BASEBALL IMPOSTERS
the dark side of fandom
Drawing upon real-life examples, Sheinkopf recounts the stories of various baseball imposters, as he says, “changing names to protect the guilty…” with a mix of humor, contempt, and compassion for the families who all too often only uncover the truth when trying to verify facts for obituaries, biographies, or personal histories.
Among those “former major leaguers” whom Sheinkopf interviewed was a high-profile local businessman who later proved to be an imposter―someone whose false representation of his past was disturbing since several pages of his master’s degree thesis was based upon lies. This discovery of patient zero sparked Sheinkopf’s curiosity about why individuals engage in such deception, leading to over four decades of research revealing that baseball imposters are all too common, and most people are unaware of how widespread this phenomenon is.
BASEBALL IMPOSTERS offers a compelling, entertaining, and eye-opening look into a peculiar and persistent phenomenon that extends beyond baseball into the human experience.
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Drawing on real-life examples, Sheinkopf recounts these stories, altering names to protect the guilty… with a mix of humor, contempt, and compassion for the families who all too often only uncover the truth when verifying facts for obituaries, biographies, or personal histories. His fascination with this practice of deception involving baseball goes back to 1985, when he completed a master’s thesis based on interviews with 53 former Major League players who retired before free agency. His research focused on how athletes prepared for life after baseball during a time when very few professional baseball retirees were millionaires, and most were not financially secure enough to retire comfortably forcing them to seriously plan second careers.
Among those “former major leaguers” interviewed was a high-profile local businessman who proved to be an imposter—someone whose false representation of his past was both puzzling and unsettling. This discovery of patient zero sparked Sheinkopf’s curiosity about why individuals engage in such deception, leading to over four decades of research revealing that imposters are far from rare, and most people are unaware of how widespread this phenomenon is. These stories will surprise, amuse, and enlighten readers, revealing that such deceptions often echo familiar tales told to them by colleagues, teachers, neighbors, or even family members… stories that, upon closer inspection, may arouse suspicion.
BASEBALL IMPOSTERS offers a compelling, entertaining, and eye-opening look into a peculiar and persistent phenomenon that extends beyond baseball into the human experience.
Where have you gone Bobby Movallo
– Baseball Imposters, Chapter 11, Patterns
