BASEBALL HOBBY NEWS ALUMNUS RICH WESTCOTT

Rich served for 12 years as a regular feature writer for Baseball Hobby News. His stories were primarily interviews with retired players and became the basis of his book Diamond Greats. His catalog of books is inspiring and can be found via a Google search.

HIS BIOGRAPHY

RICH WESTCOTT has served on the staffs of various newspapers and magazines in the Philadelphia area during more than 40 years as a writer and editor.

Westcott is the author of 21 books, including two in 2010 entitled Back Again-The Story of the 2009 Phillies and The Philadelphia Phillies-Past and Present.

Two other recent books authored by Westcott were The Mogul - Eddie Gottlieb, A Philadelphia Sports Legend and Pro Basketball Pioneer and The Fightin’ Phils – Oddities, Insights, and Untold Stories.

Among his other books are The Phillies Encyclopedia, a local best-seller now in its third edition, Phillies ’93, An Incredible Season, Philadelphia’s Old Ballparks, A Century of Philadelphia Sports, and Veterans Stadium – Field of Memories. Westcott also wrote the widely acclaimed book on the local baseball legend entitled Mickey Vernon -The Gentleman First Baseman. He has authored three books that are collections of interviews and profiles of some 120 former major league baseball players. Other books include Great Home Runs of the 20th Century, Winningest Pitchers—Baseball’s 300-Game Winners, and No-Hitters –The 225 Games Between 1893 and 1999.

Westcott, was the founding owner and for 14 years the publisher and editor of Phillies Report, a newspaper covering the local major league baseball team. More recently, Rich was a member of a five-person committee assigned to plan and produce the permanent interior historical exhibits displayed at the Phillies’ Citizens Bank Park. He was chief writer of the material used around the ballpark.

Considered the leading authority on Phillies history, Westcott, who altogether has written seven books on the Phils, was commissioned by the team to write A Century of Phillies Baseball (2000). He also wrote the team’s history for its web site. Rich wrote the chapter on the Phillies for the Encyclopedia of Major League Baseball Team Histories, National League published by Meckler Books.

Rich writes occasional articles for the Philadelphia Inquirer. He has written for numerous national publications, including Sports Illustrated, The Sporting News, Baseball America, The Diamond, Baseball Digest, Sports Collectors Digest, Fan magazine, National Pastime, and the Official 1996 Baseball All-Star Game Program. A sports writer with the Delaware County Daily Times early in his career, he also served for 12 years as a regular feature writer for Baseball Hobby News.

He wrote the introduction for the reprinted edition of My 66 Years in the Big Leagues by Connie Mack, originally published in 1950. Westcott was also the editor of two series, Baseball in America and Baseball Encyclopedias of North America, published by Temple University Press.

Rich has appeared frequently on radio and television shows, and has made numerous speaking appearances, including one at the Baseball Hall of Fame. He is featured in eight film documentaries, including four productions by Major League Baseball--Unhittable on no-hitters, Cathedrals of the Game on the baseball stadiums of Philadelphia, Phillies Memories, on Phillies history, and Baseball’s Great Rivalries, which includes a portion on the Phillies and New York Mets.. Westcott also appeared in a documentary, Richie Ashburn: A Baseball Lifer, produced by the Phillies, and in three others, one on Veterans Stadium produced by NFL Films, one on the Philadelphia Athletics by Autumn Road Productions, and one called Baseball’s Golden Era by Fox Sports Network.

Westcott is the president of the Philadelphia Sports Writers' Association. He is also an advisor to the Philadelphia Sports Hall of Fame, serves on the selection committee for the Phillies Baseball Hall of Fame, and is a member of the Society for American Baseball Research. Rich was previously one of the official scorers at Phillies games. He has been a journalism instructor at La Salle and Temple Universities. Westcott has been inducted into three halls of fame, including the Delaware County Athletes Hall of Fame, the 21st Ward (Roxborough) Athletic Association Sports Hall of Fame, and the Pennsylvania Sports Hall of Fame.

Rich is a graduate of the William Penn Charter School in Philadelphia. He has a bachelor's degree from Drexel University and a master's degree from Johns Hopkins University. Westcott and his wife, Lois, have four children and live in Springfield, Pa.

Email: rnwestcott@juno.com

website: richwestcott.com