December 8, 2025

Dear Peter:

With an original cover illustration of Lou Gehrig designed by SABR member Gary Cieradkowski, we hope you enjoy the e-book edition of the Fall 2025 Baseball Research Journal! Anyone who has subscribed to the print edition should receive their copy in the mail in the next 2-4 weeks.

Click on a link below to download the PDF, EPUB/Kindle, or MOBI files for the Fall 2025 Baseball Research Journal, Vol. 54, No. 2, to your computer.

• PDF: To download the PDF file for the Fall 2025 Baseball Research Journal, click here (4.1 MB)
• EPUB/Kindle: To download the EPUB file — for use on Kindles, iBooks, iPads, Nook or Sony Reader — for the Fall 2025 Baseball Research Journal, click here (9.1 MB)
• MOBI: To download the MOBI file for the Fall 2025 Baseball Research Journal, click here (22.1 MB)

Welcome our new editor Liz Roscher on her first issue of the BRJ! As Liz writes, “Many of my most cherished memories have been made at SABR Conventions. I never dreamed I’d one day be working for the organization that has brought me so much joy, knowledge, and camaraderie. … The authors of the articles you’re about to read have used their passion for the game to write about aspects of it that thrill them. In this issue, we’ve got articles about the history of early baseball, the invention of a new statistic, the discovery of a lost accomplishment of a legendary player, and someone even did research on other types of baseball research. With every issue, I want to share with you some of the most interesting work being done by our members, in the hope that you’ll learn something that will enrich your love of the game.”

Having trouble downloading our e-books? Click here for step-by-step instructions or a short tutorial video on how to download SABR digital publications. 

If you have any questions, concerns, or problems with your BRJ subscription, including lost or missing issues, credit card updates, or if you wish to subscribe and receive future print editions, please send an email to BRJsubscribe@sabr.org.

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TABLE OF CONTENTS 

NINETEENTH CENTURY BASEBALL

• Swifts, Slows, and Batteries: A Chronology of the 1868 Championship Season, by David Rader
• Did the American Association of 1882–91 Achieve Parity with the National League?, by Woody Eckard

EARLY TWENTIETH CENTURY BASEBALL AT HOME AND ABROAD

• The Disappearance of the Nippon Cup: Early Japanese Participation in Australian Baseball, by Ray Nickson
• The 1915 Army Baseball Team at West Point Record: Five Future Generals and an 18–3, by Stephen V. Rice
• Lou Gehrig’s Three “Lost” Home Runs, by Robert Muldoon
• The End of the Spitball: Sloppy, Dirty, Disgusting … and Almost Impossible to Get Rid Of, by Mike Lackey

REFERENCE

• Some of the Least Explored Resources: Dissertations and Theses on the Subject of Baseball (1908–2024), by Tom Reinsfelder

STATISTICS, NEW AND NEWER

• Hitter and Catcher Adaptation in Major League Baseball, by Charles Steinhardt and Zack Borowiak
• Saves Above Expected: A New Contextual Metric for Closers, by David J. Gordon

STATS AND HISTORY

• Two Pitchers, Same Team: Comparing Bob Feller and Satchel Paige, by Matthew Jacob
• Last At-Bat Heroics, by Douglas Jordan
• A Quick History of Offensive Statistics: Which Is Top of the Pops?, by William MacLean
• The Diamond Chess Strategy: Pitcher-to-Fielder-to-Pitcher In-Game Maneuvers, by Herm Krabbenhoft

To learn more about contributing to a future SABR publication, click here.

— Cecilia Tan
SABR Publications Director

Related links:

• Buy the magazine: Purchase the print edition of the Fall 2025 Baseball Research Journal from Amazon.com.
• Read online: Articles from the Fall 2025 Baseball Research Journal will be available to read online soon at SABR.org.

This email was sent to peter.hovis@gmail.com from the Society for American Baseball Research (SABR). If you wish to stop receiving email from us, you can simply remove yourself by clicking here to unsubscribe. 

Mailing address: SABR, PO Box 1715, Milwaukee, WI 53201. Physical address: Cronkite School at ASU, 555 N. Central Ave. #406-C, Phoenix, AZ 85004. Website: SABR.org. Phone: 602-496-1460.