The Federal Case

Who really owns the National Pastime?

WINNER, Best Legal Thriller of the Year, 2024 American Fiction Awards

It seems so simple, so pure. But behind the green grass and iconic heroes, professional baseball has always been driven by greed, ambition, a thirst for fame, a lust for power, and a ceaseless conflict of motives that go far beyond winning and losing. Peel back the veneer with The Deadball Files.

This critically acclaimed series features present-day mysteries and legal dramas grounded in events and personalities from the early days of baseball.

Who really owns the National Pastime?

In 1914 the Federal League of Base Ball Clubs declared itself a "major" league and began pirating players from the established leagues. Ban Johnson, the most powerful man in Major League Baseball, led the fierce resistance to this move, and in 1915 the Federal League collapsed.

But was that the whole story?

A century later, young night-schooled lawyer Andy Dennum stumbles across an old file containing a single document that might suggest otherwise. His firm shows no interest, and Andy is later fired.

But Andy has other ideas. Assisted by his girlfriend, professional cartographer and amateur genealogist Keiley Barefoot, he follows a series of leads to a conclusion he never expected. And he finds himself in a courtroom facing his old nemesis, the senior partner who fired him.

At stake? Not only the viability of Major League Baseball's business model, but Andy's future as a lawyer, and even his sense of self.

Discover the history as you unravel the mystery.