Baseball and Billions by Andrew Zimbalist is an okay book. In my opinion it is not an outstanding book because it just gave too many numbers and charts that quite didn't make sense to me, even though I do like the sport. While reading this book by Andrew Zimbalist I did learn some interesting facts about baseball that I never knew of before reading this book. Even though it might start off interesting, later in the book, in my opinion,it just gets a bit boring. Out of 5 stars I give this book 3 stars.

Updated to cover events such as Fay Vincent's dismissal as baseball commissioner, and the lawsuit over the Seattle Mariners and San Francisco Giants' decisions not to move to Tampa

Very interesting insight into the economics that drive the business side of baseball. I recommend this to anyone interested in the behind-the-scenes business of baseball.

Bob Costas's popular "Fair Ball" was an examination of baseball from the fan's perspective. "May the Best Team Win" is a similar work, but is written from the point of view of a professor of economics. Mr. Zimbalist's writing style is often just what you would expect from an economist; the text is very dense and may turn off some readers. Luckily, the book's fault is also its strength. The well-researched analysis provides irrefutable arguments in favor of making changes in the game, and educates the reader far better than other authors' attempts.

This deeply probing work uncovers the abuses and inefficiencies in the baseball industry, and concludes that baseball's monopoly is the devil in the details. Team owners use their monopoly power to "derive higher returns, misallocate resources, and take advantage of consumers." Any fan who has paid $5 for a ballpark hot dog will definitely empathize with his findings.

"May the Best Team Win" addresses the competitive balance (or competitive imbalance), the myth of non-profitability, the collective bargaining agreements, and how teams convince cities to foot the bill for new stadiums.

In the end, Mr. Zimbalist outlines some possible solutions to help improve the game. Some of his ideas seem workable, while others seem idealistic and unrealistic. However, all of his suggestions are well worth reading. This is an ambitious effort, and fans with serious concerns about the future of the sport will definitely appreciate this analytical endeavor. Zimbalist has taken on a difficult issue, and shown that he has more than just warning track power.

Highly recommended.

This is a valuable study of college sports. Zimbalist shows how much money is really lost by schools, and how foolish they are to pursue dreams of glory in college sports.

The one problem with the book is that the author, a college professor, really writes like one. It is often hard to figure out what he is talking about, but if you hang in there, when you do find out, it is usually worth it.

This book should be read by anyone working in or with college athletics as well as fans that want to understand the "business" behind the games. The author takes a view of the subject from many angles. The chapter dealing in the profit or loss of athletic departments is very enlightening particularly as it deals with the lack of accounting standard conformity.

In the last chapter the author recommends 10 steps to cure the problems. Frankly, I didn't find them compelling and generally not workable. This is a thought provoking read if you have interest in the subject but should not be purchased for entertainment purposes as it reads more like a business analysis.

Andrew Zimbalist is back with his newest book on the economics of sports, Sports, Jobs, and Taxes. After writing Baseball to Billions, the Smith College professor returns with this publication on the effects of building stadiums in major markets. Zimbalist co-edits the book with Roger G. Noll, a director of the Public Policy Program at Stanford University. The two men examine many different cities and their various plans that involved new sports facilities. Using a dizzying assault of numbers and statistics, Sports, Jobs, and Taxes proves case by case how employment, taxes and urban development were either unaffected or negatively influenced by the facilities built in the respective cities. While such examples as Minneapolis, Chicago, and Cincinnati display evidence to support the editors' theories, the repetitiveness of these chapters' points begin to wear on the reader. Still, one comes away fully understanding what is continually stressed by Zimbalist and Noll. Sports facilities and the teams that play in them do not enhance local economies, do little for job creation, and never make up for the cost of higher taxes.