Chippewa Falls Public Library director Joe Niese standing next to a memorial for Zach Wheat, a Hall-of-Fame baseball player for the Brooklyn Dodgers. (Submitted photo)

Chippewa Falls Public Library Director Joe Niese recently snagged the 2021 Society of American Baseball Research Ron Gabriel Award for his biography on Major League Baseball player Zack Wheat, titled Zack Wheat: The Life of the Brooklyn Dodgers Hall of Famer. The award goes to the author of the best research centered on the Brooklyn Dodgers completed during the previous year. Sports have been a big part of Niese’s life since childhood, and are natural writing topics for him. He has previously published three other sports biographies, detailing the lives of Burleigh Grimes, Andy Pafko, and Gus Dorais. All of Niese’s books are available on his website, joeniese.com.