Scott H. Longert has combined his love of baseball, history and writing into a 30-year career in which he has written scores of newspaper articles and six books about America’s pastime in Cleveland.
His latest work is a biography about Ray Chapman, who played for the Cleveland Indians and is the only player in Major League baseball to ever die on the field after being hit by a ball.
Love and Loss: The Short Life of Ray Chapman, set for release by the end of July, covers Chapman's life from a child to the big leagues and his tragic death in 1920 and its aftermath. Learn about Ray’s closest friends, Jack Graney, Tris Speaker and Steve O’Neill and his marriage to socialite Katy Daly.
Longert will appear at Rodman Public Library to discuss his work on Monday, October 7 as part of the 2024 Fogle Author Series.
[REGISTER TO ATTEND LONGERT'S VISIT AT RPL]
Longert has an undergraduate degree from the Ohio State University and an M.A. degree in American History from Cleveland State University. He has spent many years in the history field serving as the sports archivist for the Western Reserve Historical Society and site manager for Shandy Hall, an 1815 home in northeast Ohio. Longert was a park ranger for the National Park Service, stationed at the James A. Garfield National Historic Site until his recent retirement.
Longert has also been a freelance writer for thirty years, publishing news articles on baseball history for The Cleveland Plain Dealer Sunday Magazine, The National Pastime, The Baseball Research Journal and TimeLine Magazine.
His other books include Cy Young: An American Baseball Hero, which is aimed for younger readers in the third through seventh grades. His Cleveland baseball works in order of publication are Addie Joss: King of the Pitchers (1999); The Best They Could Be: How the Cleveland Indians Became the Kings of Baseball, 1916-1920 (2013); No Money, No Beer, No Pennants: The Cleveland Indians and Baseball in the Great Depression (2016); Bad Boys, Bad Times: The Cleveland Indians and Baseball in the Prewar Years, 1937–1941 (2019); and Victory on Two Fronts: The Cleveland Indians and Baseball During the World War II Years (2022).
In addition to writing, Longert is an accomplished speaker, presenting talks on Cleveland baseball history and League Park. He spoke at the 100th anniversary ceremony of Addie Joss perfect game, held on the grounds of historic League Park. In August of 2022 Longert achieved his dream by speaking at the National Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown