An online magazine of baseball storytelling. Contribute today.
News like this only makes clearer what others have already noted: URL shortening services aren’t good for the web.
But short URLs have their uses, notably in print and on Twitter. This site will be on Twitter shortly, and I hope to make a print version (details still being sorted out) of the Chronicle available someday, so: The Baseball Chronicle now offers its own short URLs.
As long as the site exists, these URLs will too. No link rot, no obfuscation—just handy little URLs. You can find them in the sidebar, next to every story on the site.
Here’s an example: http://bbchron.com/go/129 sends you to http://thebaseballchronicle.com/personal_stories/50_years_a_cubs_fan_part_one
Enjoy, and happy linking.
—August 12, 2009
All stories on the site can now be viewed in printer-friendly form. On any story page, click on “Printer-friendly version” to access the stripped-down story.
Here’s an example: http://thebaseballchronicle.com/fiction/the_rocket_a_tall_tale.print
If you find a bug, please leave a comment below.
—July 30, 2009
Beginning today, The Baseball Chronicle is switching from theme-based submissions to rolling submissions.
The change allows contributors to send in anything, anytime, with almost no restrictions. If the story’s good, I’ll find a place for it on the site.
This site’s purpose has always been to share great stories, thought-provoking opinions and essays, and much more, all with a common thread—great baseball writing. That will never change; the new rolling submissions system only makes that sharing easier, and opens the site to timely—though always thoughtful and measured—commentary and reviews.
The submission line is wide open: editor AT thebaseballchronicle.com
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I first imagined The Baseball Chronicle as a podcast—a stirring blend of oral history and storytelling, with some commentary thrown in. It was to be a baseball show as done by NPR or PRI.
But I decided the possibilities for a baseball storytelling website, not just a podcast, were far more exciting and, well, as a guy who’s only barely dabbled outside the world of text, attainable. And, I told myself, I could always add a podcast to the website later.
So that’s what I’ve done. It’s certainly not a professional production, but it’ll get better, (hopefully) moving closer to that original goal.
For the inaugural episode, I interviewed Marty Appel, author of the new biography, “Munson: The Life and Death of a Yankee Captain.” I’m still very new to podcasting, so I’ll apologize in advance for the verbal tics and general mediocrity of the thing. But it will get better.
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Putting these announcements together: I’m also looking for submissions for the podcast. Send your ideas—please, no .mp3s—to the address above, and we’ll go from there.
Until next time, thanks for reading (and listening, too!).
—July 17, 2009
I’ve received some great submissions, but I would love to see more. If you’ve got an interesting story or essay, please do send it my way by June 15.
Did you ever cheat during a ballgame? Know someone who did? Or perhaps you’ve got a interesting take on cheating. If it’s compelling—be it a story, interview, essay or review—I’ll publish it.
You can send your submissions to editor @ thebaseballchronicle.com . Thanks.
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Also: Sorry about the inactivity on the site this week and last. My computer’s logic board failed last Wednesday night, leaving me without a computer for over a week. But all is now well.
—June 5, 2009
The Internet is a wonderful thing.
Information of all varieties can be sent by anyone to anyone — all with the click of a button. As a democratizing force, the Internet is unparalleled. The publishing of media is no longer restricted to the wealthy, elite or even news organizations. Anyone with a computer and an Internet connection — or even simply a cell phone — can share his or her thoughts with the world at no cost and with almost no technical skills.
In the baseball world, wonderful sites like Baseball Reference, Baseball Prospectus and The Hardball Times, to name but a few, have given countless fans a greater understanding of the game with free — or very cheap — access to in-depth analysis and statistics. And blogs, Twitter and social media sites provide a venue for discussion and debate among fans — and even players have joined in. There has never been a better time to be a baseball fan, with information so ubiquitous and accessible.
But the Web, for all its merits, has a nasty vice. Because publishing is now instantaneous and available to everyone, knee-jerk and sensational reactions are all too common, as is the undying thirst to be first. Look no further than the typical blog’s comments section, or the typical blog itself. And news organizations aren’t exempt — they’re often driving sensationalism forward, looking to be first with a hot headline or scurrilous scoop. And something important often gets left behind.
On Friday, Baseball Prospectus’ Will Carroll asked:
Do we have to have everything right now, or would we be better served to step back, take a breath, watch an episode of Dollhouse, and then write? I think so. I’m not going to be first on some stories and I’m going to stay away from the rumor mills. I’m just going to try to be the best at what I do … on my pace.
That’s a sentiment with which I could not more whole-heartedly agree. Sure, there’s value in publishing new information as quickly as possible — but is the value of speed worth the loss of critical thought, reflection and context?
Glenn Stout wrote in 2007:
A measure of creative freedom exists both online and in larger formats such as books that is rapidly disappearing in newspapers and magazines.
But on the Web, that creative freedom all too often goes unexercised. Information about baseball flows freely, but great storytelling — great writing, even — is harder to find amid all the noise. Baseball is known for its literary tradition, but that ethos — championed by greats like Roger Angell and Red Smith — has yet to truly manifest on the Web.
The Baseball Chronicle aims to help fill that void. Web publishing need not be dominated by its potential velocity. There’s a place for the latest headlines and data, but there’s also a place for the carefully-crafted narrative and thought-provoking essay — and this is such a place. Statistics are deeply entrenched in the game, as they should be, but stories are just as much a part of baseball, and have just as much tradition, as numbers.
And so, I welcome you to The Baseball Chronicle, an online magazine of baseball storytelling. Every month will have a theme, and during that month the Chronicle will publish stories, essays and more based on the chosen theme. At the Chronicle, we think the narrative — of a moment, a game, a season — is a thing to be celebrated, and we hope you do too.
Enjoy.
—April 4, 2009