The Casey Award (stylized as CASEY) is an annual literary award that has been given to the best baseball book of the year since 1983.The award was created by Mike Shannon and W. J. Harrison, editors and co-founders of Spitball: The Literary Baseball Magazine because, up until then, there was no award given to authors and publishers of distinguished baseball literature; it is considered to be the most prestigious award that can be given to a baseball book.

Award process

Baseball books, both non-fiction and fiction, are nominated by a panel of three judges under five main criteria: literary quality, informational content, analytical content, originality, and artistic appeal. After a shortlist is finalized, the judges vote on the book which has given "the greatest contribution to baseball literature". It is then presented at the annual CASEY Award Banquet held in Cincinnati, Ohio in January. Previously, the winner received a bronze plaque which manufactured by the Newman Brothers Company in Cincinnati and featured Nap Lajoie holding a quill, the original logo of the award which was designed by magazine's first art director, Blair Gibeau. In 2009, the bronze plaques were replaced by authentic Louisville Slugger baseball bats imprinted with a new CASEY Award logo designed by the magazine's second art director and longtime cover artist Donnie Pollard.

Winners and finalists

1980s

Source:

1990s

Source:

2000s

Source:

2010s

Source:

2020s

Source: