All links to box scores and play-by-play accounts on this site are from Baseball-Reference.com, a treasure trove of every available detail of every Major League Baseball game ever played and everyone who played or managed.
Companion site for the best selling book
Opening Day: 50-for-50
One Fan. One Game.
A Half-Century of Baseball Stories.
A Half-Century of Baseball Stories.
A book by Michael Ortman
Unless otherwise noted, all player biographies are from the on-going Baseball Biography Project of the Society of American Baseball Research (SABR.org).
Opening Day : 50-for-50 now available!
Currently available through retailers worldwide in paperback, and in ebook and audiobook format.
Chapters
1970s
1980s
1990s
2000s
2010s
The experts love it!
Tim Kurkjian
Baseball Hall of Fame Career Excellence Award winner, 2022
“Opening Day is my favorite day of the baseball season. I have covered 42 of them, and all of them were different in their own way. Mike Ortman has beautifully provided 50 years of memories, all of them personal and compelling, from Opening Day. This book just warmed my heart.”
Bryan Burns
Former senior executive with Major League Baseball and ESPN
“During my nearly 40 years in sports and media, baseball changed from a kid’s delight to his life’s work. I lost the ability to be a fan. Not Mike Ortman. He followed a similar career path, yet managed to keep that youthful exuberance, which comes through in every chapter of his journey. His 50 consecutive Opening Day experiences will make every fan smile with important historical context plus personal stories that stir memories and emotions no matter your decade.”
Cal Ripken Jr.
Baltimore Orioles 1981-2001
Baseball Hall of Fame 2007
“Mike Ortman does a remarkable job of chronicling his own streak of fifty consecutive Opening Days in this terrific book. Opening Day is such a special day for baseball fans around the world. It signifies the start of spring as well as a new start and hope for every team. I appreciate Mike including me in Opening Day: 50 For 50. The research he has done to bring these memories to life is impressive.”
