History of Nachoman's Baseball

In 2005, the “Nachoman’s Baseball” internet column appeared for the first time (read the very first column via this link).

The column’s goal was to fill a still-vacant ecological niche. It’s possible to find excellent reporting about local teams and their games; it’s also possible to read well-written, nationally syndicated debate about players, themes, and other baseball gossip. That said, it is NOT easy to find a national column that covers specifics about the games themselves. “Nachoman’s Baseball” took some inspiration from Gregg Easterbrook’s “Tuesday Morning Quarterback,” in that the columns were long-winded, discussed details about games, and included the occasional interesting but irrelevant tangent.

Through the first few months of 2005 and 2006, the column was posted on a weekly basis; it tended to die out in mid-summer, as I found myself occupied with physics-related travel and football-related season preparation. In the 2007 season, I hardly posted at all. Instead, I wrote two books (The Everything Kids’ Football Book and The Everything Kids’ Baseball Book, 5th ed., both to be available in stores in early 2008). Despite this productivity, I missed writing the column.

Now, of course, it’s too late to write a true “Nachoman’s Baseball” column – baseball season is over, and the column’s primary mandate is to discuss the games themselves. But, now I actually have time to write. Woodberry Forest School, where I teach, has granted me a sabbatical, meaning that I don’t have to write a physics quiz or grade a problem set for three months. Freedom to write is mine, for the moment.

I thought it would be interesting to reformat “Nachoman’s Baseball” as a blog, at least for a while. For five weeks in January, I will be involved in a special offseason baseball endeavor (details to come in the next post). This blog will contain updates about my experience, along with other commentary about the general sports world as it occurs to me. Reader comments are encouraged; regular contributors will earn a nacho-related theme name!

Until I post again, feel free to relive classic columns at the nachoman's homepage.