Baseball Imposters: The Dark Side of Fandom

For over 40 years, author Rob Sheinkopf has collected stories of grown men who falsely claim to have played Major League Baseball. In BASEBALL IMPOSTERS, Sheinkopf explores what author W.P. Kinsella called "The Eddie Scissons Syndrome," inspired by a character in his novel Shoeless Joe, the story behind the movie Field of Dreams. Though the syndrome is named after a fictional character, it is disturbingly real and widespread.

Drawing upon real-life examples, Sheinkopf recounts these stories,...