Black Ball and the Boardwalk

Black Ball and the Boardwalk is a 2014 book by James E. Overmyer, published by McFarland. It details the history of the Atlantic City Bacharach Giants from their 1916 founding to their demise after 1929, including two trips to the Negro World Series. The book is very well-researched, chronicling over a hundred games some seasons, with each year covering player profiles followed by their performance against each opponent rather than a strict chronological account (that is, all the 1926 games against Hilldale are listed together for instance, then all the games against the New York Lincoln Giants). This allows one to gauge their performance against different levels of competition. Overmyer breaks down the players on the white semi-pro teams they faced to show how strong they were, listing which future or former major leaguers played for each club. The detailed statistics at the end of the book are also divided between full-year stats and stats against only top black competition, rather than just pick one or the other to list.