Trophies and Scars
By Ray Evernham and Joe Garner
Octane Press, March 5
The NASCAR Hall of Famer goes deep on his life and decorated motorsports career, walking readers through the pain of an unrealized dream as a driver that fueled his rise as the architect of championship-caliber racing teams, his turn as a TV personality and more.
Charlie Hustle: The Rise and Fall of Pete Rose, and the Last Glory Days of Baseball
By Keith O’Brien
Pantheon, March 26
Bestselling author O’Brien tackles the complexity of one of baseball’s most polarizing figures in this wide-ranging biography, pulling from the archives and interviews with Rose himself to detail the glory and the agony of a legend shrouded in scandal — and the cultural forces at work around him.
Rainmaker: Superagent Hughes Norton and the Money-Grab Explosion of Golf from Tiger to LIV and Beyond
By Hughes Norton and George Peper
Atria Books, March 26
The well-known agent of stars such as Tiger Woods and Greg Norman shares tales from his storied career and insights on the current state of professional golf, detailing his personal and professional challenges against the larger backdrop of the sport’s transformation into big business.
Game On: How Sports Media Grew Up, Sold Out, and Got Personal with Billions of Fans
By David Bockino
University of Nebraska Press, April 1
Amid a time of upheaval for sports media, a former ESPN marketer turned professor traces not only the industry’s rise and various innovations, but how its formerly monolithic approach is becoming increasingly specialized.
A Mic for All Seasons: My Three Decades Announcing the NFL, NHL, NBA, MLB, and Olympics
By Kenny Albert
Triumph Books, April 16
The only play-by-play broadcaster who calls all Big Four leagues in North America gives readers a look at his life in the booth, charting his path into the family business and dishing on his most memorable moments.
Rare Gems: How Four Generations of Women Paved the Way For the WNBA
By Howard Megdal
Triumph Books, May 7
Journalist Megdal provides this authoritative look at the trailblazers who built the foundation for women’s basketball, ranging from the barnstorming Elvera “Peps” Neuman, who took matters into her own hands pre-Title IX, to the present-day and rising superstars like Paige Bueckers, who are poised to continue elevating the sport.
Baseball: The Movie
By Noah Gittell
Triumph Books, May 14
Writer and critic Gittell explores the intersection of sports and pop culture with this examination of both well-loved and little-known baseball films, an enduring subgenre of cinema that is uniquely American.
Leave While the Party’s Good: The Life and Legacy of Baseball Executive Harry Dalton
By Lee C. Kluck
University of Nebraska Press, June 1
Historian Kluck shines a light on the under-recognized Dalton, a 40-plus-year veteran of MLB front offices who built a dynasty with the Baltimore Orioles, steered the Milwaukee Brewers to a league pennant and is considered by some to be the first modern baseball executive.
The Early Days of ESPN: 300 Daydreams and Nightmares
By Peter Fox
Lyons Press, June 4
ESPN’s founding executive producer takes readers behind the scenes of the network’s modest origins, and how a chaotic, gaffe-filled first 300 days nevertheless led to the dominant sports network we know today.
Nobody Cares About Your Career: Why Failure Is Good, the Great Ones Play Hurt, and Other Hard Truths
By Erika Ayers Badan
St. Martin’s Press, June 11
The former CEO of Barstool Sports, who has a breadth of experience from large corporations to smaller startups, offers an irreverent how-to manual for those considering a career reboot or otherwise trying to find themselves professionally.
