres, and Montreal Expos
6. The Pendulum of Power Swings to the Players
7. North by Northwest--1977: The Toronto Blue Jays and the Seattle Mariners
8. Thin Air and Immediate Success--1993: The Colorado Rockies and the Florida Marlins
9. Baseball's Final Expansion?--1998: The Arizona Diamondbacks and the Tampa Bay Devil Rays
10. Expanding on Expansion
11. Bottom Feeding: Taking Advantage of the New Kids in Town
12. The Characters of Expansion Who Have Brightened the Game
13. Baseball's Brave New World: Where We've Been and What the Future Holds
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