Jack Lang (sportswriter)
Encyclopedia
Jack Lang was an American sportswriter who spent more than forty years covering New York
's baseball
teams.
in 1947. After the Dodgers moved to Los Angeles
for the 1958 season, the paper assigned him to cover the New York Yankees
. Lang began covering the New York Mets
in their inaugural 1962 season, continuing that beat until he retired in 1989. When the Long Island Press folded in 1977, Lang moved to the New York Post
. He was the 1986 recipient of the J. G. Taylor Spink Award for "meritorious contributions to baseball writing."
scoring rules committee.
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
's baseball
Baseball
Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each. The aim is to score runs by hitting a thrown ball with a bat and touching a series of four bases arranged at the corners of a ninety-foot diamond...
teams.
Newspaper career
Lang began his career covering the Brooklyn Dodgers for the Long Island PressLong Island Press
The Long Island Press is a free newsweekly serving Long Island with extensive coverage of arts and entertainment, sports, and alternative political viewpoints. The newspaper started in 2003 after its parent company, Morey Publishing, bought The Long Island Ear, which was a free bi-monthly...
in 1947. After the Dodgers moved to Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
for the 1958 season, the paper assigned him to cover the New York Yankees
New York Yankees
The New York Yankees are a professional baseball team based in the The Bronx, New York. They compete in Major League Baseball in the American League's East Division...
. Lang began covering the New York Mets
New York Mets
The New York Mets are a professional baseball team based in the borough of Queens in New York City, New York. They belong to Major League Baseball's National League East Division. One of baseball's first expansion teams, the Mets were founded in 1962 to replace New York's departed National League...
in their inaugural 1962 season, continuing that beat until he retired in 1989. When the Long Island Press folded in 1977, Lang moved to the New York Post
New York Post
The New York Post is the 13th-oldest newspaper published in the United States and is generally acknowledged as the oldest to have been published continuously as a daily, although – as is the case with most other papers – its publication has been periodically interrupted by labor actions...
. He was the 1986 recipient of the J. G. Taylor Spink Award for "meritorious contributions to baseball writing."
Other activities
He was also widely known as the Executive Secretary for the Baseball Writer's Association of America. It was in that capacity that Lang was responsible for overseeing the voting process for the Baseball Hall of Fame from 1967 through 1994. He was also a member of Major League Baseball'sMajor League Baseball
Major League Baseball is the highest level of professional baseball in the United States and Canada, consisting of teams that play in the National League and the American League...
scoring rules committee.