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Friday, May 16, 2008
But Didn’t We Have Fun?: An Informal History of Baseball’s Pioneer Era, 1843-1870
“Ask author Peter Morris about baseball’s good old days, and he will likely bring up the ‘50s as well—the 1850s, that is. Morris’s latest book is the meticulously researched But Didn’t We Have Fun?: An Informal History of Baseball’s Pioneer Era, 1843 - 1870, and in it he brings to life a period that he believes best embodies baseball’s true ideals. In the golden era Morris’s book evokes, baseball was played nearly entirely by amateurs, members of social organizations who sought to represent their neighborhoods and cities with the utmost in gentlemanly conduct. As important as the game’s proceedings was a post-game banquet, when the competitors would toast each other gregariously and cheer their exploits on the field. Umpires were local dignitaries seated at a remove from the game’s action, called in rarely and only then to dispute questions of unsportsmanlike conduct. Rules were fluid and meant to provide general boundaries for friendly competition. There was no such thing as a called ball or strike; pitchers served at the discretion of the batter, who waited for a ball he could put in play.”
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Or, for that matter, the case of three members of the New York Mutuals (Devyr, Wansworth and Duffy) who were expelled for throwing a game in 1865. Or the fact that in 1860 the Eckford club were censured for allowing their rooters to verbally abuse the opposition. Or the abandoned game between between the Atlantics and Excelsiors that same year. The New York Clipper newspaper blamed this on "the foreign element in our metropolitan population".
Some good contemporary accounts too: in 1868 Henry Chadwick wrote "Some ten years ago, and even later, it was a rare sight to witness a ball match which was not marked by changes in positions of players in nearly every innings and, what was most objectionable, open disputes about the decisions of the Umpire." (my italics).
In 2008, 1858 style base ball might look glorious, but in 1868, the man who might be said to have known more about it than anyone, thought it was terrible.
What Fun!
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