Peter Golenbock's "Bums: An Oral History of the Brooklyn Dodgers"

It came out in 1984, but I'm reading it for the first time. What a great book -- I'm learning so much about the players and the power brokers (MacPhail, Rickey, O'Malley etc).

The first thing that struck me was the continual power struggles that went on behind the scenes. The Brooklyn front office almost seemed like a small Latin American country, with periodic coups as one dictator after another seized control. To me, it's as fascinating as the game on the field.

The triumvirate that I mentioned above were all complex individuals, and it is difficult to make judgements about any of them. Rickey in particular is difficult to fathom. He was an odd mix of piousness, parismony and paternalism. He could be short-sighted, but he could also be incredibly progressive.

I'd highly recommend this to any baseball fan with an interest in the Dodgers and the Golden Age.