Book details

  • Genre:sports & recreation
  • Sub-genre:Baseball / Essays & Writings
  • Language:English
  • Pages:160
  • eBook ISBN:9798317823795
  • Paperback ISBN:9798317823788

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Baseball Imposters

The Dark Side of Fandom

By Rob Sheinkopf

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Overview

BASEBALL IMPOSTERS is a non-fiction narrative of men falsely claiming to be former Major League Baseball players.

The author suggests that these baseball imposters are suffering from Eddie Scissons Syndrome, a moniker created by author W.P. Kinsella in his book, Shoeless Joe, upon which the movie Field of Dreams is based. While the syndrome derives its name from a fictional character, its reality is disturbingly widespread. Drawing upon real-life examples, Sheinkopf recounts these true stories, altering names to protect the guilty, (at the recommendation of legal counsel), with a blend of humor, contempt, and sometimes compassion for the families who all too often uncover the truth only when verifying facts for obituaries or personal histories.

Most people are unaware how widespread this phenomenon is. These stories will surprise, amuse, and enlighten readers, revealing that the deception often echoes their own experiences with familiar tales told to them by their colleagues, teachers, neighbors, or even family members—stories that, upon closer inspection, may arouse suspicion.

BASEBALL IMPOSTERS is both entertaining and eye-opening, offering a compelling look at a peculiar and persistent phenomenon in the world of baseball and beyond.

 

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Description

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 "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, its reality is disturbingly widespread.


Drawing on real-life examples, Sheinkopf recounts these stories, altering names to protect the guilty (at the recommendation of legal counsel), with a mix of humor, contempt, and sometimes 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 goes back to 1985, when he completed a master's thesis based upon 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 the vast majority were not financially secure enough to retire comfortably without a plan to pursue a second career.


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 disturbing. 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. Most people are unaware of how widespread this phenomenon is. These stories will surprise, amuse, anger, and enlighten readers, revealing that such deceptions often echo familiar tales told to them by their 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.

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About The Author

Rob Sheinkopf, originally from Syracuse, New York, is a member of the Society for American Baseball Research (SABR) and has presented his research over many years to SABR and to the Sport Literature Association (SLA), to NINE - the history and culture of baseball, and to the Cooperstown Symposium at the Baseball Hall of Fame.


Rob is the author and editor of "Hey Mom, wanna have a catch?", an anthology of baseball stories honoring parents who encourage or simply put up with their child's love for and obsession with our National Pastime. He is also the author of "BASEBALL IMPOSTERS, the dark side of fandom", based upon his research and writing about grown men who falsely pass themselves off as former major league baseball players. Both of those books are available wherever great books are sold online and on the author's website.


After a 40 year career in college admissions, Rob retired and moved to San Francisco where he found his dream job as a luxury suites concierge for the Giants. Keeping a diary of his first year's daily activities, he wrote and presented a paper, My Year in the Big Leagues at the international conference of the SLA in Limoges, France. Unfortunately, the global pandemic abruptly ended Rob's promising baseball concierging career.


Rob and his wife, Lisa, provide a loving home for their dog, Bochy, in Las Vegas as well as in Ponte Vedra, Florida, dividing their time between the two as they trade intense heat and traffic jams for uncomfortable humidity and large palmetto bugs at various times of the year to spend time with their 5-year-old granddaughter, Molly, and her mom and dad.

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Book Reviews

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Gene
Baseball Imposters I've come across several baseball impostors over the years, Only I didn't know it until I read Rob Sheinkopf's entertaining book. The title caught my attention, so after reading the description, I wanted to know more. Once I started reading, I couldn't put the book down. Sheinkopf does a great job of keeping you amazed at the lengths otherwise respected businessmen will go through to steal the glory of playing Major League Baseball. At the same time, you can't wait to turn the page and find out who's next. I fully expected to see the name of a former colleague pop up. (I looked him up after Sheinkopf referenced the website.) This exceptional book isn't only for baseball fans; we live in a world where fraud runs rampant, and Rob Sheinkopf teaches you not to take everything at face value, whether it's the guy trying to sell you insurance or your chiropractor. Read this book, and you will be both entertained and educated. Read more
Carl
Baseball Imposters Baseball Imposters: The Dark Side of Fandom What would it take for someone to lie about an accomplishment that could easily be proven to be a lie? Apparently, very little. High profile politicians have stolen military valor by lying about their nonexistent war records. Well-known business executives have padded their resumes with academic degrees they never earned. But who would think of claiming they played professional baseball, that they even made it to the major leagues, when records can be easily accessed to prove their claim is false? And why would they do it? In this book, we learn about a bunch of seemingly normal guys who have lied about being former professional baseball players. These fakers are unmasked by author Rob Sheinkopf in his insightful and entertaining book, Baseball Imposters: The Dark Side of Fandom. Covering nearly a life’s worth of painstaking research, Sheinkopf lays out how these pretenders have spun webs of deceit that eventually entrap them. These stories are told with respect for America’s national pastime and for those who actually did make it to the major leagues The author tells these stories about the imposters with a sense of humor, sometimes with anger and contempt, but often with compassion for the liars and their families. Sheinkopf delves into the reasons these men faked their lives, tells us how to spot these prevaricators, and even suggests how we can avoid being physically harmed if we personally confront the liar. This book was fun to read. It held my attention from beginning to end, and I highly recommend it. Carl Patton Atlanta, November 2025 Read more