Dave Bancroft should not be in the Baseball Hall of Fame. He emerged from his Iowa hometown as an undersized shortstop without batting skills. Signed by one of the 300-plus minor league teams at age 17 in 1909, he lasted only three weeks before being cut, then joined another team and was released again. His rise to become enshrined in Cooperstown as one of baseball's all-time greats was unfathomable. More importantly, baseball placed Bancroft at the game's best vantage point across nearly one century. This view allowed him to observe the modern evolution of the game through international travel, the fallout of two world wars, racism, women's rights and the Great Depression. He met practically every renowned person connected to pro baseball . . . and countless others with astounding backgrounds and fates. He greeted royalty and presidents, film stars and music sensations, boxing champs and snake oil chumps, needy kids and spoiled moguls. Along the way, Bancroft: --Changed how shortstop was played --Became a groundbreaking switch hitter --Earned the flattering but bizarre nickname "Beauty" --Delivered the most precise support of the designated hitter 50 years before it happened --Played in a 51-minute, 9-inning game --Managed three women's professional baseball league teams --Suffered one the sport's most vicious attacks from another player during a game --Appeared on what may have been baseball's first TV broadcast --Played every inning in four World Series, including three extraordinary matchups between the New York Giants and New York Yankees in the early 1920s --Attended several of the earliest night-game experiments --Holds the longest-standing season record for fielding chances by a shortstop --Remains the only player to hit six singles in a nine-inning game and score in four straight innings. Bancroft thrived as a major New York sports hero and languished on dangerous bus rides as manager of the minor league St. Cloud Rox. With his health failing on January 31, 1971, he ate a chicken dinner with his devoted wife, Edna, of 60 years when the phone rang at their modest northern Wisconsin home. Dave listened and spoke softly. "Oh, my God," he told the caller, "that's the nicest thing I've ever heard." He made the Hall of Fame. "If you love baseball, read Beauty at Short!" sports icon Pat Williams, "The Pat Williams Show" "Hunt this thing down (or) you've lost a sense of adventure. Whip-clean storytelling that is a tribute to the fact that not all bios about Hall of Fame players need to be in excess of 400 pages and cost $40," Tom Hoffarth, FartherOffTheWall.com "I encourage everyone to get a copy. It's a fun read! Great stories!" Warren Rogan, Sports' Forgotten Heroes podcast "Alesia does more than offer statistics. He brings Bancroft to life. It's about a man who overcame the odds and landed in the Hall of Fame," Michael Tidemann, Des Moines Register review "(Bancroft) lived a remarkable life," Justin McGuire, Baseball by the Book podcast "Very entertaining and informative!" Gary Mintz, New York Giants Preservation Society "A great book," Tavi Kodiak, host, SABR/IWBC's Women in Baseball Conference "Well written and thorough," Matt Albertson, president, Philadelphia chapter, Society of American Baseball Research (SABR) "Add to your lineup!" Milwaukee Journal Sentinel "The book is a beauty," Gregg Hoffmann, Midwest Diamond Report "...one of Cooperstown's most underappreciated inductees," Tim Hanlon, host, "Good Seats Still Available" podcast "It's a great book; it's a great story," Bruce Ciskie, KDAL-AM, sports director, Duluth/Superior "You're gripped by the story ... an excellent book!" Kurt Bergland's Baseball World, YouTube "If you love baseball, you'll love this book," Curtis Anderson, FoxSports Radio, Iowa "I absolutely recommend this book to any baseball fans," Gary Cannalte, WISC-TV, Madison, Wisconsin "It turned into a need-to-read! I thoroughly enjoyed it," Dennis Degenhart, president, Wisconsin chapter, Society of American Baseball Research (SABR) "The story is incredible, " Jim Wharton, Sioux City (Iowa) Journal "Baseball fans can finally see why Bancroft deserves that plaque in Cooperstown," Bob D'Angelo, The Sports Bookie blog review "A hidden gem," KBJR-TV, Duluth/Superior "Wonderful," Iowa Public Radio "One of 2022's best books (so far)," posted July 1, The Bookstore at Fitger's, Duluth, Minnesota "Unbelievable," KQDS-TV, Duluth/Superior "Essential reading for baseball fans!" Sioux City (Iowa) Public Museum Tom Alesia spent his youth at pre-lights Wrigley Field. Years later while on vacation in a remote area of northwestern Wisconsin, he learned that a little-known Baseball Hall of Famer was buried there. That began a reporting journey lasting more than 10 years to uncover Dave Bancroft's astounding story. A longtime Midwest newspaper writer, Alesia has profiled Pete Rose to a former big league pitcher-turned-veterinarian.