I also would like to congratulate Steve Steinberg, Lyle Spatz and Mitchell Nathanson for their award-winning books!

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“The 2025 Sporting News-SABR Baseball Research Awards, which honor outstanding research projects completed during the preceding calendar year that have significantly expanded our knowledge or understanding of baseball, have been awarded to:

Steve Steinberg and Lyle Spatz, Mike Donlin: A Rough and Rowdy Life from New York Baseball Idol to Stage and Screen (University of Nebraska Press)

Mitchell Nathanson, Under Jackie’s Shadow: Voices of Black Minor Leagues Baseball Left Behind (University of Nebraska Press)

Derek Bain and John Racanelli, Hardball Retro’s Compendium of
Baseball Video Games and Electronic Handhelds (Self-published)”

Source: SABR – 2025 Sporting News-SABR Baseball Research Award winners announced

available now at Amazon for $29.99 (paperback) and $9.99 (Kindle)

Celebrating 50 years of our pixelated National Pastime, this compendium documents the pertinent details for baseball video games and electronic handheld games released in the last half-century and follows the evolution of the genre. Game ratings and reviews for hundreds of baseball games are included along with interviews of designers, programmers and pioneers of the computer, video and handheld gaming industry – Don Daglow, Eddie Dombrower, Lance Haffner, Mark Lesser, Tom Tippett and Glen Wolfram. The authors wish to encourage readers to explore these games, both past and present, create your own teams and leagues, and share those results with fellow baseball gaming and simulation enthusiasts!

400 pages, full-color

Book Discussions / Promotional Appearances

SABR’s Emil Rothe Chicago Chapter – John Racanelli and Derek Bain present “A Brief History of Baseball Video Games and Electronic Handhelds” – April 29, 2026

Hittin’ Season: A Philadelphia Phillies podcast (WHYY) – Derek Bain and John Racanelli drop by to discuss their book, “Hardball Retro’s Compendium of Baseball Video Games and Electronic Handhelds,” with Justin Klugh of Baseball Prospectus. – June 20, 2025

Romantic About Baseball podcast – Jason Wood and Bruce Sarte interview Derek Bain – June 11, 2025

Sports Sim Magazine – “A Sports Sim Roundtable Examines the Charm and Torment of All-Time Greats Gaming Sets” – by Dan Verdun – May 2025 (Issue 20)

Beatles Eternally – “A Saturday Night Baseball Chinwag with Authors Derek Bain and John Racanelli” – March 22, 2025

SABR Games and Simulations – John Racanelli and Derek Bain discuss their book, “Hardball Retro’s Compendium of Baseball Video Games and Electronic Handheld. – January 8, 2025

Praise for Hardball Retro’s Compendium of Baseball Video Games & Electronic Handhelds

“Hardball Retro’s Compendium is a nostalgic treasure trove for baseball video game enthusiasts. (Authors) Bain and Racanelli take readers on a journey through baseball’s digital evolution… Packed with updated insights, interviews with legendary game designers, and reflections from players, this book is both a time capsule and a celebration of baseball’s virtual past. A must-read for fans of baseball and gaming history alike!” – Jamie Marshall, Sports Games Journal