Hot Stove Weekend is Back!

Hot Stove Weekend is back, with an exciting slate of presenters and events. From March 20-22, 2026, you can join baseball experts and fans in Cooperstown for a fundraiser to benefit historic Doubleday Field.

Tickets are $125 each, and include:

·         A welcome mixer at Upstate Bar and Grill on Friday, 7-9 PM.

·         Saturday presentations from 10 AM-3 PM featuring legendary author and sportswriter Howard Bryant, baseball reference and Immaculate Grid’s Adam Darowski, and preeminent sports graphic designer and author Todd Radom. There will be a 2-hour break at Noon to go to lunch, the Hall of Fame, baseball stores. etc.) Ballroom (2^nd Floor), Village Hall, 22 Main St.

·         Doubleday Field tour. Have a catch, take photos, and hang out on the field where legends stood. Saturday, 3-4 PM.

·         Pack Night. Bring a box of unopened packs of baseball cards (‘80’s, ‘90’s, present day, whatever you like) and open and share them with fellow baseball nuts. All are welcome for pizza and beer, but if you participate in Pack Night itself, you’ll need to bring a box of unopened packs to be shared and opened by all. Cooperstown Co-works.  (Email Jeff below for more details and whether you'll participate in Pack Night). Saturday, 6-9 PM. or later?)

·         Tour of Cooperstown Bat Company Factory. Sunday, Noon-2 PM.

More may be added to what’s already a fun-filled schedule!

If you’re staying in Cooperstown, call the Railroad Inn and get a big discount. Just mention Hot Stove Weekend, Friends of Doubleday, or Jeff Katz.

Tickets on sale now, limited to 50 (or so). Click here.

For more information, email Jeff Katz at friendsofdoubledayfield@gmail.com.

Bios:

Howard Bryant the author of eleven books: the forthcoming Kings and Pawns: Jackie Robinson and Paul Robeson in America (Mariner Books, 2026), Rickey: The Life and Legend of an American Original (Mariner Books, 2022), Full Dissidence: Notes From an Uneven Playing Field (Beacon Press, 2020), The Heritage: Black Athletes, A Divided America and the Politics of Patriotism (Beacon Press, 2018), The Last Hero: A Life of Henry Aaron (Pantheon, 2010), Juicing the Game: Drugs, Power, and the Fight for the Soul of Major League Baseball (Viking, 2005), Shut Out: A Story of Race and Baseball in Boston (Routledge 2002), the three-book Legends sports series for middle-grade readers (Penguin, 2014-17), and Sisters and Champions: The True Story of Venus and Serena Williams (Penguin, 2018)illustrated by Floyd Cooper. 

Mr. Bryant has also contributed essays to 21 other books and anthologies, and in 2017 served as guest editor for the Best American Sports Writing anthology.

He served as executive producer for HBO’s Emmy-nominated Back on the Record with Bob Costas from 2021 to 2023, and won the 2025 Emmy Award for Outstanding Documentary Series as executive producer for Netflix’s The Comeback: 2004 Boston Red Sox.

Adam Darowski is the Executive Director of Design for Sports Reference, makers of Baseball Reference, Immaculate Grid, Stathead, and more. He created the Hall of Stats in 2012 and has been a SABR member since 2013. His personal research focuses on the Negro Leagues and Latin American baseball.

Todd Radom is a designer, sports branding expert, and writer. His three and a half decades of work in baseball have helped define the look of the sport, both at home and around the globe. He has been profiled or quoted in numerous publications and has been a regular weekly guest on the ESPN Baseball Tonight podcast since 2015. Radom is the author of "The Ballpark & Beyond: An Illustrated Celebration of Baseball's Rich History," "Winning Ugly: A Visual History of Baseball's Most Unique Uniforms" and is co-author of "Fabric of the Game: The Stories Behind the NHL's Names, Logos, and Uniforms." In 2024, Todd was honored by Topps with inclusion in their Allen & Ginter baseball card set. A native New Yorker, he currently resides in Philadelphia.