On February 4 the Society for American Baseball Research announced the winner of its 2022 Seymour Medal. We not only published the winner of this year’s medal, but both of the finalists as well!

Steven Treder’s Forty Years a Giant: The Life of Horace Stoneham won the 2022 Seymour Medal, which honors the best book of baseball history or biography published during the preceding calendar year. Treder will receive his award during the 29th annual NINE Spring Training Conference on Saturday, March 5, 2022, in Tempe, Arizona.

Steven Treder unravels a common perception of Horace Stoneham as a nice enough fellow who had little business dealing with the likes of Branch Rickey and Walter O’Malley. Through extensive research, he shows Stoneham to be a shy, introverted man overshadowed by heavyweights like his father, John McGraw, Frankie Frisch, Leo Durocher, O’Malley, Willie Mays, and others. According to Treder, Stoneham in his quiet way held his own and accomplished a great deal. He loved the game, was loyal to his players, and tried to do right by the fans. He kept his beloved Giants competitive for most of his ownership. With little flair he helped to integrate the game by bringing in Negro League stars Mays, Monte Irvin, and Hank Thompson as well as Latin American luminaries Orlando Cepeda, Juan Marichal, and the Alou brothers (Felipe, Matty, and Jesus). Treder gives us a long underrated man who had an impressive resume.

– Seymour Medal Selection Committee

The other two finalists for the award were:

Jim Leeke’s The Best Team Over There: The Untold Story of Grover Cleveland Alexander and the Great War, Grover Cleveland Alexander was one of the greatest pitchers in baseball history, with 373 career victories during twenty seasons in the Major Leagues. Elected into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1938, the right-hander remains a compelling—and tragic—figure.

Lyle Spatz and Steve Steinberg’s Comeback Pitchers: The Remarkable Careers of Howard Ehmke & Jack Quinn, Comeback Pitchers is the inspirational story of these two great pitchers with intertwining careers who were repeatedly considered washed up and too old but kept defying the odds and thrilling fans long after most pitchers would have retired.

Congratulations to our authors and others who were considered for this award!