History, Baseball, and Rural America

Dr. David Vaught is a professor of history at Texas A&M University. He is the author of five books: two on agricultural history in California in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries; one on teaching large lecture classes; another on baseball in rural America; and, forthcoming with Texas A&M University Press this summer, Spitter: Baseball’s Notorious Gaylord Perry. The latter examines the Hall of Fame pitcher’s rich and revealing life experience—from his innovative ascent from rural poverty in eastern North Carolina to baseball stardom, to his subsequent descent to failure on the farm during the 1980s agricultural crisis. He is past president of the Agricultural History Society, former head of department, recipient of several teaching awards, and a lifelong fan of the San Francisco Giants.