history of baseball

Today a multi-billion dollar industry, Baseball has come a long way from its crude and humble beginnings in the fields of 19th century America. More than a game, Baseball remains an inseparable part of the American heritage and an intrinsic part of our national psyche. For many of us, notions of team, fair play, and athletic excellence first occurred on a red clay diamond cut from a grassy field. Referred to as "America's Pastime" since 1856, Baseball today is played by men and women of all ages and skill levels all around the world. Despite its recurrent scandals and woes, Baseball remains synonymous with the best that America has to offer.

19th Century Baseball: The Beginning

Contrary to popular belief, Baseball was not invented by a single individual, but evolved from various European "bat and ball" games. Russia had a version of Baseball called Lapta, which dates back to the fourteenth century. It consisted of two teams (five to ten members) with a pitcher and batter. The ball would be thrown to the batter who would attempt to hit it with a short stick and then run to the opposite side and back before being hit by the ball.

Cricket and Rounders

England has played Cricket and Rounders for several centuries. The first recorded cricket match took place in Sussex, England in 1697. Cricket is played in a large open circular field and has two sides of eleven players that attempt to "put out" a "batsman" who tries to prevent a ball thrown by a "bowler" from knocking over "bails" placed on "wickets," or three upright sticks. If the batsman makes contact with the ball, he runs to the opposite side of the "pitch" and continues running back and forth until the ball is retrieved by the opposing team.
Rounders, which shares more technical similarities to Baseball, dates back to Tudor times in England. This game consisted of two teams, six to fifteen players, including a pitcher, batter, "bowling square," "hitting square" and four posts, similar to bases used in Baseball. Each player had to bat in each "inning" and the game lasted two innings. The pitcher tossed the ball to the batter who attempted to hit it. If contact was made the batter ran to the first post. Points were awarded depending on what post was reached by the batter and the manner in which the post was reached.

Town Ball

Germany played a game called Schlagball, which was similar to Rounders. The ball was tossed by the "bowler" to the "striker," who struck it with a club and attempted to complete the circuit of bases without being hit by the ball. Americans played a version of Rounders called "Town Ball," which dates back to the early 1800's. In this game, the first team to score one hundred "talleys" won the game. In 1858 the rules were  formalized as the "Rules of the Massachusetts Game of Town Ball."

“Base Ball”

Occasionally, early 19th century American newspapers would mention games listed as "Bass-Ball," "Base," "Base Ball," "Base-Ball," "Goal Ball" and "Town Ball." The first known printed record of a game that was slightly different from Rounders and resembled a game closer to Baseball, is from an 1829 book called The Boy's Own Book, in which the game is referred to as "Round Ball," "Base" and "Goal Ball." A crude field diagram was included with specific locations for four stones or stakes (bases), that were arranged in a diamond. The article described how to "make an out" as well as how to get "home." The word "party" was used to describe a team, and the team at bat was called the "in-party." Each party pitched to themselves, bases were run in a clockwise direction and players could be put out by swinging and missing three pitched balls or by being hit with the ball while moving between bases.

The Olympic Base Ball Club of Philadelphia

Perhaps the first town ball club to adopt a constitution was the Olympic Ball Club of Philadelphia, founded in 1833. It was formed by combining two associations of Town Ball players. One of the Town Ball associations may have begun play in the spring of 1831, in Camden, NJ on Market Street. The original group included only four players, playing "Cat Ball," but eventually the number of players increased and the Saturday afternoon gathering usually included between fifteen to twenty players. With the increased interest the game changed to Town Ball and then to Base Ball. The other association called itself the Olympic Ball Club, favored Town Ball and played on Wednesdays. As they did not meet as regularly as the group in Camden, some of the members of the Olympic Ball Club began playing in Camden. Ultimately a match was proposed and played between the two associations. No record of this match exists, but the two groups did eventually combine into one and played on Wednesdays and Saturdays. The constitution was first published in 1838 and consisted of 15 Articles. Duties of the Board of Directors, Members, and Captains were described. Practice days and a fine structure were also outlined.
Canada claims the first recorded account of a baseball game, which occurred in Beechville, Ontario on June 4, 1838, described in a detailed letter written by Dr. Adam E. Ford, but not published until 38 years later on May 5, 1886, in a magazine called Sporting Life. In this letter, the game was described as having five bases or "byes," base lines twenty-one yards in length and the distance from the pitcher to the home bye was fifteen yards. Innings determined the length of the game as opposed to playing to a specific number of runs. Fairly and unfairly pitched balls were described and techniques mentioned for the pitcher to make it difficult for the "knocker" to hit the ball. The differences between "fair and" "no-hit" balls were described and each side was given three outs per inning.

The earliest known newspaper account of a Baseball game in the United States was published on September 11, 1845, in the New York Morning News, which announced a game that occurred the previous day. The first recorded Baseball game was played on October 6, 1845 at Elysian Fields, in Hoboken, New Jersey by fourteen members of the New York Knickerbockers Club. One team may have been captained by Alexander  Cartwright and the other by club president Duncan Curry. Curry's team won 11–8 in three innings. Between October 6 and November 18, 1845, the Knickerbockers may have played as many as fourteen more intra-squad games.

Cartwright and the Knickerbockers

Alexander Joy Cartwright (1820–1892) is often referred to as "The Father of Baseball" for his role in organizing a group of ballplayers whom he exercised with since 1842 into one of Baseball's first known teams, the New York Knickerbockers. On September 23, 1845, by virtue of its constitution and by-laws, the Knickerbocker Base Ball Club was officially formed. Cartwright scribed twenty rules, which were published and became known as the "20 Original Rules of Baseball" or the "Knickerbocker Rules." The team's first elected officers were: Duncan Curry, President; William Wheaton, Vice President; and William Tucker, Secretary/Treasurer. Curry, Wheaton and Tucker comprised the Knickerbocker Committee on By-Laws and their names appeared on the signed by-laws document that contained the rules.
The new rules changed Baseball in a number of ways—further differentiating it from Town Ball—three strikes to a batter, three outs to an inning, tags and force-outs in lieu of hitting a runner with a thrown ball, and the addition of an umpire. The 1845 rules also established the idea of "fair" and "foul" territory. Previously, the batter could run the bases any time he hit the ball, as in cricket. The Knickerbocker version of the game became known as the "New York Game" distinguishing it from "Town Ball" and "The Massachusetts Game."
Early on the Knickerbockers moved from the Murray Hill section of Manhattan to Hoboken, New Jersey to play their games at Elysian Fields. What is often referred to as the first recorded game played under the Knickerbocker Rules (now believed to be yet another intra-squad game), took place on June 19, 1846, when the Knickerbockers lost to the New York Baseball Club (aka "the New York Nine") 23–1 in four innings. The winning team was comprised mainly of Knickerbocker players. Cartwright umpired the contest and enforced a six-cent fine, payable on the spot, for swearing.
A team called a “Picked Nine” or “The (blank) Nine,” most often referred to a team of players put together for that day or for a specific game. These players were not necessarily part of the same club.

Daniel "Doc" Adams

Daniel "Doc" Adams (1814–1899) was elected President of the Knickerbockers in 1846. Two years later he headed the Committee to Revise the Constitution and By-Laws with Cartwright serving under him. Cartwright left New York on March 1, 1849, for the California Gold Rush and eventually ended up in Hawaii.
Adams has been credited with "inventing" the 'short-fielder' or 'shortstop' position in 1849 or 1850. The position evolved because the baseballs used, handmade by Adams, were light and could not be thrown far. A non-base-tending player was needed to retrieve balls from the outfielders and return them to the pitcher.
Under Adams’ presidency (1846–1862), the Knickerbocker Club became the model upon which all early clubs were organized. So dominant was the Knickerbocker Club during the 1840's and 1850's, that they transformed Elysian Fields in Hoboken, New Jersey into the first great center of Baseball activity in the United States.

The First Base Ball Convention

Considered by some to be the true "Father of Baseball," "Doc" Adams was elected president of the first Base Ball Convention in 1857. He also headed the Committee on Rules and Regulations that year, which instituted the following rules: nine equal innings for a full game, five equal innings for a complete game, 30 yard distance between the four bases, the pitching distance should be 45 feet and he also stated that nine men should comprise a team.
With the rules better defined and with the success of the 1857 convention, the game became increasingly popular. Subsequent conventions attracted more teams. The Civil War caused membership to decrease but helped introduce the game to southern parts of the United States. The membership of the National Association of Base Ball Players increased to more than 300 members in 1867.

Doc Adams' Legacy

Adams was elected as Chairman of the Committee on Rules and Regulations during the March 1858 Base Ball Convention in which the National Association of Base Ball Players was formed. He resigned in 1862 and  two years later the bound rule which he fought since 1857 was abolished. He also resigned from the Knickerbockers in 1862 and played in his last base ball game in September 1875 in an "old-timers" match arranged by formed Knickerbocker James Whyte Davis. Adams died on January 3, 1899.
Under Adams' presidency (1846-1862), the Knickerbocker Club became the model upon which all early clubs were organized. So dominant was the Knickerbocker Club during the 1840's and 1850's, that they transformed Elysian Fields in Hoboken, New Jersey into the first great center of Baseball activity in the United States.

In 1934 an old and fragile baseball was discovered in the attic of a farmhouse in Fly Creek, NY, about three miles from Cooperstown. It was purchased for $5.00 by Stephan C. Clark, a Cooperstown, New York resident. He had gained considerable wealth due to his association with the Singer Sewing Machine Company and he had the original idea to display the ball along with other baseball items. The ball was believed to have once belonged to Abner Graves(!). It was therefore assumed that Doubleday himself must have at some time actually touched the "magic" ball, and it became known as the "Doubleday Baseball."
The building that Clark chose to house his collection is now the Cooperstown Village Offices. The exhibit was a tremendous success. He soon received the backing of the National and American League presidents, Ford Frick and William Harridge as well as the Commissioner of Baseball, Kenesaw Mountain Landis. Clark began to receive numerous items as the news spread. Frick proposed that Cooperstown house the “Hall of Fame.” The first group was elected in January of 1936 and the Cooperstown, N.Y. building was dedicated on June 12, 1939, to mark “Baseball's (dubious) Centennial Year.”