The title of Leavy’s book presents an immodest proposal, but one which could actually reverse the decline of baseball. Author of first-rate biographies of Sandy Koufax, Mickey Mantle, and Babe Ruth, Leavy sees the game’s loss of popularity as, in part, the result of so-called improvements. Chief among them are the deconstruction of performance into data points and the sport’s thralldom to analytics, along with the increasing dominion of AI. Also figuring are fiscal disparity among teams, acrimonious labor relations, a dwindling number of Black players, the steep price of admission, the hatcheting of minor league teams, MLB’s unholy embrace of gambling (about which she could have been more savage) and meddling with the ball and bases. Leavy reads this important, heartfelt book herself, and in her voice we hear passion for this greatest of all games and her sense of urgency about its fate. Though not a professional narrator, she is a compelling and personable one: humorous, annoyed, saddened and well-informed — with, moreover, the take-charge demeanor of a commissioner. (Grand Central, Unabridged, 13 hours 57 minutes)
Read more about the other titles selected in the Washington Post
(also ran in Vancouver Sun and Edmonton Journal)