The Redheaded Outfield, and Other Baseball Stories

by Zane Grey

This book was converted from its physical edition to the digital format by a community of volunteers. You may find it for free on the web. Purchase of the Kindle edition includes wireless delivery.

Genres: Baseball, Sports, Classics, Ebooks, Fiction, Westerns

134 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1920

About the author

Pearl Zane Grey was an American author best known for his popular adventure novels and stories that presented an idealized image of the rugged Old West. As of June 2007, the Internet Movie Database credits Grey with 110 films, one TV episode, and a series, Dick Powell's Zane Grey Theater based loosely on his novels and short stories.

Reviews

[Gerald Matzke · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is actually a short story about baseball, one of Zane Gray’s other interests besides the old west. It is a humorous look at baseball in the 1920’s. Imagine a team having three outfielders with red hair and personalities that had as much flair as their red hair. One of them had a reputation for being unpredictable and this proved to be the source of the fun behind this story.

[Dianne · Rating 5 out of 5]

Have you ever read Zane Grey? Have you ever read a Zane Grey baseball story? Ya'll it's Field of Dreams time. The copyright is 1920 by Grosset & Dunlap, 1915 by Mc Clure Newspaper Syndicate!
When I tell you this girl thought she was in the stands every game, I mean story, it's true. There are several non-western books and I hope to read as many as I can. The language is quaint, picturesque and picture perfect and the stories are each a jewel in this book. Don't pass it up.

[John · Rating 3 out of 5]

Stilted and dated in places but good early baseball.

[Steve Bender · Rating 4 out of 5]

A really fun look back at the world of baseball when every town had several teams. These stories of minor league ball and town ball take you back. Neat read.

[K · Rating 2 out of 5]

I wasn’t expecting to like this book but I did, it made me laugh.

[Barry Cunningham · Rating 3 out of 5]

Light lunch-time reading.
Definitely sports nostalgia (or pre-nostalgia, since it describes a sports world of the 1920s or 1930s), pedestrian, and small-time.
I grew up watching the Pacific Coast League Los Angeles Angels, before the Dodgers moved to town, so, having liked some of Zane Grey's Westerns, I was willing to give this try. The minor leagues in this book are a lot more minor though, being set in smaller towns and sandlots, 20 to 30 years before I was watching the Angels. Not great plots or great sports writing, but a pleasant diversion.

[Nat Kidder · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well-written crisp narratives about minor-league baseball teams, with underlying plot device usually managers dealing with characters within and outside their teams.

Would have 5 stars except the Kindle edition has a few gaps and mis-imagings. Still, try to use an e-reader: much of the language is archaic.

Recommended for baseball history enthusiasts; others might find the stories confusing.

[Morton Mayer · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a collection of short stories about minor-league and town baseball. The time frame is early in then 20th century, when the fields, particularly for town ball, had no fences and fans could come almost to the foul lines. Some of the story lines are predictable, and some of the writing is somewhat stilted, but all evoke a time long passed. Readers who love baseball in all it's variety will love the stories in this book.

[Cliff Townsend · Rating 3 out of 5]

Some rather interesting stories but not that big of a baseball fan.