The ''Baseball Card Adventures'' is a novel series written by

Dan Gutman Dan Gutman (born October 19, 1955) is an American writer, primarily of children's fiction. His works include the '' Baseball Card Adventures'' children's book series that began with '' Honus & Me'', and the '' My Weird School'' series. Early li ...

. There are 12 books in the series, published by

HarperCollins HarperCollins Publishers LLC is one of the Big Five English-language publishing companies, alongside Penguin Random House, Simon & Schuster, Hachette, and Macmillan. The company is headquartered in New York City and is a subsidiary of News Cor ...

between 1997 and 2015. The books feature a boy, Joe Stoshack, who can travel through time when he touches old

baseball card A baseball card is a type of trading card relating to baseball, usually printed on cardboard, silk, or plastic. In the 1950s they came with a stick of gum and a limited number of cards. These cards feature one or more baseball players, teams, sta ...

s. When he holds a baseball card, he feels a tingling sensation, and when it gets strong, is transported to the year that card was made and somewhere near the ballplayer on the card. Later he discovers that this power also works on very old photographs. He tries to use this power wisely, and he attempts to change history several times, but the result is always something different from his original goal. The novels are typically illustrated with

black and white Black-and-white (B&W or B/W) images combine black and white in a continuous spectrum, producing a range of shades of grey. Media The history of various visual media began with black and white, and as technology improved, altered to color. ...

photos from the time period in which the story takes place. For example, when

Jackie Robinson Jack Roosevelt Robinson (January 31, 1919 – October 24, 1972) was an American professional baseball player who became the first African American to play in Major League Baseball (MLB) in the modern era. Robinson broke the baseball color line ...

steals second base in ''Jackie & Me'', a real photograph of Jackie Robinson stealing a base is pictured. Occasionally the books will also be illustrated with pictures taken exclusively for the book. ''The Cambridge Companion to Baseball'' in its review of baseball fiction calls the books "an eclectic enterprise" which "uninhibitedly embraces the genre's cliches." ''Library Journal'' called them "good examples" of traditional sports novels.

The books

''Honus & Me''

Joe Stoshack discovers the

T206 Honus Wagner The T206 Honus Wagner baseball card depicts the Pittsburgh Pirates' Honus Wagner, known as "The Flying Dutchman,” a dead-ball era baseball player who is widely considered to be one of the best players of all time. The card was designed and issue ...

, the most valuable baseball card in the world, while cleaning out an Ms. Amanda Young's attic. She is over 100 years old. Stoshack brings the card to a former bad guy wrestler, Birdie Farell. He tries to trick Joe into giving it to him for $10. Joe refuses. He uses it to travel back in time to 1909. Once Joe is in 1909, he discovers that he became a grown man. Joe helps

Honus Wagner Johannes Peter "Honus" Wagner (; February 24, 1874 – December 6, 1955), sometimes referred to as "Hans" Wagner, was an American baseball shortstop who played 21 seasons in Major League Baseball from 1897 to 1917, almost entirely for the Pitts ...

win the 7th game of the 1909 World Series, and travels back to the present to return the card to his neighbor. In 1909 he discovered Ms. Young is really Wagner's old girlfriend, and sends her back in time to be with him again.

''Jackie & Me''

Joe Stoshack was a ten year old boy who was assigned to do a book report on Jackie Robinson for black history month. Joe goes to Flip Valentini and borrows a 1947 Jackie Robinson card. Joe went back in time on the exact day Jackie Robinson broke the color barrier between the black league and the white league. Joe experiences what it is like to be an

African American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...

in a segregated society when he travels back to 1947 to watch

play, and while going back in time he accidentally himself turns black. He tries to bring back a bunch of Jackie Robinson cards, but the cards are stolen by the Dodgers' batboy, Anthony. Joe wants to go after him, but Jackie tells him it's not safe. In the story, Joe also meets Jackie's wife and son, Jackie Jr. Joe also meets Flip Valentini as a kid and gives him advice. ''School Library Journal'' called it "readable and accurate".

''Babe & Me''

Witnesses never agreed whether Babe Ruth called his shot. Like other baseball fans, Joe Stoshack wants to know the truth. Joe Stoshack and his father Bill travel back to the year 1932 and catch

Babe Ruth's called shot Babe Ruth's called shot is the home run hit by Babe Ruth of the New York Yankees against the Chicago Cubs in the fifth inning of Game 3 of the 1932 World Series, held on October 1, 1932, at Wrigley Field in Chicago. During the at-bat, Ruth made ...

in Game 3 of the 1932 World Series against the Chicago Cubs.

''Shoeless Joe & Me''

After Flip tells Stosh about the

Black Sox Scandal The Black Sox Scandal was a Major League Baseball game-fixing scandal in which eight members of the Chicago White Sox were accused of throwing the 1919 World Series against the Cincinnati Reds in exchange for money from a gambling syndicate led ...

, Stosh thinks that Shoeless Joe is innocent, and he goes back in time to try to stop it from ever happening. When he gets to 1919, three gamblers lock him in a closet because he knew about the scandal. Shoeless Joe's wife, Katie sets Stosh free and he tells Katie and Joe about the scandal. He fails to stop it but he saves his great-great uncle from dying from Influenza.

''Mickey & Me''

Joe's dad gets in a car crash, and fearing he might die, tells Joe his inheritance: a

Mickey Mantle Mickey Charles Mantle (October 20, 1931 – August 13, 1995), nicknamed "the Commerce Comet" and "the Mick", was an American professional baseball player. Mantle played his entire Major League Baseball (MLB) career (1951–1968) with the New York ...

rookie baseball card. He tells Joe to go back and prevent the terrible accident that negatively impacted Mantle's baseball career, so Joe travels back to 1951. However, Joe's cousin Samantha switches the Mantle card for a catcher of a women's league team,

Dorothy Maguire Dorothy Maguire (November 21, 1918 – August 2, 1981) was a catcher and outfielder who played from through in the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League. Maguire batted and threw right-handed. She also played under the name of Doroth ...

. When he goes back in time he took the job for the mascot of the

Milwaukee Chicks The Milwaukee Chicks were a women's professional baseball team which played in the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League during the season. They were managed by Max Carey, former star player for the Pittsburgh Pirates and Brooklyn Robi ...

''Abner & Me''

Joe goes back in time to see if

Abner Doubleday Abner Doubleday (June 26, 1819 – January 26, 1893) was a career United States Army officer and Union major general in the American Civil War. He fired the first shot in defense of Fort Sumter, the opening battle of the war, and had a pi ...

really invented baseball. This is the first and only story in the series where Stosh's mom travels through time. The two land in a war, and help fight with a group of kids. Stosh's mom helps save an injured person's life by using modern day medical techniques. The doctor is quite impressed. Soon Joe finds Abner, and gets the answer for his question in a very interesting way.

''Satch & Me''

Stosh and Flip Valentini go back in time with a radar gun to find out how fast

Satchel Paige Leroy Robert "Satchel" Paige (July 7, 1906 – June 8, 1982) was an American professional baseball pitcher who played in Negro league baseball and Major League Baseball (MLB). His career spanned five decades and culminated with his induction in ...

's pitching really was. Unfortunately, they never get to find out, attempting to do so several times only to have something go wrong in the last minute. Then Joe Stoshack leaves Flip Valentini in the past in a climactic chase scene, and Flip lives his life over again.

''Jim & Me''

Joe and his enemy Bobby Fuller go back to 1913, where they meet

Jim Thorpe James Francis Thorpe ( Sac and Fox (Sauk): ''Wa-Tho-Huk'', translated as "Bright Path"; May 22 or 28, 1887March 28, 1953) was an American athlete and Olympic gold medalist. A member of the Sac and Fox Nation, Thorpe was the first Native ...

, Bobby Fuller's great-grandfather. However, along the way they have several disagreements and fights.

''Ray & Me''

After Joe is hit in the head by a baseball and wakes up after two weeks in a coma, he learns about another baseball player who wasn't so lucky –

Ray Chapman Raymond Johnson Chapman (January 15, 1891 – August 17, 1920) was an American baseball player. He spent his entire career as a shortstop for the Cleveland Indians. Chapman was hit in the head by a pitch thrown by pitcher Carl Mays and died 1 ...

. When Joe recovers from his accident, he goes back to 1920 and attempts to save Chapman from being fatally struck in the head with a baseball.

''Roberto & Me''

Joe meets player and humanitarian

Roberto Clemente Roberto Enrique Clemente Walker (; August 18, 1934 – December 31, 1972) was a Puerto Rican professional baseball right fielder who played 18 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Pittsburgh Pirates. After his early death, he was pos ...

, before traveling forward to 2080 to see the damage caused by

global warming In common usage, climate change describes global warming—the ongoing increase in global average temperature—and its effects on Earth's climate system. Climate change in a broader sense also includes previous long-term changes to E ...

and he saves his Spanish teacher along the way.

''Ted & Me''

FBI The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is the domestic Intelligence agency, intelligence and Security agency, security service of the United States and its principal Federal law enforcement in the United States, federal law enforcement age ...

agent, who found out about Joe's power, comes and sends Joe back in time with a

Ted Williams Theodore Samuel Williams (August 30, 1918 – July 5, 2002) was an American professional baseball player and manager. He played his entire 19-year Major League Baseball (MLB) career, primarily as a left fielder, for the Boston Red Sox from 1939 ...

card to warn President

Franklin D. Roosevelt Franklin Delano Roosevelt (; ; January 30, 1882April 12, 1945), often referred to by his initials FDR, was an American politician and attorney who served as the 32nd president of the United States from 1933 until his death in 1945. As the ...

about the

attack on Pearl Harbor The attack on Pearl HarborAlso known as the Battle of Pearl Harbor was a surprise military strike by the Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service upon the United States against the naval base at Pearl Harbor in Honolulu, Territory of Hawaii, j ...

''Willie & Me''

On the advice of

Ralph Branca Ralph Theodore Joseph "Hawk" Branca (January 6, 1926 – November 23, 2016) was an American professional baseball pitcher who played 12 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB), from 1944 through 1956. Branca played for the Brooklyn Dodgers (1944� ...

, Joe travels back to 1951 to try to prevent the "

Shot Heard 'Round the World "The Shot Heard 'Round the World" is a phrase that refers to the opening shot of the battles of Lexington and Concord on April 19, 1775, which began the American Revolutionary War and led to the creation of the United States of America. It was an ...

", one of the most controversial home runs in baseball history. However, he soon realizes that by doing so, he may forever alter the life of a young rookie named

Willie Mays Willie Howard Mays Jr. (born May 6, 1931), nicknamed "the Say Hey Kid" and "Buck", is a former center fielder in Major League Baseball (MLB). Regarded as one of the greatest players ever, Mays ranks second behind only Babe Ruth on most all-tim ...

and not in a good way.

Titles in the series

Bibliography

* Anderson, Andrew. "In the Tradition of Chip, Horatio, and the Hardy Boys: Lessons for Life in Old Baseball Cards – Dan Gutman's ... & Me Novels", in Carino (2006), 16-25.

References

External links

Baseball Card Adventures
at Harper Collins (publisher) {{Sports cards Baseball Card Adventures Book series introduced in 1997 Series of children's books A