Here’s one of features that baseball readers will find in Baseball’s Winning Ways by J. D. Thorne:

Baseball Cards

Trade cards were collectable cards that were given away when some products were bought. They would feature and promote products offered by certain tradesmen. Around since the 1700s, trade cards became more popular with color lithography in the late 1800s. The topics covered expanded from advertising messages to subjects of interest to consumers. These ranged from serious images of the U.S. presidents to humorous ones that gave exaggerated views of family life. There were cards with famous person caricatures, beautiful outdoor scenes, ships, Native Americans, and more. Like other types of advertising, some images were offensive for various reasons.

Baseball comes alive for fans because of the action and the personalities of the players. Original trading cards of baseball players came free with tobacco products. Eventually, they would become available on many different types of products like milk, cereal, and bread. Sold separately as well, they have been a kind of social media component of baseball since its early history. Fans have collected cards for fun. They talk about baseball cards. They trade baseball cards. Today, we use the term “trading cards” for baseball cards. For young fans, it’s hard to imagine an easier way to learn about favorite players, teams, and the competition.

In Baseball’s Winning Ways you will see biographies of some of the greatest baseball players in history along with some of the stars today. These are our “baseball cards” for this book. We also include drawings by Bill Potter that feature quizzes similar to those on classic versions of baseball cards.

Our Table of Contents:

CONTENTS

Baseball Is a Beautiful Game………………………………… iii

Breaking Down Baseball by Eras…………………………….1

Baseball Cards…..……….…………………………………………3

Players…………………………………………………………………4

Origins and Early History…………………………………….65

20^th Century Story of Baseball and America….….……68

21^st Century Baseball….…….……….…………………………96

Negro Leagues…..………….…………………………………..100

Drama of Baseball…..…………………………………………103

Baseball’s Popularity……………………………………….…104

Baseball’s Measuring Sticks….…….………………..…….105

Superstition in Baseball….…………………………….……108

Make a New Plan…………..………………..…………………112

Winning Ways…..………………………………………………115

Ben Franklin’s Chart on Virtues……….…………………120

Baseball’s Winning Ways Charts..…….…………………122

Making the Cut………….………………………………………134

Playing Fair………………….…………………………………..136

Glossary……….…………….…….………………………………140

Quiz…………….………………….……………………………….168

Exercise on Franklin’s Virtues…………………………….173

Discussion Questions…….…..………………………………175

Photos and Illustrations Credits.…………………………179

Index……………..…………………..…………………………….181

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