Chris Von der Ahe and the St. Louis Browns

Bearing uncanny similarity to the iron-willed personas of contemporary baseball owners such as Marge Schott and George Steinbrenner, Von der Ahe was embroiled in legal battles and baseball disputes throughout the 1880s that culminated in his own kidnapping and his ballpark being burned to the ground. Such a financial disaster is only one of the many bizarre events discussed in this insightful and evocative biography of one of America’s early baseball owners. Chris Von der Ahe emigrated from Germany to the United States in 1867 and settled in St. Louis, Missouri. Starting out as a clerk in a grocery store, he soon succeeded in buying the grocery store and establishing a saloon in the back. Although Von der Ahe had no special interest in sports, he did notice that fans liked to drop by after a ball game and have a beer. Seeing a natural link between baseball and his saloon, Von der Ahe sponsored an American Association baseball team called the St. Louis Browns, the head of a lineage that includes the present day St. Louis Cardinals. Although the American Association lasted for only ten years, Von der Ahe’s Browns captured the pennant four years in a row. This roller-coaster ride through early American baseball makes for a story of luck, pluck, and bravado. Seymour Medal Finalist in 2000 which honors the best book of baseball history or biography published during the preceding calendar year. Read more