Mr. Bardenwerper found in this sometimes-ignored town and team a purity that the big leagues have relinquished in the rush for big money ... This is a story about sporting competition, but really it is a tale about community.
A reminder of the many things Americans love about the sport ... The book is not without flaws. It hovers between memoir and narrative nonfiction, but isn’t really either; it lacks the introspection of memoir and some of the important elements of narrative. ... Clichés, it must be said, abound ... Bardenwerper knows he’s sentimental, but he’s sincere ... The book finds its footing in the second half, when Bardenwerper begins following the Muckdogs toward a championship game in 2022 ... It’s Bardenwerper’s goodwill that makes this book work—his diligent reporting, yes, but mostly his honest frustration with the way baseball is changing and his sincere belief that things can get better.
An empathetic writer who understands the stakes of what’s happening in Batavia and what it portends for the rest of the country, Bardenwerper is the perfect chronicler of this shrinking slice of Americana ... Much has been written about America’s loneliness crisis, but there was no sign of it at Dwyer Stadium ... In Batavia, the magic and the mystery and the intricacies of the game still exist.
Blends game details with insights into larger stories about struggling communities and a changing world ... Bardenwerper’s play-by-play of the season’s ups and downs will likely be a hit with anyone who’s ever sung along with 'Take Me Out to the Ballgame.'
A fascinating look at what professional baseball can mean to a community ... Baseball lovers will be enamored with the storytelling and conclusions, but one doesn’t have to be an enthusiastic sports fan to gain insight into the human soul from Bardenwerper’s book. Consider this resource a must-purchase.
The earnestness can be a bit much as Bardenwerper waxes philosophical about what baseball means to small-town America ... Bardenwerper was obviously enamored of his embedded experience ... But Homestand is full of platitudes bordering on the cliché.
A scathing indictment of the corporatization of Major League Baseball (MLB) while simultaneously immersing readers in the remarkable resilience and joy of small-town baseball ... This work captures a little piece of America’s pastime in its best light.
Demonstrates how baseball can be a lifeline in a community battered by deindustrialization. But like many before him, Bardenwerper can get schmaltzy about the sport ... An earnest search for meaning in a community that lost a pro baseball team.
