El Beisbol: Travels Through the Pan-American Pastime

This book truly brings the world of Latin baseball to life. Mixing history, travel writing, sports enthusiasm & politics, Krich documents the (declining) importance of baseball in the Latin American countries closest to the US & its influence. He struggles on occasion because he alternately refutes & repeats stereotypes about Latinos, players & nonplayers alike. Some reference material (e.g. a reading list, maps, etc.) would make the book more useful, but overall it is both amusing & insightful, notably on the politics of baseball in US-Nicaraguan relations. Students in my Latin American history class have shown a keen interest in it. It should be brought back into print!