Yesterday, Phil Humber of the Chicago White Sox pitched the 21st perfect game in baseball history. Yes, it was here in Seattle against the Mariners, and no, I wasn’t at the game to see it happen.
In a weird synchronicity, though, this week I happened to be editing a scene in Harm’s Way where the characters are enjoying some outdoor recreation. The year is 1862. What sort of game would they have been playing? Baseball?
Often, I’ve looked for answers about the past by logging into the King County Library web site to visit their 19th Century U.S. Newspapers database. First, I searched “baseball” in 19th century Ohio newspapers between 1857 and 1865. Guess what happened? “Your search found no results. Try again.” But I knew it had to be there. I have visited the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, NY, so I knew the pastime, if not the official game, extended back to the 18th century. What did they call it back then? In a moment of inspiration, I tried separating it into two words: “base ball.” That did the trick.
From The Daily Cleveland Leader, May 4, 1858
Base Ball.
Never within the memory of that venerable old fogy, “the oldest inhabitant,” has the “base ball” epidemic raged so fircely [sic] as at present. Fields, open lots, streets, alleys, and yards, everywhere can be found a troop of boys and men with a ball and a couple of bats, working at play as earnestly as if it were the greatest business of the day. All ages and all classes have caught the infection. The toddling, unbreeched youngster crows as he hits the tiny ball with the little wand; the school boys make the streets echo with their uproar as they dispute about a “tip” or a “first bound;” out in the fields the portly men grunt as they run past the bound, and grey-bearded Nestors plant themselves firmly to await the swift coming ball. The ragged and shoeless urchin enters with heart and soul into the game he is playing on the street; the staid merchant, the cautious banker, and the millionaire are just as excited and eager over the same game a little out of town.
Hurrah for base ball! There is no game superior to it in strengthening the muscles, expanding the chest, invigorating the frame, and enlivening the spirits. It is a thoroughly republican game. The possession of wealth or social station does not make a man hit the ball better nor run his rounds faster, nor will the mechanic who bowls shrink from hurling a swift shot after the running millionaire. Cricket is a very good game, but there is too much looking on in it. The good “bat” has all the time to himself, and the green hand loses his first chance, and has to sit on the grass for the remainder of the day. “Keep the pot boiling” is the only way for health and fun, and this “base ball” does.
From The Daily Cleveland Herald, September 20, 1865
Base Ball.–The Forest City Base Ball Club, recently organized in this city, meet twice a week on its grounds on Kinsman street for practice, and the general develpment of muscle in its members. An exciting game was played yesterday afternoon. It is rumored that match will be arranged before many days between this club and another located in a neighboring town.
In the above articles, I notice a few variances in terminology — click here for a chronology of 19th century rules of the game. But what grabs me too is a sense of nostalgia. As a child, I remember faculty picnics and family gatherings where an impromptu baseball game was the centerpiece.
Times change. The closest “all ages” romp I can think of in recent years was in 2008, the year my son graduated from high school. That spring, the high school teachers teamed up against the seniors in a pot-boiling match of Ultimate Frisbee. History in the making.