New Book Traces Baseball's All-Star Game to a Forgotten Boston Gathering
Scott Reich's "One Day in September" revisits a century-old episode as MLB's All-Stars gather in Philadelphia
As Major League Baseball's best players take the field for this year's All-Star Game in Philadelphia, a new book is drawing attention to a little-known episode more than a century old that the author says led to the event's creation.
"One Day in September," by author Scott Reich, traces the origins of the All-Star Game to a gathering in Boston, according to PBS NewsHour, which featured Reich in a conversation with correspondent Jeffrey Brown for the network's arts and culture series, CANVAS. Reich argues that the event's roots reach further back than many fans realize, into a formative moment for the sport that helped shape how baseball celebrates its stars today.
The available reporting on the book does not detail what specifically took place at that Boston gathering — only that Reich identifies it as the episode from which the All-Star Game grew. The book's release coincides with this year's All-Star festivities in Philadelphia, offering a reminder that the midseason tradition has a history longer, and less familiar, than fans may assume.
— Compiled from reporting by PBS NewsHour.