Crack of the bat

The return of baseball, not only our beloved Red Sox, but our local Little League players, also signifies the start of Spring for many diehard fans. For them, there is no sweeter sound than the thwack of the ball into a mitt or the crack of the bat.

The creation of the game of Baseball, the “national pastime,” was long credited to Abner Doubleday, who was a commander for the Union Army during the Civil War. However, this myth has been debunked over time, leading to a clearer understanding of the modern-day game’s origins.

Fans at a baseball game between Universalist and North Beverly teams, Beverly, Mass.
Beverly Public Library

Baseball actually developed from earlier “stick-and-ball” games played by working class people in England. The game emigrated along with the Puritans and was played during Colonial times. However, the game did not develop more widely until the early to mid-1800s. The reasons for this growth are twofold. First, Puritanism. with its dim view of recreation for adults, began to diminish and, at the same time, concerns about public health led to the promotion of recreational activities for adults. Secondly, the middle-classes took up the sport, hastening the development of standard rules, leagues, and the construction of playing fields and stadiums, etc.

At this time, different geographic regions each played their own variation of baseball, often called “town ball.” For example, the “Massachusetts Game” was played with four bases and three strikes, but had its own distinct set of elements and rules. These included:

Baseball game on the Wakefield Common, c. 1900
Beebe Memorial Library

• Four-foot stakes served as “bases”
• The batter did not stand behind home base, but between first and “fourth” base
• There was only one out per “inning”
• Games continued until a team scored 100 tallies (runs)
• Balls hit anywhere on the field were in play, there was no foul territory
• Base runners were “plugged” (hit), rather than tagged with the ball

Greenwood Grammar School Baseball Team, Wakefield, Mass
Beebe Memorial Library

The New York Game, with rules created by Alexander Joy Cartwright in 1845, is more similar to the modern-day game. Two important changes implemented by the Cartwright were the replacement of “plugging” with tagging of runners. This change led to the development of a harder baseball that also traveled further when hit. Additionally, Cartwright instituted foul lines, thus limiting the field of play. However, elements of the Massachusetts Game also appear in today’s version: for example, Massachusetts rules required the pitcher to throw overhand rather than underhand and required fielders to catch the ball in the air to make an out.

High School Baseball

Archibald Bush, Phillips Academy
Oliver Wendell Holmes Library

During the nineteenth century, athletics became more socially acceptable as the benefits to health and social well being became recognized. At the secondary level, private schools were burgeoning during the 1800’s. These academies, with their resources and often spacious campuses, were the first to develop school athletics programs. The Round Hill School in Northampton and Governor Dummer Academy in Byfield were among the earliest to field sports teams. Baseball was among the sports offered.

At Phillips Academy in Andover, baseball was introduced by James B. Wells, who had played for a team in Brooklyn, NY. Wells arrived at the school in 1864 and taught the game to his fellow students. It wasn’t until the arrival of “Archie” Bush in 1866, though, that baseball took hold at the school. Bush was one of the academy’s greatest players. He had served as a lieutenant in the Union Army during the Civil War and had played with a team in Albany. By 1878, Phillips Academy in Andover had established an annual baseball rivalry with Phillips Exeter, one that was so intense that it sometimes resulted in post-game fracases.

Playing first, George “Poppy” Bush, 1942
Oliver Wendell Holmes Library

Phillips Academy also played against local colleges and universities, including Harvard, Dartmouth and Yale, often defeating the older teams. Many Phillips Academy players have gone on to play collegiate baseball, but most have gone on to achieve fame and fortune in other professions.

After the Civil War, public education began to expand and with it, athletic opportunities for students of more limited means. Baseball was considered a means of teaching “respect for the rules and subordination of self to the team,” ideals that were, and arguably are still, highly valued.

One of the earliest high school teams was the Worcester High School Baseball Club, founded in 1859. As public school enrollment grew in the late nineteenth century, more boys had the chance to play baseball, but school athletics were much different than today. First and foremost, teams were organized and run by students, not integrated into the physical education curriculum or into the overall life of the school. This lack of oversight sometimes led to problems, including the common practice of recruiting “ringers,” or non-students, to play for the team. Consequently, by the early twentieth century, school administrations began to take control of athletics teams and organized leagues began to develop.

Amateur Baseball

Reading Town Baseball Team
Reading Public Library

Throughout Massachusetts, amateur baseball leagues long have thrived. The most famous of these is the Cape Cod League (CCL), a league for collegiate players founded in 1885. The CCL considers itself “the oldest, most successful amateur baseball league in the nation” and has produced hundreds of Major League Baseball players. The New England Collegiate Baseball League (NECBL) began play in 1993, challenging the CCL for top players. As its name signifies, the NECBL is a regional league with teams in six states. The league has sent a number of players to the major leagues and is proving to be an appealing alternative to top collegiate players. There also are over thirty adult amateur leagues operating across the state for older players. These days there are competitive opportunities for players of all ages and abilities.

Saugus Little League parade, 1966
Saugus Public Library

Little League Baseball

In 1939 Little League baseball was established in Willamsport, PA, enabling younger children to receive instruction and participate in organized games on teams usually sponsored by local businesses. It wasn’t until 1947 that Little League expanded beyond Pennsylvania, but by 1949, there were 307 leagues across the country. (By 1998, Little League baseball was played in 95 countries throughout the world.) It wasn’t until 1974 that girls won the right to participate on Little League teams, following a legal challenge in the New Jersey courts. Prior to that point, any league that allowed girls to participate lost its Little League charter. Previous lawsuits in Massachusetts and Michigan were unsuccessful. Then as now, the Little League season often opened with a parade featuring all of the local teams. The more things change, the more they stay the same.

Wakefield Little League parade, 2008
Beebe Memorial Library

See a gallery of baseball team photos.