"Tinker to Evers to Chance examines this pivotal moment in American history, when baseball became the game we know today. Each man came from a different corner of the country and brought a distinctive local culture with him: Evers from the Irish-American hothouse of Troy, New York; Tinker from the urban parklands of Kansas City, Missouri; Chance from the verdant fields of California's Central Valley. The stories of these early baseball stars shed unexpected light not only on the evolution of baseball and on the enthusiasm of its players and fans all across America, but also on the broader convulsions transforming the US into a confident new industrial society. With them emerged a truly national culture."--Inside dust jacket

Preface: "Baseball's sad lexicon" -- Baseball's golden era and dark age --

Boys to men.

Irish game: Johnny Evers in Troy -- Midwestern game: Joe Tinker in Kansas City -- Western game: Frank Chance in Fresno --

Chicago century.

Baseball revival, 1903-1905 -- Baseball insanity, 1906 --

Dynastic cycles.

Conquest into culture, 1907 -- Team of destiny, 1908 -- Destiny dissolves, 1909-1912 -- Epilogue: Hall of Fame