Episode
427: "Baseball in the Roaring Twenties" - With Thomas Wolf
- Podcast
- Good Seats Still Available
- Published
- Jan 5, 2026
- Duration seconds
- 4916
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- https://goodseatsstillavailable.libsyn.com/placeholder-360
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Summary
Baseball's 1926 World Series was more than just a championship showdown — it was emblematic of America in a decade defined by financial excess, social rebellion, and societal reinvention. We explore that dramatic showdown through " Baseball in the Roaring Twenties: The Yankees, the Cardinals, and the Captivating 1926 Season ," a riveting new book by historian and author Thomas Wolf . Wolf takes us beyond the box scores of this unforgettable seven-game clash between Babe Ruth 's New York Yankees and Rogers Hornsby 's St. Louis Cardinals . He traces Ruth's improbable resurgence from a disastrous 1925 season — a comeback that reignited the public imagination—and revisits the iconic moments that still echo through baseball history, from Grover Cleveland Alexander 's legendary Game 7 performance to Ruth's controversial, series-ending stolen base attempt. But the story extends well beyond the field. Wolf situates the Series within the broader cultural currents of the Jazz Age: Prohibition-era speakeasies, a rapidly modernizing society, and the parallel world of the Negro Leagues , where Rube Foster 's bold vision flourished even as hopes for integration faced overwhelming resistance. The conversation also uncovers lesser-known (and darker) chapters, including the game-fixing scandal involving Ty Cobb and Tris Speaker that surfaced during the Series, and Commissioner Judge Landis 's unexpectedly lenient response. A historian and lifelong baseball devotee, Wolf has long examined baseball's cultural meaning. " Baseball in the Roaring Twenties" is his most ambitious work yet — using one remarkable season to probe the contradictions, triumphs, and tensions at the heart of 1920s America. + + + SUPPORT THE SHOW: Buy Us a Coffee : https://ko-fi.com/goodseatsstillavailable The "Good…