Greatness in Waiting : An Illustrated History of the Early New York Yankees, 1903-1919

Before they acquired Babe Ruth or won a single championship, the New York Yankees (nee Highlanders) were a team that inspired the strongest of feelings in baseball circles. Stars such as Jack Chesbro, Hal Chase, and Brooklyner Willie Keeler drew loud followings, and the team made loyal fans of those who disliked the cross-town Giants or Dodgers. Even Ban Johnson prized the franchise, which gave his upstart American League a foothold in the nation's most populous city. Baltimoreans, on the other hand, nurtured an animus toward the team, which only a few years earlier had been called the Orioles. And former Orioles manager John McGraw hatched a plan, along with Giants owner Andrew Freedman, to sabotage the new club. This heavily illustrated volume combines a fully documented history of the deadball-era Yankees with 195 photos of the people, places, and events that figured prominently in the story.