Book Series · 104 Books

Matt Christopher Sports Classics Books

In order from The Lucky Baseball Bat to The Extreme Team: Skateboard Moves.

The Matt Christopher Sports Classics series is a set of 104 chapter books by Matt Christopher, published between 1954 and 2013. Written for ages 3–18, most books run about 140 pages.

Where the story begins

First Book in the Series

Sale price

$674

Book #1 · Chapter Book · Ages 7–9 · 1954

The Lucky Baseball Bat

By Matt Christopher, Robert Henneberger (Illustrator)

A boy's baseball skills vanish with his lucky bat. Can he find confidence without it?

128 pages

$6.99Save 4%

Paperback

Summary: Marvin, new to the neighborhood, is eager to impress his baseball team. Armed with his lucky bat, he's ready to shine. But when the bat disappears, so does his talent. Struggling without it, Marvin must discover the true essence of friendship and self-belief. Will he find his place on the team without his lucky charm? This timeless tale explores the journey of finding inner strength and the bonds that form through teamwork.

The complete set

Matt Christopher Sports Classics Series

104 books · Published 1954–2013

Year	Title	Author	Illustrator	Pages
1954	The Lucky Baseball Bat	Matt Christopher	Robert Henneberger	128
1956	Baseball Pals	Matt Christopher	Margaret Sanfilippo	117
1959	Little Lefty	Matt Christopher		116
1959	Touchdown for Tommy	Matt Christopher		145
1960	Long Stretch at First Base	Matt Christopher	Karen Meyer	148
1962	Challenge at Second Base	Matt Christopher		111
1962	Halfback Attack	Matt Christopher	Unknown	100
1964	Catcher With a Glass Arm	Matt Christopher		128
1965	Too Hot to Handle	Matt Christopher	Wendy Wassink	96
1965	The Counterfeit Tackle	Matt Christopher	Paul Casale	160
1966	Long Shot for Paul	Matt Christopher		155
1967	Miracle at the Plate	Matt Christopher		129
1969	Catch That Pass!	Matt Christopher		130
1969	Hard Drive to Short	Matt Christopher, George Guzzi		96
1970	Shortstop from Tokyo	Matthew F Christopher		121
1970	Johnny Long Legs	Matt Christopher		133
1971	Tough to Tackle	Matt Christopher		139
1972	The Kid Who Only Hit Homers	Matt Christopher		144
1972	Face-Off	Matt Christopher	Harvey Kidder	131
1972	Baseball Flyhawk	Matt Christopher	Marcy Ramsey	100
1972	Look Who's Playing First Base	Matt Christopher		131
1973	Ice Magic	Matt Christopher		145
1973	The Year Mom Won the Pennant	Matt Christopher		147
1974	No Arm in Left Field	Matthew F Christopher		131
1976	The Submarine Pitch	Matt Christopher		137
1976	Football Fugitive	Matt Christopher		119
1977	The Diamond Champs	Matt Christopher		120
1978	The Fox Steals Home	Matt Christopher		178
1978	Soccer Halfback	Matt Christopher		182
1979	Dirt Bike Racer	Matt Christopher		149
1979	The Twenty-One-Mile Swim	Matt Christopher		146
1980	Run, Billy, Run	Matt Christopher		145
1981	Tight End	Matt Christopher		137
1983	Dirt Bike Runaway	Matt Christopher		167
1984	The Great Quarterback Switch	Matt Christopher		97
1985	Supercharged Infield	Matt Christopher	Julie Downing	96
1986	The Hockey Machine	Matt Christopher		137
1987	Red-Hot Hightops	Matt Christopher		148
1988	Tackle Without a Team	Matt Christopher	Margaret Sanfilippo	145
1990	Takedown	Matthew F Christopher		147
1991	Skateboard Tough	Matt Christopher		168
1991	The Basket Counts	Matt Christopher		125
1992	Return of the Home Run Kid	Matt Christopher	Paul Casale	168
1992	Undercover Tailback	Matt Christopher	Paul Casale	145
1993	Pressure Play	Matt Christopher	Karin Lidbeck	154
1993	Wingman on Ice	Matt Christopher		126
1994	The Winning Stroke	Matt Christopher	Karin Lidbeck	168
1994	Top Wing	Matt Christopher		176
1995	Double Play at Short	Matt Christopher	Karen Meyer	160
1995	Fighting Tackle	Matt Christopher		96
1995	Line Drive to Short	Matt Christopher	Karin Lidbeck	160
1995	Shoot for the Hoop	Matt Christopher	Karen Meyer	128
1996	The Comeback Challenge	Matt Christopher		176
1996	Olympic Dream	Matt Christopher	Karen Meyer	171
1997	Snowboard Maverick	Matt Christopher		160
1997	Penalty Shot	Matt Christopher		160
1997	Baseball Turnaround	Matt Christopher		128
1997	The Team That Couldn't Lose	Matt Christopher	The #1 Sports Writer for Kids	96
1997	The Reluctant Pitcher	Matt Christopher	The #1 Sports Writer for Kids	96
1998	Roller Hockey Radicals	Matt Christopher		160
1998	Soccer Scoop	Matt Christopher	The #1 Sports Writer for Kids	144
1998	Prime-Time Pitcher	Matt Christopher		160
1998	Center Court Sting	Matt Christopher	The #1 Sports Writer for Kids	160
1998	Mountain Bike Mania	Matt Christopher	The #1 Sports Writer for Kids	160
1999	Snowboard Showdown	Matt Christopher		144
1999	Spike It!	Matt Christopher	The #1 Sports Writer for Kids	144
1999	Long-Arm Quarterback	Matt Christopher		144
2000	Skateboard Renegade	Matt Christopher		136
2000	Wheel Wizards	Matt Christopher, Robert Hirschfeld		144
2000	Soccer Duel	Matt Christopher		144
2000	Tennis Ace	Matt Christopher		128
2001	Football Nightmare	Matt Christopher		128
2001	Cool as Ice	Matt Christopher		160
2001	Inline Skater	Matt Christopher		160
2002	On the Field with... Alex Rodriguez	Matt Christopher, Glenn Stout		128
2002	Windmill Windup	Matt Christopher		144
2002	Run For It	Matt Christopher		128
2002	Goalkeeper in Charge	Matt Christopher		144
2002	Dive Right In	Matt Christopher		144
2003	Fairway Phenom	Matt Christopher		144
2003	Nothin' But Net	Matt Christopher		144
2003	Body Check	Matt Christopher		144
2004	Stealing Home	Matt Christopher		144
2004	Slam Dunk	Matt Christopher		128
2004	Snowboard Champ	Matt Christopher		160
2006	Catching Waves	Matt Christopher		128
2006	Lacrosse Face-Off	Matt Christopher		128
2006	Comeback of the Home Run Kid	Matt Christopher		128
2007	Soccer Hero	Matt Christopher		96
2008	Lacrosse Firestorm	Matt Christopher		144
2008	Power Pitcher	Matt Christopher		112
2008	Shadow Over the Back Court	Matt Christopher		132
2008	Football Double Threat	Matt Christopher		128
2009	Karate Kick	Matt Christopher		118
2010	The Home Run Kid Races On	Matt Christopher		128
2010	Hot Shot	Matt Christopher		128
2010	Wing T Fullback	Matt Christopher		152
2010	Slide, Danny, Slide	Matt Christopher		138
2011	Out at Second	Matt Christopher		144
2011	Hook Shot Hero	Matt Christopher		144
2011	Great Moments in American Auto Racing	Matt Christopher		144
2011	QB Blitz	Matt Christopher		144
2012	The Greatest Sports Team Rivalries	Matt Christopher		144
2013	The Extreme Team: Skateboard Moves	Matt Christopher	David Leonard	32

Companion series

Peach Street Mudders Series

9 books · Published 1988–1998

Year	Title	Author	Pages
1996	On the Court with... Michael Jordan	Matt Christopher	144
1996	In the Huddle with... Steve Young	Matt Christopher, Glenn Stout	131
1996	On the Court with... Grant Hill	Matt Christopher	128
1997	On the Ice with... Wayne Gretzky	Matt Christopher	133
1997	On the Court with... Hakeem Olajuwon	Matt Christopher	111
1997	On the Field with... Emmitt Smith	Matt Christopher	122
1997	On the Mound with... Greg Maddux	Matt Christopher, Glenn Stout	128
1997	At the Plate with... Ken Griffey Jr.	Matt Christopher	144
1997	On the Court with... Andre Agassi	Matt Christopher	120
1997	At the Plate with... Mo Vaughn	Matt Christopher	113
1998	On the Mound with Randy Johnson	Matt Christopher	143
1998	On the Course with... Tiger Woods	Matt Christopher, Glenn Stout	144
1998	On the Field with... Mia Hamm	Matt Christopher, Glenn Stout	128
1998	On the Court with... Lisa Leslie	Matt Christopher	128
1999	In the Huddle with... John Elway	Matt Christopher, Glenn Stout	109
1999	On the Ice with... Tara Lipinski	Matt Christopher, Glenn Stout	128
1999	At the Plate with... Mark McGwire	Matt Christopher	128
1999	At the Plate with... Sammy Sosa	Matt Christopher	128
2000	In the Goal with... Briana Scurry	Matt Christopher	128
2000	On the Field with... Julie Foudy	Matt Christopher	128
2000	On the Field with...Derek Jeter	Matt Christopher, Glenn Stout	128
2000	On the Field with... Terrell Davis	Matt Christopher	128
2001	On the Track with Jeff Gordon	Matt Christopher	128
2001	On the Halfpipe with Tony Hawk	Matt Christopher	96
2001	On the Court with Kobe Bryant	Matt Christopher, Glenn Stout	96
2002	On the Court with... Venus and Serena Williams	Matt Christopher, Glenn Stout	128
2002	On the Ice with... Mario Lemieux	Matt Christopher, Glenn Stout	128
2003	At the Plate with... Ichiro	Matt Christopher, Glenn Stout	125
2003	On the Bike with... Lance Armstrong	Matt Christopher, Glenn Stout	112
2003	On the Court With... Shaquille O'Neal	Matt Christopher, Glenn Stout	128
2004	On the Court with... Jennifer Capriati	Matt Christopher, Glenn Stout	128
2004	On the Mound with... Curt Schilling	Matt Christopher, Glenn Stout	112
2004	On the Court with... Yao Ming	Matt Christopher, Glenn Stout	112
2008	On the Field with...Peyton and Eli Manning	Matt Christopher	144
2008	On the Court with... LeBron James	Matt Christopher	176
2009	On the Field with... Albert Pujols	Matt Christopher	128
2010	On the Court with...Dwight Howard	Matt Christopher	145
2017	On the Court with...Stephen Curry	Matt Christopher	128
2018	On the Field with...Tom Brady	Matt Christopher	160
2018	On the Court with...Kevin Durant	Matt Christopher	144
2020	On the Field with...	Matt Christopher	160

Matt Christopher Sports Classics Books

First Book in the Series

Matt Christopher Sports Classics Series

Peach Street Mudders Series

Soccer 'Cats Series

Harry the Dog Series

The Extreme Team Series

Great Americans in Sports Series

Legends in Sports Series

On the Field With . . . Series

Common Questions

How many books are in the Matt Christopher Sports Classics series?

What ages are the Matt Christopher Sports Classics books best for?

The Creatives Behind the Books

Matt Christopher

George Guzzi

Matthew F Christopher

Robert Hirschfeld

Glenn Stout

Robert Henneberger

Margaret Sanfilippo

Karen Meyer

Unknown

Wendy Wassink

Paul Casale

Harvey Kidder

Marcy Ramsey

Julie Downing

Karin Lidbeck

The #1 Sports Writer for Kids

David Leonard

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