That old saying is exactly right: it is a funny game.

Surely no other sport can compare to baseball in its vast catalogue of silly quips and quotations, unforgettable characters, memorable nicknames, and inventive pranks. Maybe it’s because football’s too violent, basketball’s too frantic, and other pursuits too obscure, but the National Pastime’s always seemed to dominate when it comes to athletics’ version of funny business.

No one knows why that’s the case, exactly.

It might be based in the game’s long, long, long schedule, one that issues a special call to the kind of humor that adds some fizz to the wins, subtracts stress from the losses, and otherwise fills up the hours. The game’s unique combination of nail-biting tension and easy pacing probably attracts more than its fair share of tough-but-loose characters, too, the type who constantly search for both a competitive edge on the field and, then, more than a little tension-breaking laughter off the field. It may be natural for the ‘thinking man’s game’ to attract more than its share of quick-witted commentators. Finally, obviously, all Major Leaguers are given vast fame and fortune in order to pursue a personal passion, and the privilege in living a dream is enough to lend some jollity to just about any day.

Maybe it’s all the above.

While the multiple reasons behind it may be a bit unclear, baseball’s spirit of play is obvious enough- for those privileged enough to know it, the game of baseball can be a constant source of comedic joy. The following pages are intended to capture those laughing matters between two covers, and here’s hoping we have some fun with it.

from Peter’s website: The United States of Baseball