A Historical Perspective of Baseball in Normington

[Hrycaj]

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Nobody knows how the baseball story in Normington really began. Historians will never know who the first child was that pitched the idea of hitting a rock with a stick to their friends. What were the first rules? Were there any rules at all? How many versions of the game have been invented and gone extinct over the course of a single warm afternoon? Thanks to the extraordinary imagination of children, baseball isn’t alone with its hazy origin story. In fact, every game developed by a child holds the same mystery. Who invented tag, hopscotch or hide and go seek? Why does it matter? In baseball’s case, not having the exact beginning of the story does not take away from the story as a whole. Just knowing that this is a story that started as a children's game and would morph into a national obsession is plenty enough. It is this obsession that takes us to Norminton. Normington and baseball have a unique relationship: they share triumphs, tragedies and dishonest deceptions making it virtually impossible to tell one story without telling the other. We pick up our tale at the turn of the 19th century in the Ipsen, the state of Ironhorse’s capital city.

Ipsen: Cramped beginnings

Ipsen, located along the banks of the Grand River on one side and the Endless Ocean on another, is a city that wears many hats. Ipsen is not only the governmental seat of power in Normington, it is also considered one of the cultural centers of the nation. Ipsen also was one of the first cities in Normington (the other was Bronze City) to embrace the industrial revolution of the 18th century and begin to diversify its economy. By the early 1800’s the port city was bursting at the seams with over one million inhabitants. Between a growing population and a factory boom, space was becoming very limited within the city limits. City planners felt growing the city vertically was a solution to the space problem Ipsen was facing.

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Why Baseball?

Anyone that claims to know the answer to this question is telling a blatant lie. At best one could have theories but there is simply not enough surviving evidence to substantiate any single claim. Here is what history is aware of: Sports, as we have come to know them, were simply not yet realized in the early 19th century. There were two activities that could roughly be called sports during this time period: horse racing and boxing. The problem with both “sports” is that they were pastimes for the upper crust of society who were not the class that took up baseball in the streets of Ipsen. It is entirely possible that the highest class of citizens in Normington never had an inkling about what was going on in the “unwashed” sections of the city until much later in history. Industry-supplied jobs had brought people into the city, and for all intents and purposes started cramped city living as we know it today. Many of these people came from rural areas outside of the city and were not accustomed to literally living on top of each other in a compacted urban setting. Long hours working in hot, dangerous, dark, poorly ventilated factories also did not help matters. It should come as no surprise that these people were yearning for a recreational release of some sort. For obvious financial reasons horse racing was only an option for the upper class. boxing, which was the other competitive endeavor at the time, didn’t work for several reasons. First and foremost, even by the early 19th century, boxing was controlled by strong armed gambling syndicates. Boxing is also a spectator sport. While very popular, it just wasn’t considered a unifying recreation activity that the masses were clearly looking for. So for lack of any other real options it makes total sense that people would revert back to playing the games they learned and played as children. Baseball was one of these games. When asked, psychologists have theorized that these actions were a defense mechanism by the people living under difficult circumstances. That in such cases it is not uncommon for a person to revert back to a perceived “simpler time” where everything associated with human nature was pure and honest. While that is an interesting theory it could be much simpler than that. Whether it was baseball or some other bat and ball game, these childhood games allowed for social inclusion as well as the exercise people were looking for. Baseball won the evolutionary lottery because it was fun and people wanted to play it.

Transitions:

Nobody has any idea what the first baseball games in the streets of Ipsen looked like. They were most likely pickup type contests played with a variety of rule sets. We don’t even know if games were played to completion via a score or time limit. It is pretty clear that it was the working classes that took up baseball in the streets of Ipsen but our knowledge of their game will always be limited because of literary setbacks amongst laborers. It wasn’t until the middle class social clubs took up the game that we began to see some written documentation to help fill in the gaps in the story. Social clubs have a long and distinguished history themselves tracing their roots all the way back to the guild system of the middle ages. What is important to know about the social clubs is that they were copious note takers. Unfortunately, that only makes the job a bit easier as baseball was considered a recreation and oftentimes not important enough to be mentioned in club minutes. Thankfully though, if we piece together shards of information from various clubs, we can gradually cobble together an image of what baseball and Ipsen kind of looked like in the 1820’s.

Myth of the Purist Clubs:

Some of the earliest clubs to record their baseball activities have been labeled “purist clubs” by history. The idea springs from the fact that people considered these clubs pioneers that played the purest form of the game; the same game that was played by children for decades in the rural fields of Normington. For reasons already discussed this notion of a purist club is a complete misnomer. To these early clubs credit, it wasn’t like they walked around calling themselves purist or thought they were doing anything altogether unique. Also, these clubs were not playing the same version of the game. So, the idea of these clubs were actually playing a pure version of the game as the label intended is a complete fallacy. Baseball was a recreation and not much else. Part of the reason for this historical misnomer was because there were a few key elements shared by most of the clubs allowing people to overlook small differences that made each club's game unique. For instance, all of the clubs in this time period delivered the ball underhand to the batter. The idea of a pitcher deceiving the batter was just not done at this point in the game's history. In fact, some clubs even allowed the batter to request the location of the pitched ball. Decades later, when people started to think about the history of the game, pitching had become something completely different than what it originally was intended to be. That detail led people to unfairly lump all of the club teams from this era into an all encompassing category labeled “purist”. Even with that single detail of underhand pitching there was variance. The distance from the pitcher to batter varied. Some clubs favored a still arm straight delivery while others allowed for a loose armed arc. The same argument can be made with paces (not feet) between the bases, the amount of players per side and the completion of a contest to name a few. We also cannot assume that clubs even held themselves to a specific rule set every time they engaged. The last thing that history should be doing is lumping these clubs together in an effort to impress some sort of unified experience between clubs. Just the fact that there was so much variance in each club's rules would sufficiently explain why the majority of evidence from this time period talks of inter-club matches as opposed to clubs challenging each other. While the game these club’s played should not be lumped together, their significance to the baseball story should absolutely be universally celebrated. Thanks to written records, we can identify some of the clubs that took up the game of baseball during this time period.

[StLee]

I am highly interested! Unique worlds are my passion!

[Tiger Fan]

Great start. Love the map and the tale of the beginnings of baseball in Normington.

[Hrycaj]

Originally Posted by StLee

I am highly interested! Unique worlds are my passion!

Thank you so much!

[Hrycaj]

Originally Posted by Tiger Fan

Great start. Love the map and the tale of the beginnings of baseball in Normington.

Thank you for the kind words.

[Hrycaj]

Butcher Boys:

Butchers were a powerful organization in 19th century Norming society. This particular club was located in the original market district of Ipsen. As a club, they were responsible for regulating prices and keeping markets stabilized during rough times. Butchers were a well respected group that worked hard and liked to play hard as well. One of the more interesting rules from a butcher boy baseball game was the allowance of “pelting”. Pelting was the practice of the defender throwing the ball at the offensive player as they tried to advance to the safety of the base. This violent practice was not limited to the butcher boys exclusively, but they would be the group that would continue the practice the longest.

Crown Street Barbers:

Located along one of the oldest streets in Ipsen, this Barber’s club was known to be baseball enthusiasts. The nature of the Barber profession called for working late hours as many customers preferred to have their grooming done after working hours on their way home. For this reason, the Crown Street barbers were known to get together early in the morning (sometimes as early as 6 am) and play to a set number of runs (most times it was 20 runs) so they could open their shops on time.

Cherry Arch Educators Club:

Education in the 1820’s was still primarily a service for the children of the wealthy in city districts like Cherry Arch. The Cherry Arch teachers would routinely meet to discuss things like curriculum and teaching philosophy. The educators were another early riser group when it came to their baseball. As a group they seemed to be more analytic when it came to playing field measurements. Based on their notes it was insisted that the distance between bases should always be 50 paces. What constitutes a pace though is definitely up for interpretation.

Ipsen Legal Society:

What was interesting about the Ipsen Legal Society was that lawyers occupied a higher rung on the social ladder. This was important as it provides further evidence that baseball was a game that was catching on with more than a single social class. Interestingly enough, the lawyers preferred a very loose game where boundaries between fair and foul territory were not established. Was this possibly because a key element of the legal profession was built around sifting through legal minutiae to argue their respective cases? Or perhaps creating a mindset where a bit of chaos during recreation was appreciated and needed?

Various Fire Houses in Ipsen:

By the 1820’s firefighting had morphed from a volunteer group that was called into action based on need, to a full-fledged profession. The firefighters did not create a social club like the other examples, but a number of firehouses had enough members in a single house to support baseball matches. Each firehouse played a different version of the game but one house in particular did not have an “out” count to signify the end of a time at bat or in the field. Each player hit one time and teams compiled as many runs as they could in that time. Then the opponent would get the same opportunity and the game lasted for a set amount of attempts (The term inning was not yet in use). Also of note, more than a few firehouses would provide a food banquet after a match was completed.

Fish Harbour Political Club:

What was unique about the F.H.P.C was it’s membership. In the other examples that have been provided, club members shared a profession. The F.H.P.C. was a political organization that shared an idea. It’s membership consisted of people from various professions with the interests of the Fish Harbour district as the reason for the clubs existence. The F.H.P.C. had a unique rule where if a batted ball was caught in the air or off a single bounce the batter would be ruled out.

These examples give the reader a good cross reference of the types of clubs in operation that played some form of baseball. This isn’t to suggest that these were the only clubs that took up the game either. In fact, since none of these clubs played anyone but themselves, dozens of clubs took up the game as a recreational outlet as the decade continued. Then something very interesting happened in 1829.

[ayaghmour2]

Always love to see a fictional country with it's own history. Excited to see what you do with yours!

[Hrycaj]

Originally Posted by ayaghmour2

Always love to see a fictional country with it's own history. Excited to see what you do with yours!

Thank you sir!

[Dark Horse]

Always happy to see another fictional world. Good start. Looking forward to more.

[Hrycaj]

1829:

1829 was a magical year in baseball history because it was the first time a club was established for the specific purpose of playing baseball. Up until this point baseball was an activity different social clubs took up for fun. It was a natural progression as the game's popularity was steadily increasing. The problem however, was that more than a single club was established and we have no idea which one came first.

Westgate Baseball Club:

The Westgate Baseball Club was made up of a number of legal professionals from the Westgate district of Ipsen. They still preferred a loose style of baseball that at times looked nothing like the game of baseball as it looks today.

Old District Baseball Club:

The Old District Club featured a combination of Butcher Boys, dockworkers and other tradesmen from one of the oldest districts in Ipsen. The O.D.B.C. as one could imagine continued the tradition of a rougher style of baseball where pelting was still the norm.

East Road Baseball Club:

The East Road Club was an early riser club that included barbers, teachers and any other profession that worked later hours. The East Road Club still held the tradition of playing to a certain run count which resulted in a speedy, exciting brand of baseball.

By this point the popularity of baseball had spread to different cities throughout the state of Ironhorse and was threatening to cross the border into Folmer and Danehurst. After all, it wasn’t like the population of Ipsen was static. People moved and took ideas with them. Interstate trade was very influential in the spread of ideas as well. In fact, it is a bit surprising that it took nearly a decade for the game's roots to spread to other areas in Normington.

While the creation of clubs for the explicit purposes of playing baseball deserves it’s historical due it didn’t really move the needle all that much in terms of advancement. These clubs still employed a myriad of different rule sets and we have no evidence that they played anything more than inter-club matches. These early clubs cared more about isolation than spreading their game. To get what we are truly looking for we have to look in a completely different place.

The Kids Save the Day:

This is one of those moments where history unfairly credits the first baseball clubs in Ipsen with doing much more than they actually did. While those stuffy adult clubs couldn’t get out of their own way, it was the college kids that were actively trying to unify the game. In a beautiful bit of irony, it would be the original stewards of the game that would essentially usher in baseball’s greatest changes. For starters, the college players wanted to play each other. To do so there was going to have to be some agreement to a common set of playing rules. Just the simple act of seeking competition would change the game forever. Two colleges 35 miles away from each other squared off in the first recorded baseball game in the history of Normington. The year was 1835 and the Universities were Oldgate and Oxberry. Now it should be noted that history loves to throw around “firsts” whenever they can. Was this truly the first competitive match between clubs using an agreed upon set of rules? Most probably not, yet the Oldgate and Oxberry match was something that was recorded by the home Oxberry club in their club minutes. So until history can uncover earlier evidence this college match may continue to claim the title of being first game up.

Which begs the question, what were these agreed upon rules? As if it were that easy. Just the knowledge that these two clubs agreed to a match proves that rules were agreed upon. Unfortunately, we do not have specifics. Like most everything else that was not written down, it wasn’t thought of as important. It is very likely that neither club thought they were doing anything unique and historically noteworthy. At the time it was just two schools getting together for some friendly competition. We have no idea who even played in the game but we do know that Oxberry did beat Oldgate by the score of 48-16. We can try and glean a few bits of information from what little we have. First it seemed important to log the score as opposed to just declaring the winner. 48 seems like an odd number to play to so the prevailing thought is that an agreed number of times at bat (innings today) was agreed upon. Of course this is simply speculation. Maybe the teams did agree that 48 was a great number to play to. Maybe the game was a timed event and not a “times” at the plate event. We are assuming that both sides had an equal number of opportunities when that may not have been the case at all. We also have no idea how long the game took. Maybe they ran out of daylight? So many questions based on a few lines of notation in the Oxberry minutes from the first Saturday in September of 1835. A key takeaway though is to understand that this was not an isolated incident. Both colleges would play other colleges in the months and years to come. Furthermore, it is when these young men graduate and take their positions in the adult world that they bring along the fun and they created from their college days. This is where sloppy history had been allowed to take hold. When the adult baseball clubs made the transition to playing each other competitively, they were the clubs established by the upper middle class and elite class of society. History has assumed that the organization came from these clubs because their members were smarter and more organized than the working class clubs. This is only halfway true by accident. The only people allowed to attain a higher education in this time period were the upper middle and lower elite classes. It wasn’t like the adult clubs going at the time came up with an organized system of competition in the least. They were plenty happy playing their inter-club matches like they had done for years. It was more like their kids came home from college, brought the game with them, and kicked their stuffy parents to the curb. Of course, none of this happened over night, it took time. When the dust settled however, a couple of things had happened. Those college kids not only changed the game by stepping into the competitive world, they also unknowingly opened up baseball to all social classes of Normington. Baseball was slowly becoming a game for all.

[Hrycaj]

Originally Posted by Dark Horse

Always happy to see another fictional world. Good start. Looking forward to more.

Thank You!

[legendsport]

Gotta jump on the bandwagon here - that is some really cool stuff Paul!

[Hrycaj]

Originally Posted by legendsport

Gotta jump on the bandwagon here - that is some really cool stuff Paul!

Thanks Joe. I appreciate that!

[Hrycaj]

Baby Steps:

The three elements that separated the roots of modern baseball from all others were a strict definition between fair and foul territory, scoring and reaching base, and the adoption of the three out rule. Variations of these elements would continue to exist even after clubs began to favor a specific rule set and true unification was still some time away. Even still, by 1838 these variations were beginning to wane and competitive matches between clubs were starting to materialize.

Cherry Arch Baseball Club:

Not to be confused with the educators club of similar name, this club was made up of their employers and former pupils. Once again, this is another situation where history anoints more credit than it should. Yes, the Cherry Arch Club is responsible for actually committing a rule set to paper that would eventually morph into the modern baseball playing rules. The fact that their rule set is the oldest historical evidence we have to this point is also true. Hopefully though, by this point it is quite clear that they were not the original baseball club of Ipsen and Normington as a whole. They weren’t even the only club in operation using the rule set they are credited with creating. Prominent Members:

Harry Edwards-Governor
Stuart Felton-Steward
Leon Flanders-Secretary
Josh Parker-Treasurer

Moon Lodge Baseball Club:

The Moon Lodge Social club had been a mainstay in Ipsen for generations. Horatio Moon, the successful shipbuilder, founded the club in the 1680’s. Moon’s Lodge as it came to be known was a welcome retreat for early industrial magnates in Ipsen. As their political clout grew membership became more diversified and began to include politicians and other government dignitaries. The Moon Lodge Baseball club is actually a branch of the Moon Lodge Social Club. Cabinet members included:

Charles Brewster-Senior Warden
Simon Hobbs- Junior Warden
Douglas West- Secretary
Merton Hall- Treasurer

Clover Baseball Club:

The Clover District was another area in Ipsen where upper class families made their residence. The Clover Club was composed of doctors and lawyers. The Clover Baseball Club enjoyed playing matches on Saturday afternoon whereas many other clubs would play whenever wherever they felt the desire.

You will notice that baseball clubs during this time were very localized to certain areas of the cities. We are some time away yet before clubs claim to represent the entire city as a whole. We also believe that there were more clubs than the three mentioned here that were playing under a shared rule set but thus far evidence of such a claim has proven elusive. Clover hierarchy:

Amos Brownleaf-Senior Warden
Harman Cook-Junior Warden
Samuel Dicker-Secretary
John Kent-Treasurer

The Difficulty of Securing Evidence:

Much of what we know about Norming society in the 19th century comes from newspapers. This results in a multi-layered problem. For one, newspapers were not published daily like they are today. Also, the information in those early papers was geared toward the wealthy class, as they were the ones that were most likely able to afford and have the ability to read what was written. Early papers provided more information about the stock market and business trends than it ever did for baseball. This forces historians to pour through countless pages of club minutes that were not always faithfully kept or very detailed about baseball in the first place. Even when baseball specific clubs were formed their minutes were often devoid of information we would find useful today. We still have to remember that even though the popularity of the game is certainly growing it is still considered a leisure activity.

The First Meeting of Clubs:

It is assumed that over the next two years there was an increase in clubs that were willing to conform to a certain rule set in order to play competitively against each other. The reason for this assumption was because the Cherry Arch Club hosted the first meeting of baseball clubs on record. The meeting took place on February 15th 1840 which was recorded as a blistering cold day in Ipsen. Cherry Arch Governor Harry Edwards presided over the proceedings. His proposal was to work with the other club representatives to create an official set of rules for competition. It was a very ambitious effort considering that most of the clubs present were only a handful of years old. What was great about the 1840 meeting from a historical standpoint was that Cherry Arch Secretary Perry Barnes was on hand to archive the event. The first thing of note was the number of club representatives in attendance.

Cherry Arch (Ipsen)- (Edwards, Felton, Flanders, Parker)
Moon Lodge (Ipsen)- (Brewster, West)
Clover (Ipsen)- (Brownleaf, Norris)
Tailorsfield (Ipsen)- (Irvine, Payne)
Butcher Boys (Ipsen)-(Bacon, Clark)
Westgate (Ipsen)-(Williams, Edwards)
Cour’s Green (Oldgate)-(Dunbar)
Stormtown (Oldgate)-(Simmons)
Silk Orchard (Ladwig)-(Hatwood, Hutson)
Ivy Lawn (Oxberry)-(Archer)
White Bridge (Jipson)-(Bender, Wood)
Pearl Crossing (Jipson)-(Whipple, Yance)
Two Crests (Fenkell)- (Owens, Skinner)
Pearlhill (Fenkell)-(Parks)
The Groves (Winterhalter)-(McCord, Norton)
Sunset Gate (Millharbour)- (Parks, Morgan, Hall, Halstead)
West Town (Mersey)-(Chamberlain, White)

There were a couple of interesting things to note about this list of clubs. First, the Butcher Boys Baseball Club found a way into the meeting. The Butcher Boys, while influential, were not considered a club of the upper class membership. The same augment could be made to a lesser degree about the Westgate Baseball Club. Another interesting item of note was the number of clubs that were not from the city of Ipsen. This just illustrates how far the game has already traveled. The Sunset Gate Baseball Club was the only representative from Millharbour in Folmer, which sits 145 miles away from Ipsen. It was a very good mix of clubs but aside from Westgate and the Butcher Boys it clearly was a gathering of the elites (money wise not talent wise).

Before we continue with the meeting a few words need to be said about host Harry Edwards. The Edwards family made their fortune in shipbuilding. The Edwards line was well known throughout Normington. Henry was born in 1803 and enjoyed the benefits of a privileged upbringing. Undoubtedly, Harry (as he was called) played some form of baseball as a youth. Harry attended college at Alborne State University and graduated with a degree in law which he put to use in protecting interests in the family business. Harry must have kept time for baseball as he was one of the founding members of the Cherry Arch Baseball Club and elected its inaugural Governor. Since it was the Cherry Arch Club that Edwards represented that organized the event being discussed, it is pretty safe to assume that he was a vocal supporter in some type of unification regarding rules of competition. To invite seventeen clubs may suggest he had bigger aspirations as well.

Returning to the meeting notes, Edwards proposed that the clubs present should come up with a standard set of playing rules and a “gentlemen’s agreement” to only play other clubs with this shared rule set. It was an ambitious proposal that was quickly met with resistance. Without going into each representative's remarks, it was clear that coming up with an agreed upon rule set would be challenging enough. Clubs were just not ready to agree to any sort of system that would look like league play. Baseball was just not there yet and Edwards would have to put a pause on his idea for now. It would turn out that even coming up with an agreed set of playing rules was daunting enough as not all clubs left the meeting in agreement. Here is a recap of what was decided.

[Hrycaj]

It is suggested that written correspondence be used to establish a date, time and location for a match when at all possible:

It is assumed that this rule was put in place so clubs can create some type of rudimentary schedule of matches without completely closing the door on opportunities that may present themselves on short notice.

The host club will be responsible for the selection of the umpire for the scheduled match.

It is of note that the term umpire is used in the singular tense. We are decades away from umpire crews as you see in the modern game.

The umpire will administer the coin flip. The visiting club shall make the call on the coin flip. The coin flip winner will establish their clubs batting preference for the game.

It is interesting to note that the host club did not automatically bat last like in the modern game. The host club was responsible for providing the field, umpire, and hospitality but not the last chance to bat. It should also be noted that the idea of batting last as a strategic advantage was not yet realized. Even when it was, many clubs would opt to bat first in an effort to get the best swings on a new baseball before it quickly became deformed over the course of a match.

The game will consist of 27 outs per side. The umpire will keep a running tally of outs made and runs scored for each side. The umpire shall declare the club with the most runs after the 27th out, match winner.

Although the modern game looks nothing like the original game played this is one of the few rules that can be traced back to some of the earliest forms of the game in Normington.

Pitchers/feeders would deliver the ball in an underhand motion to the location of the batters choice.

This rule should not come as a shock to anyone as every form of the game used an underhand delivery. This was probably one of the easiest rules to agree on which is why it was probably lifted first. Notice how there is no mention of balls or strikes. That was not yet a function of baseball during this time.

The field of play will consist of four bases set at 60 feet in distance from each other. A 10 x 5 foot box will be positioned in the middle of the field for the pitcher to deliver the ball to the batter.

What is interesting here is the use of feet instead of paces. Understandably, paces had been the system of measurement for children that most likely didn’t have any other means of measuring distance. Adults, however, could be more precise. It is one of the subtle clues offered that show how the game was growing from the wild randomness of its roots into something more systematic.

A ball hit outside the range of 1st and 3rd base will be considered foul.

This is yet another rule that finds its way into the modern game.

A batted ball that is caught in the air or on the first bound will be considered an out.

Players in these days did not wear gloves and an out after a single bound was an old rule that found its way into this version of the game.

A running player will be considered out if the ball beats him to the bag he is running towards or if he is touched with the ball by the defender. In no instance is pelting permitted.

What is interesting about this rule is that it establishes a line of demarcation between the clubs that allowed pelting and those that did not. Was this an attempt to “civilize” the game or an effort to exclude certain social classes from play?

A runner cannot interfere with the defender making an attempt on the ball. The penalty for doing so will result in the runner being called out by the umpire.

What is interesting here is that such a rule is needed. It suggests that this has already been an issue in the early versions of the game.

Three outs will result in a switch of the offense and defense.

Three outs per side has been established. A rule that will continue forward to the modern game.

Players must bat in the order decided at the beginning of the contest.

In certain versions of the game batters could bat in any order as long as everyone batted once before they could bat again. This “lineup” approach was more systematic and what is still used in the modern game.

Foul balls cannot result in outs.

This is interesting as the only outs that could be made had to be in the field of play.

Pitchers are not allowed to balk their deliveries in an effort to trick a runner into action. Penalty will be one free base for the runner.

Much like the offensive interference rule the inclusion of this rule tells us more about what types of nefarious strategies already needed rules to prohibit their employment.

In the case of a batted ball leaving the field of play or in an instance where a natural obstacle prohibits the fielder from making a play on the ball, the umpire will determine what bases will be awarded.

This one rule says a lot about the great responsibilities that early umpires had in a match. Not only were they alone in their task, they also had to make crucial decisions about the game when the ball left the playing area.

The umpire has final word on all disputes.

Once again, the umpire plays a pivotal role in the early game.

These sixteen rules give us a fantastic glimpse into what this early game looked like. It also gives us insight into what wasn’t a part of the early game. Already mentioned were the absence of walks and strikeouts. To go along with that you also have no true definition of a homerun. If the ball left the field of play the umpire made the decision on how many bases a player would be awarded. We really have no idea how often the umpire had to make this determination. However, we can assume it must have been a regular part of the game for there to be a rule created to deal with such situations.

Meeting Conclusion:

After all was said and done, twelve of the seventeen clubs present had come to an agreement on a shared rule set that would be implemented anytime any of the agreed clubs entered into competition with each other. There is no suggestion that this became the de facto rule set for these clubs moving forward. Many of these clubs would continue to compete against other clubs using different rule sets if necessary. On the surface it would appear what was accomplished was something very minimal. Specifically, twelve clubs decided to share a rule set but only when they were playing against each other. No formal league or schedule of play was formalized. Baseball in 1840 would not look all that different than it did in 1839. While this is all accurate we should still be able to understand the significance of what did happen behind the scenes. It is clear that Harry Edwards had a vision and he was able to get seventeen clubs to attend a baseball meeting and listen to his proposal. Edwards may not have achieved everything he had hoped for, but when you look at it retrospectively from a historical standpoint, he was successful in separating a group of clubs from the pack. Even if it was just for certain matches it still planted the seeds that will eventually allow for league play. Below are a list of clubs that agreed to the playing rules created at the Cherry Arch meeting.

Cherry Arch (Ipsen)
Moon Lodge (Ipsen)
Clover (Ipsen)
Tailorsfield (Ipsen)
Westgate (Ipsen)
Stormtown (Oldgate)
Ivy Lawn (Oxberry)
White Bridge (Jipson)
Pearl Crossing (Jipson)
Pearlhill (Fenkell)
The Groves (Winterhalter)
Sunset Gate (Millharbour)

It was recorded that Ezra Bacon of the Butcher Boys had some choice words for the group when it was decided that pelting would not be a part of the rule set. Other than that instance however, we do not know why the other four clubs represented decided to not to join in on the agreement.

[catamount_kid]

Really enjoying this! Well done.

[Tyke]

Excellent beginning - count me in!!

[Hrycaj]

Originally Posted by catamount_kid

Really enjoying this! Well done.

Thank you very much!

[Hrycaj]

Originally Posted by Tyke

Excellent beginning - count me in!!

Thank you! I appreciate the following!

[Hrycaj]

1840:

1840 was a great year from a historical perspective because it is the first time we see a body of work from clubs. We can begin to make primitive analyses as to which clubs were better than others. It is one more step in the evolutionary direction toward the modern game. You will notice the lack of box scores in these early matches. There is a simple reason for that, the way the game is tracked in modern times had not been invented yet. Journalists were the first to come up with the system of the “box score” and we are some time away from that happening yet. That being said, clubs did have their own way of tracking games. It was a two column system that recorded outs and runs next to a players name. Unfortunately, this system had flaws since it was impossible to gauge at what point in the game the runs and hits were made. Also, the two column system was oftentimes not recorded for whatever reasons the club may have had at the time, providing incomplete data. Other times line scores were used, which gave historians a better picture about how a game unfolded. Sometimes a club would record a two column box score along with a line score which was really nice to come across. The vast majority of the time though, all we get from club minutes is a game score and maybe a short blurb about a significant performer. For all of these shortcomings it is still infinitely more information to work with than what historians had before.

According to the records available the first matches using the agreed upon rule set created at the Cherry Arch Club meeting the previous February took place on April 18th 1840. We have no idea which match actually took place first but we do know the participants and the scores of the four games played.

Cherry Arch hosted against Moon Lodge and won the match 40-18.

Cherry Arch club secretary and second baseman Perry Barnes noted that the club played exceptional defense holding Moon Lodge to a mere 18 runs.

Perry’s comments should be in no way taken as sarcasm. Clubs routinely scored well over 30 runs per game in this era. Holding a club under 20 would definitely be a credit to the defense.

Westgate beat Clover at home by the count of 29-16.
White Bridge went on the road and beat The Groves 58-56.
Sunset Gate also won on the road against Stormtown 54-24.

These first matches were included in this writing to give an example to what the scoring environment looked like during this era. We will not delve into each game played over the course of the season but we will look at the Cherry Arch Cup and provide unofficial final standings as best as we know them to be.

Cherry Arch Cup: This is yet another brainchild of Henry Edwards. Edwards thought it would be a great idea to invite clubs in for a baseball tournament. The idea was met with enthusiasm and Edwards had to actually inform the Clover and Ivy Lawn clubs that their returned correspondence was received too late and that the tournament had been filled. Edwards even had a trophy constructed for the event. Unfortunately, the trophy has been lost to history but accounts say that the trophy was made of silver and sat on a base made of wood. The actual cup had handles on both sides and was wider at the base than at the top. On the wooden base, tournament champions would have their club name embossed on a metal tag with the year that was nailed into the wood base. Edwards envisioned that the tournament would be an annual occurrence with the defending champion returning the next season with the trophy to either defend it or present it to the new tournament champion. All games were held on the Cherry Arch Club grounds so the tournament took three days to complete. The first day would feature four matches, the second day two and the final on the last day. The inaugural Cherry Arch Cup took place over the weekend of May 29th to May 31st 1840.

Quarterfinal:

Sunset Gate beat Cherry Arch 26-23
Westgate beat Stormstown 58-40
Moon Lodge beat The Groves 54-37
White Bridge beat Tailorsfield 57-52

Semifinal:

Westgate over Sunset Gate 38-36
White Bridge over Moon Lodge 52-16

Final:

Westgate over White Bridge 57-39

Westgate club President Abel Williams graciously accepted the Cherry Arch Cup from Edwards as tournament champions. A large feast was held on the Cherry Arch Club grounds for all tournament participants that stayed through the final on Sunday. According to records the banquet was enjoyed by many and the festivities lasted well into the night. Although Cherry Arch was bounced in the opening round of play, Edwards could not be anything but pleased at how the tournament went. Not only was the play competitive and fun it was also an attraction for many in Ipsen. Not only did the tournament spread the popularity of the game it also allowed for Edwards to turn a tidy profit for his club. Edwards, being the entrepreneur he was, cut deals with local businesses to allow concession stands to be erected around the Cherry Arch grounds. This is the first time that we see business and baseball come together in such a way. It quickly opens the door to numerous money making opportunities.

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The term unofficial should be stressed here. With any sort of scrutiny it becomes fairly obvious that these standings could not be mathematically sound. The issue we run into is that the record keeping itself was flawed. You have twelve different clubs keeping records and they don’t seem to correspond well with each other. For instance, there were cases where one club would record a match but the other clubs notes did have any record of such a match. That creates a dilemma, do you simply record the games that could be verified by both sides or do you include everything and let the reader sort it out. The decision was made to include everything to give the reader a truer sense of just how many games clubs took on in a given season. One also must remember that these were simply games against teams using the agreed upon rule sets from the Cherry Arch meeting. Other games were played and recorded as well. Most of the matches it appears were played on weekends (Saturday was the overwhelming choice for clubs). It was clear though, that baseball clubs were playing a healthy amount of matches by 1840. Baseball was certainly alive and growing.