The Diamond in the Bronx: Yankee Stadium and the Politics of New York

Neil J. Sullivan does a good job explaining some of the politics and corrutption surrounding the building and keeping of Yankee Stadium in N.Y. Being a native New Yorker I can relate to some of these events. Being a scholar as well, their are some things that I disagree with and some things tend to be repeat themselves in his book. He does go off subject some and then tries to tie it all together. I thought the book was a very good read! Steve Minn Graduate Student Sul Ross State University Alpine, Texas

This book was very interesting. I loved the way it recounted every detail in history about the stadium. It took you "behind the scenes" of New York's politicians and the stadium. It kept me interested. The whole time i felt like i was in New York in the 1920s, it gave me a whole new respect for baseball.

Although i felt the book started off rather slowly with a lot of discussion of politics and insignificant dates, further along came an extremely informative well written account of New York Stadium. The book isn't about the team itself, but the field in which they play and the significance of "the house." Sullivan's historic knowledge of the game of baseball will enthrall the reader with a variety of interesting facts beginning with the birth of the franchise all the way to present day activity.

This book will provide you with the history of the Yankees from the time they moved the Baltimore franchise to New York at the turn of the century to the present time. The various owners of the team from the time of Bill Devery and Frank Farrell with the original Highlanders is covered followed by the team's sale to Colonels Ruppert and Huston who were around for the opening of Yankee Stadium in 1923. Next came Del Webb, Dan Topping and Larry McPhail in the 1940's, the sale to CBS in the 1960's, and finally to George Steinbrenner and his cohorts in 1973. If you are looking for a book covering the team on the field history, this is not the book for you. This book will provide you with information covering the renovation of Yankee Stadium following the 1973 season and the role the various mayors played in Yankee Stadium. Ed Koch had no interest in baseball, John Lindsey came to Mike Burke who ran the team during the CBS years and offered to help the Yankees to the extent the city assisted the Mets. An interesting story is told regarding Dodger owner Walter O'Malley in his desire for a new stadium in Brooklyn. O'Malley, according to the author went to Robert Moses who was Chairman of the Mayor's Slum Clearance Committee to use his authority to condemn the property at Atlantic and Flatbush Avenues so he could purchase the land as a whole and not have to have O'Malley buy the property from each individual land owner which would drive up the price. Moses refused to do this and offered instead a chance for O'Malley to move the Dodgers to a public stadium in Queens. Instead O'Malley chose an opportunity to move to Los Angeles. There is a lot of politics in this book and the author has done a lot of work in this regard. I gave the book four stars instead of five because the discussion of politics and baseball got somewhat heavy at times.

I had this guy in the Fall of 2000 for Public Administration. AWESOME TEACHER!!. You rock Sullivan!