Chris Jensen is a nationally recognized baseball writer and novelist whose publishing debut, Baseball State by State, received praise across the baseball community. His second book, Baseball’s Two-Way Greats: Pitching/Batting Stars from Ruth and Rogan to Ohtani, continues his passion to shine the light on Negro League players. Influenced from his hometown roots close to Cooperstown, New York, his baseball research explores how Black baseball intersects with Major League Baseball.
Baseball’s Two-Way Greats
Pitching/Batting Stars from Ruth and Rogan to Ohtani (2025)
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The first book to explore the entire history of two-way baseball players from the 19th century up to the modern era, this comprehensive work demonstrates that Shohei Ohtani and Babe Ruth are not the only players to excel at both pitching and batting. In-depth profiles examine how Ohtani and Ruth compare to 19th century star John Montgomery Ward and Negro League standouts Bullet Rogan, Martín Dihigo, Leon Day and Ted “Double Duty” Radcliffe as two-way players. This historical overview outlines the path each player took to reach greatness as a pitcher and a batter, and helps answer the fundamental question: who is baseball’s greatest two-way player?
Sixty additional Negro League players are covered for their two-way feats, plus an examination of top two-way players from the 19th century, Deadball Era, and Live-Ball Era—more than 130 players overall are featured. Also included is an overview of 25 top-hitting pitchers and a closer look at all the statistics that define a two-way player. -
““The debate over baseball’s greatest two-way player is explored extensively in an open discussion about some lesser known legends like Bullet Rogan, Martin Dihigo and Double Duty Radcliffe. Discover the versatility and utility of these dual threats.”
- Larry Lester, author, historian and founder of the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum
Baseball State by State
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Offering a fresh approach to the familiar concept of all-time baseball teams, this exhaustive work ranks more than 2,500 players by state of birth and includes both major league and Negro League athletes. Each chapter covers one state and opens with the all-time team, naming a top selection for each position followed by honorable mentions. Also included are all-time stat leaders in nine categories--games, hits, average, RBI, home runs, stolen bases, pitching wins, strikeouts and saves--a brief overview of the state's baseball history, notable player achievements, historic baseball places to see, potential future stars, a comprehensive list of player nicknames, and the state's all-time best player.
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“Chris Jensen's book is a must-have for any baseball fan; whether you're a researcher/writer or just someone who loves the game, you'll get something out of it and be entertained all the while.” - Seamheads.com
“it’s the kind of book you could open to any page and learn 10 fascinating things” - Baseball American
“Jensen’s new book is one of the most thorough compilations of lists you’ll ever see. The result is a truly remarkable compilation of baseball knowledge, ranging from the well-known to incredibly obscure” - Brew Crew Ball
(2012)
About
Growing up in close proximity to Cooperstown, N.Y., helped turn Chris into a baseball fanatic. He majored in English and journalism at SUNY Potsdam and then got a master’s in journalism from Ball State University, where he wrote an award-winning humor column for the Ball State Daily News.
A member of the Society for American Baseball Research (SABR) and the Internet Baseball Writers Association of America (IBWAA), Chris contributes baseball articles to IBWAA’s “Here’s the Pitch” Newsletter, the “Start Spreading the News” blog (for Yankee fans), and Seamheads.com. He has also had baseball articles published in Elysian Fields Quarterly, the Yankees 2011 Annual Yearbook and Brew Crew Ball.com.
“Write something good, and feel good about writing it.”
Chris is a husband to a fellow Yankees fan, Tiffany. They have four kids who love the Yankees to varying degrees: Abby, Brandon, Ava and Sam. Brandon’s high school baseball career greatly surpassed that of his father, who was cut from his high school team as a senior.