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It’s Major League Baseball Opening Day! What better time than to stock up on baseball romances to read in the lulls between plays—or any other time, of course. Hockey may be the most popular sport in romance right now, but there are some great baseball romances out there, and everybody knows romance readers love to read on-theme.
There is a particular joy that comes with baseball romance, whether it’s set in professional ball or elsewhere, and sometimes that comes specifically from the authors who are writing it—I would read KD Casey’s balled-up paper trash, okay? But baseball also offers many opportunities for interesting situations, diverse bodies, and team sports without quite as much danger to players as hockey or football. Of course, racial diversity is something to expect when looking at a baseball romance, too: the MLB is only 60% white, meaning that people of color should be everywhere in a baseball romance, even if they’re not the central character.
In this very brief list, you’ll notice that there are Baseball Romances and Romances Featuring Baseball Players. Just because a book is one of these does not always mean it’s also the other. A couple of these books are spectacular romances and have baseball players at their core, but we don’t really see a lot of the ball being played. Others are so baseball-centric that you might actually have to understand how baseball works, but the authors also manage to include some amazing character work. Then, some sit somewhere in the middle, where the baseball is important, but not particularly on-page. No matter what, though, these are great examples of how sports romances can give an athlete an interior life beyond the sport they play.
Breakout Year by KD Casey
KD Casey’s first full-length independently published baseball romance novel isn’t set in the same universe as the Unwritten Rules trilogy, but it sure does take the work she’s done with that series and give us even more feelings to deal with. Eitan is a baseball player who has just been traded to a new team, and he’s a little angry about it. When he says something at a press conference that implies something about his sexuality, he kind of runs with it and decides to get a fake boyfriend.
Enter Akiva, his estranged best friend and former baseball player, who needs some money to supplement his writing career. Baseball is played, feelings are dealt with, and everything is very Jewish. If you really like the character study in this book, you’ll probably also enjoy Luke and Billy Finally Get a Clue by Cat Sebastian, which is a novella in which no baseball is played, but two mid-century ball players figure themselves out.
The Prospects by KT Hoffman
Gene, the first openly trans professional baseball player, is happy where he is in the minor leagues, but knows he could probably go further if he worked at it. But he’s not going anywhere if he ends up murdering his new teammate, who also happens to be his college nemesis. The two don’t get along (mostly because of Gene), but a lot of time spent working together on their game and being pushed together in other settings might bring Gene around. Also, what’s this freaking chemistry? This is a book about a trans character written by an author with shared lived experience, and it also has great neurodivergent representation, including both ADHD and anxiety.
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Wild Pitch by Cat Giraldo
This is the first book in what, sadly, is only a two-book series about queer folks in the professional baseball world, and it is absolutely delicious. Sierra is the first woman in modern history to pitch for a major league team, and she knows how good she is. One way she maintains her league standing is by maintaining one rule: no dating baseball players.
Except that meeting her idol, who also has potential as a mentor, is making it hard to follow that rule. These two have amazing chemistry and work so very well together in all walks of the game. But what could this mean for both of their careers? For their livelihoods? Sometimes you just have to throw it all out the window.
The Changeup by Nicole Falls
A quick, delightful read, The Changeup is about a young woman who gets a chance to play baseball at the international level and the sports blogger who really needs to get a life. Geffri is recruited to play on the National Women’s Team (baseball, not softball) and feels like something she’s been missing might be coming back. But Noah can’t stop shit-talking her and her game, and Geffri wants to hear him say it to her face.
Working The Mound by K. Iwancio
While this isn’t the first book in the series, I couldn’t help but highlight this brand new book about a baseball player and the mascot he dumped for a more popular girl in high school. Inspired and endorsed (sort of) by the Savannah Bananas, the Philly Sillies series takes baseball on a song and dance routine worth watching, and this sounds like a delight all around!
Home Runner by Millie Perez
Also very much brand-new (and not the first book in the series), Home Runner is a Romance With Baseball, not a Baseball Romance. The central baseball-related character is actually a coach, not a player, and his best friend/love interest isn’t involved in the sport at all. But they still have a lot of baseball-related stuff to contend with, as it’s one of the things keeping them apart.
Expanded Roster by Aimee Rivkin
So there’s a baseball player. Then there’s his best friend, who is also a baseball player. Then there’s their equipment manager, who needs to make some money. Then there’s her ex-stepbrother, who has some kind of antagonistic relationship with one of the baseball players. There are feelings to figure out, misunderstandings to clear up, and oh, right: Only Fans videos to make…because of the whole money thing.
No Ordinary Love by Myah Ariel
Let’s close it out with another one of those romances that has a baseball player but doesn’t particularly involve baseball. Ella is a pop star who hasn’t had the best time in her personal life over the past few years. When she runs into Miles–a popular MLB player–at an awards show, there are definitely sparks. When their PR teams introduce the idea of a fauxmance for both of their public images, they go with it, and of course, you know what happens after that.
Want more sports romance? Check out this list of romances set at the Olympics. And if you’re looking for more new romances to read in any subgenre, there are plenty of new ones to enjoy!