Today I'm sending the files for the newest incarnation of 21: The Illustrated Journal of Outsider Baseball to the printer. The idea for this journal began with a blog I started in February of 2010 with this very blog, “The Infinite Baseball Card Set”. While the website was and still is fun, I longed to create something that I could hold in my hands; so, in 2011, I put out a 20 page test edition of 21, which featured Jewish ballplayers. While a good first step, I wasn’t quite happy with the result and followed it up in 2012 with a 40-page hardcover volume 2 of 21. I was much happier with this, but it proved too costly to self-publish, and the run was limited to 100 copies. What this second volume did do was convince Simon and Schuster to publish The League of Outsider Baseball: An Illustrated History of Baseball’s Forgotten Heroes, my 240 page hardcover book that was very well reviewed when released in 2015.
Moving forward, I decided that I wanted to try another edition of 21. At 72 pages, this shorter journal format allows me to (hopefully) publish a few issues a year and gives me the flexibility to do some additional features, such as a demonstration of an illustration in process, historical uniform research, and book reviews. I spent more than two years experimenting with different layouts, finally settling on this final one.
Although this volume was written and illustrated solely by myself, in the future I would like to collaborate with other baseball historians, fans, and writers. I think 21 can bring something new to the table that fans of baseball history have been waiting for. I’m not aiming to start an academic journal; there are plenty of those already. Instead, I would like 21 to be a colorful trip through baseball’s past, the stories told just like the ones passed down to me by my father and grandfather.
Hi Gary...I am fascinated with what I have just read about "21 Journal". I am another baseball junkie although I worked in the game for a long time, then published my story in "The Passion of Baseball" last fall. Excerpts from my book might appeal to you since I go back into the '40s, '50s, etc. I can send you a copy of the manuscript if you would like. I can be reached at RWirz@aol.com or 203 380-9931 or 203 858-4890. Best of luck.
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