The empire strikes out : how baseball sold U.S. foreign policy and promoted the American way abroad

It\u27s our game . . . America\u27s game: it has the snap, go, fling of the American atmosphere--belongs as much to our institutions, fits into them as significantly as our Constitution\u27s laws, [and] is just as important in the sum total of our historic life.--WALT WHITMAN SPEAKING ABOUT BASEBALL Is the face of American baseball throughout the world that of goodwill ambassador or ugly American? Has baseball crafted its own image or instead been at the mercy of broader forces shaping our society and the globe? The Empire Strikes Out gives us the sweeping story of how baseball and America are intertwined in the export of the American way. From the Civil War to George W. Bush and the Iraq War, we see baseball\u27s role in developing the American empire, first at home and then beyond our shores. And from Albert Spalding and baseball\u27s first World Tour to Bud Selig and the World Baseball Classic, we witness the globalization of America\u27s national pastime and baseball\u27s role in spreading the American dream. Besides describing baseball\u27s frequent and often surprising connections to America\u27s presence around the world, Elias assesses the effects of this relationship both on our foreign policies and on the sport itself and asks whether baseball can play a positive role or rather only reinforce America\u27s dominance around the globe. Like Franklin Foer in How Soccer Explains the World, Elias is driven by compelling stories, unusual events, and unique individuals. His seamless integration of original research and compelling analysis makes this a baseball book that\u27s about more than just sports.https://repository.usfca.edu/read_books/1001/thumbnail.jp