BASEBALL, a popular sport in the United States, of such general interest as to be known as °the national game.' It had its origin in the old English game of °rounders," but developed on American soil into a very different sport. In Philadelphia an early form was played un der the name of °town-ball," and a similar game was known in upper Canada as early as 1838. It was in the neighborhood of New York, however, that baseball received its great est development, regularly organized clubs con testing in the °Elysian Fields," at what is now the site of the city of Hoboken, N. J., as early as 1845. It was not until 1857, however, that the baseball convention was held for the pur pose of framing uniform rules out of the va rious methods of each district and club, and in the following May the first °National Baseball Association" was, organized.
The first real series of games played be tween organized clubs was that between teams picked from the various clubs of New York and Brooklyn on the old Fashion racecourse at Flushing, L. I., in 1858, the first authorized code of rules being formulated and published for their direction. From the present view point these rules were crude. For. instance, the regulation ball weighed 636 ounces and meas ured 10% inches. in circumference. It was a lively ball (anticipating by 50 years the latest development of the golf-ball), being made with ounces of rubber, covered with yarn and leather. The bat was unlimited as to length, but was decreed not to exceed 2Y, inches in diameter. In the delivery of the ball there was a greater difference than in any other respect as compared with the later development of the game: for the ball could only be pitched; all throws and jerks being prohibited. The pitcher was at liberty to take any number of steps be fore delivery, and his limit was anywhere be hind a line 12 feet across and 45 feet from the home base. Then, too, he could pitch his ball almost without limitation so long as he pitched °as near as possible to the home base.* As then played, none but amateurs partici pated; indeed, no one could represent his dub unless he had been a member for 30 days, and °money, place or emolument" was a bar. Games were originally played on free grounds, but on the establishment of the Union Ball Ground and the Capitoline Club of Brooklyn in 1863, the admission money went 'to the proprietor, the players later having a share, and thus was laid the foundation of professional play. So matters drifted for six years, with a gradual tendency to greater restrictions in rules, greater skill in play, and more and more professional ism, until 1869, when for the first time a sal aried team, the °Red Stockings of Cincinnati,' began a tour of games, and naturally carried everything before them. Through 1869 and up to June 1870, they played 'without losing a single game.
The delivery of the pitcher had been grad ually developing. As early as 1860 the dis guised underhand throw had come into vogue, and by 1866 Arthur Cummings, of the Excelsior Junior Nine, introduced a curved delivery. With the advent of the swifter-playing profes sional, and the reduced size and weight of the ball, came into necessity, and therefore into use, the various safeguards of padded gloves, catchers' mitts, breast-pads and masks.
By 1871 the game had become so extensive and the professional element so popular that a °National Association of Professional Baseball Players* was formed, and in 1875 the various club-owners took control of the professional players and organized °The National League of Professional Ball Clubs,' which continued in undisputed possession of the professional field until 1890, when a rival association, "The Amer ican League,' was founded. There are several other leagues of minor importance. Baseball naturally found favor in American universities and colleges, but its technique in the early days was crude, even among the best teams. Team play as now interpreted was almost unknown, the hitting was harder and the fielding poorer; the outfielders played much farther afield. As late as the middle sixties scores of 50 runs were not uncommon, and a bard-bitting college team would make over 100. As late as 1867,
when two college nines made, respectively, 13 and 8, it was considered a phenomenon. There is no intercollegiate championship in the ordi nary sense; each college plays a set of games with other colleges. A full and exact lcnowl edge of the game can be acquired only by a study of the official rules. Briefly, the game is played between two teams of nine men each, on a field in which a diamond-shape with sides of 90 feet each has been marked out according to certain technical rules, the apices of the angles being the home plate and first, sec ond and third bases, reckoning to the right from the home plate. The pitcher's /box) is situated near the ccntre of the dtansond abnut 60 feet from the batsman s stand, and f rom that point the pitcher is required to deliver balls to the batsman, pitched according to definite rules. The catcher stands behind the batsman; his principal office is to catch tuihit balls and return them to the pitcher, or to throw to the basemen when the batsman is making a run. The fielders are !mown as the infield. consisting of first, second and third baseman and short stop; and the outfield, of left, right and centre fielders. The office of the first section is to catch batted or thrown balls and to touch there with the batsman running between bases, or, failing in this, to return the ball to the pitcher; that of the second section may be stated gen erally as the sto,pping or catching of batted balls and returning them to the pitcher or throwing them to the basemen for the purpose of putting out running batsmen. The positions and duties of the fielders are defined with strict limitations by the rules. The aim of each team is to make as many runs as possible. To score a run a player must tnake a complete circuit of the bases, but not necessarily at one hit. With his own hit he tnay get as far as first base; then may get to second base while the pitcher is delivering a ball to the second batter, and to the third base on the hit of that man, or even on the hit of the third batsman. When three men are put out, one inning is finished; and the other team takes its turn, with three men one after the other, and so on unfil there have been nine innings on each side. A batsman is ont who is touched by the ball after leaving one base and before he reaches another, or whose batted ball is caught by one of the fielders be fore it reaches the ground. The batsman is also declared out svhen hit by a batted ball; or when being forced to run for a base by reason of all bases being occupied, the ball is held by the fielder at the base for which he is making. The batsman must not step out of his box, and must strike at every ball that crosses athe plate° on a level between his knees and shoul ders — such are called 'fair balls.* If he fails either to strike at or to hit it counts as a °strike') against him, and if he fails three times he is out, providing the third ball is caught by the catcher before it reaches the ground. If the pitc.her delivers a ball which does not pass over the plate in the defined zone, it is counted as °one hallo in favor of the batsman, and after four such balls he is entitled to go to the first base unmolested. Baseball has been introcluced into England, but without much success. In Canada, Australia and Japan it has become poptdar, while many Chinese also have become expert at the game.
Bibliography.—Camp, W., 'Baseball) (Spalding's 'Athletic Library,' New Yorlc, current year); Claudy, C. H., (The Battle of Baseball' (including glow I Became a Big League Pitcher,°. by C. Mathewson, New York 1912); McGraw, J. J., (Scientific Baseball' (Fox's 'Athletic Library,' New York 1913); Murnane, T. H., (How to Play Baseball' (Spalding's 'Athletic Library,' New York 1905) • Richter, F. C., (History and Records of Baseb:111> (Philadelphia 1914) ; Spalding, A. G, (Annual Baseball Guide' (New York) • Spald ing, A. G., (America's National Game, historic Facts) (New York 1911).