Examines the moment in American history when baseball became the game we know today. The stories of three early Chicago Cub baseball stars - Johnny Evers from Troy, New York; Joe Tinker from Kansas City, Missouri; and Frank Chance from California’s Central Valley - shed light on baseball's evolution, on the enthusiasm of its players and fans, and on the broader convulsions transforming the US into a confident new industrial society. With them emerged a truly national culture.