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First settled in the 1600s, the present-day village of Franklin Square developed as a German-speaking farming community in the late 1800s. The fertile farmland of Franklin Square supplied New York City with all types of fresh produce into the mid-20th century, when waves of suburban growth transformed fields into residential neighborhoods. Franklin Square's rich history exemplifies the larger trends in America's history. George Washington visited in 1790, and the poet Walt Whitman taught in the local school in 1840. The Franklin Square National Bank invented a new type of walk-up window as well as the bank credit card, eventually becoming the 18th-largest bank in the United States. A native son orbited the earth on the space shuttle.

Baseball may be the great American pastime, but in New York, it is a religion. Names like Ruth, Mays, Gehrig, Wright and Robinson live in the hearts and minds of New York fans like apostles. From the street corner to the subway car, debates about which Yankee, Giant, Dodger or Met is better than another have raged on for more than one hundred years. Now, the best of the best are chosen for each position as New York's all-time greatest team is imagined. Shoo-ins like the Babe and Jackie have their stories told with a fresh perspective. The compelling case for Mike Piazza, not Yogi Berra, as catcher is sure to spark arguments. Sportswriter Mark Healey crafts the Gotham baseball team through captivating tales of the legends of the New York game.