Spring is in the air and with it comes the start of baseball season. As the weather warms up I'm ready to get out and watch a baseball game. If you also enjoy watching or playing baseball but can't get to a game a book from this list of baseball stories can be a home run hit. So break out the peanuts and crackerjacks and slide into one of these baseball reads!
By Andrea Williams
New York: Harper, 2025. Fiction. 214 pgs.
Timonthy (Pumpsie) is twelve years-old and a huge baseball fan. His baseball team is doing great this year but he seems to be in a batting slump. His inability to hit may cause him to be benched for the rest of the season and he is desperate to find a way to break his no-hit batting streak. He feels like his luck may be changing when he gets the chance to go to a game and see his favorite player, Carter Langston, play in the playoffs with the Nashville Wildcats! The next day a chain of events are set in motion and Pumpsie finds himself back at the stadium but this time he is locked in for the night with a lost dog and two men who are up to no good.
This fun story will remind you a little of the movie Home Alone but at a baseball stadium. An amazing adventure that knocks it out of the park with exciting fun and wishes that do come true.
By Tamika Burgess
New York: HarperCollins Publisher, 2025. Fiction. 298 Pgs.
Danilo is a talented baseball player living in Panama. He shares a love of baseball with his father but when his father leaves the family in Panama to find work in the United States, Danilo's love for baseball leaves with him. Soon after his fathers departure, the U.S. military invades Panama, his families apartment is condemned, and they are forced to move into a hanger with other families who are now homeless. Danilo is desperate to find a way to help his family. When an opportunity to play baseball in the states comes his way, he agrees to go in hopes of finding his dad to get him to send money home to his family.
This is a fast paced coming of age story that gives readers a look into a historical event that isn't talked about much. An inspirational story about defining and following your dreams.
By Patricia MacLachlan
New York: Margaret K. McElderry Books, 2024. Fiction. 134 Pgs.
Lucy's father is a baseball player who is hoping to one day make it to the major leagues and Lucy has the same passion for baseball as him. Lucy spends her summer playing for the school baseball team while secretly working on her knuckleball pitch hoping to overcome her fear of the pitching mound. This is a quiet story about secrets and encouraging others to do their best. A short story that will appeal to baseball fans of all ages.
By Kwame Alexander
New York: Little, Brown and Company, 2024. Fiction. 372 pgs.
Charley is a twelve year-old black girl living in the south during segregation. She loves baseball and dreams of playing when she grows up. Her dreams are to someday be the star pitcher for the women's negro league. She just needs a chance to show everyone that even though she is a girl, she is the best pitcher in Jones Mill.
A powerful story that talks about sports, history, family, and self discovery.
By Heather Murphy Capps
Minneapolis, MN: Carolrhoda Books, 2024. Fiction. 297 Pgs.
Seventh grader Wyatt has always had a dream to play pro baseball. After achieving his first goal in his plan, life begins to go wrong for him. The bullying from some of his teammates escalates and something strange starts to happen to his body as well. Smoke begins to rise all around him whenever he gets angry or feels out of control. As he begins searching for answers to what is happening to him he uncovers a painful and traumatic family history. Wyatt must learn to not let his anger take control but to be the one in control of his anger.
This is a well written fantasy story that also brings in present-day along with the past.
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