This Glove Business...

This past weekend we played against our rivals from right across the Mississippi River, the Belleville Stags. The Stags are a young organization but filled with experienced players, so they are no "easy out" despite us beating them in both games. The Stags also have quite the marketing department, complete with programs and apparel for purchase.  It is this apparel that brings me to the topic.  They have T-shirts which display the Stags emblem on the front and a quote on the back. This is how the quote reads:

     "This glove business has gone a little too far.  True, hot-hit balls do sting a little at the opening of the season, but after you get used to it, there is no trouble on that score."  -- Bid McPhee

Obviously that is a very apropos quote for a vintage base ball team since the most obvious difference between the vintage game and the modern game is the lack of gloves.  But it got me to wondering: "Just who was Bid McPhee?"

Voted into the Hall of Fame in 2000...
101 years after his final game

There are many interesting things about Bid McPhee.  He is one of only three Hall of Fame players in history to have played his entire career with the Cincinnati Reds (Johnny Bench and Barry Larkin are the others). To this day he holds the Major League record for most putouts by a Second Baseman for both a career and for a single season.  And to add even more context to those records, you must consider the sentence that reads "...THE LAST SECOND BASEMAN TO PLAY WITHOUT A GLOVE..."  As it turns out, McPhee finally agreed to use a glove for his last four seasons (1896 - 1899) and in his first season using a glove, set a mark for fielding percentage (that is...percentage of fielding "chances" without an error) that stood for the next 29 years.  That is a remarkable career no matter how you look at it.

But the wording got me wondering some more...that is a very specific statement: "the last second baseman.' So, back to the google machine I went to find out if Bid McPhee was the last PLAYER to play without a glove.  And the answer is...it depends.

Jerry Denny is listed as "the last position player to play his entire career without a glove."  Denny played from 1881 to 1894, retiring a full two years before Bid McPhee put on a glove.  But technically, the mark is still accurate since McPhee did not "play his entire career" without a glove.  But then, I started thinking of the specifics of Jerry Denny's mark: "the last position player..." meaning that some pitchers were still playing without gloves after Denny, and perhaps even after McPhee.
 
Curious, I went back for some more research.  The closest I can gather is that the last actual player to have played a game without a glove was this man:

Joe Yeager was a Detroit Tigers pitcher in 1902 when he split his hand open in a game against Boston.  The Newspaper account from the game included a notation that read:

   "Pitcher Yeager's split hand is due to the fact that he refuses to wear a fielding glove."

Yeager did not pitch well for the Tigers in 1902, finishing with a record of 6-12, but he stuck with the Tigers as a position player after that, playing 107 games at Third Base.  He is listed in Tigers history as "the last Tiger to play without a glove."  Although this is not exhaustive research on my part, I think it's safe to assume that Yeager played the field without a glove after Bid McPhee retired and if he's not the actual last player to have played gloveless, he has to be close.  He finished his career right here in St. Louis with the Browns in 1908.

Back to Bid McPhee and his quote about balls stinging at the opening of the season but not being much trouble after that.  It's one of the questions I'm asked most about catching without a glove, and I'd have to say that McPhee's quote is pretty accurate.  This is a photo of my hand after my first match:

Stings a little on the pad of the thumb.

But now, four months and 24 matches into the season I don't even notice it.  The trick is that you learn to cradle the ball into your hands...

Concentrate...concentrate...cradle.

...and you learn how to use the rules of the game to your advantage...

A good scout will kill the opposing team's offense.

The rules in 1860 (and on up until around 1867) allowed for an out ("hand down") to be recorded if the ball was caught by a fielder on the first bounce (or "bound").  This rule makes a significant difference in playing the outfield, as a speedy, sure-handed outfielder (or "scout") can take hits away from even the best hitters ("strikers").  A ball driven into the alleys between the scouts can still be turned into a hand down if the scout can get there and cradle it into his hands on the first bound.  My team, the Perfectos, uses this to our advantage regularly by playing our quickest and most sure-handed fielders (Hawkeye, Pitchfork, and myself) in the outfield.  Runners can still advance on the bases once the ball hits the ground but it allows us to play for sure outs on the bounds and only resort to catching the ball in the air when there is a runner on third with less than two hands down.  Even then, once you learn how to properly catch the ball, errors ("muffs") are rare and bruises even rarer.

Nevertheless, Bid McPhee, Jerry Denny, and Joe Yeager, you have my profound respect for sticking to your gloveless guns as the game was changing around you.  Huzzah!

Dixie

Catch Up...

Haven't posted much in the last few weeks which might lead you to believe that things have slowed down, or the team has hit a rough patch.  Au contraire!  In reality, Sweet Tea and I have been quite busy and traveling quite a bit which has made it a little tough to get the time to sit and put thoughts down on paper.  And the team...well, after starting the season with a worrisome 2-4 record, we have rebounded to win 14 of our last 16 matches.  So let's, y'know...

Yeah, it's corny, but whatcha gonna do?

In my last post we were just getting ready to hit the road to Indianapolis.  We had about a three-hour drive before a noon-time game, so we decided to lounge around a bit Saturday morning before hitting the road, the way we do every Saturday...

Sweet Tea and me; couldn't be happier!

So, there I was, effing-off leisurely browsing through my emails looking for the directions to the field in Indy when I stumbled upon this sentence from one of the Indy Captains for the first time:

     "Remember that our friends from St. Louis have the time zone change heading this direction..."

Suddenly, instead of chilling, Sweet Tea and I went into freak out mode!!!  WE'RE LATE!!!

"fuuuuuuuuuuucccc...."

We threw all of our shit belongings in the car and drove like hell but we made it in time.  In time for what, you say?  In time to sweat my balls off playing three games in 100 degree weather.  And believe me when I tell you that wearing heavy woolen uniforms in 100 degrees is no picnic.

Me, Stoney, Moonlight, Danger, Cyclone, Turnpike, and Hammer,
sweating in the shade on a 100-degree day in Indy.

We were victorious over the Lumbermen and Hoosiers but dropped the final game 7-2 to the Indy Blues in what could only be described as an IDGAF game.  Did I mention how hot it was?

Cyclone trying to cool off

We followed up the Indianapolis tournament with double-header road victories over the Springfield Long Nine and the St. Louis Unions.  Last weekend we stayed on the road with a match in Decatur, Illinois against the Rock Springs Ground Squirrels.  The Squirrels are one of the pioneers of vintage base ball in the midwest and an organization that the Perfectos used to pattern themselves when they began play 13 years ago.  The Ground Squirrels field is cut out of prairie grass, which forms the edge of the outfield.  It's a beautiful field but outfielder must be careful to keep any flies or bounds from going into the prairie grass, or you will lose the ball quickly.

Beautiful Trough Ballfield - home of the Ground Squirrels

We won the coin flip for the first game and chose to be the home team.  I trotted out to my customary position as center scout and before the first pitch, the left scout "Pitchfork" and I were discussing playing deep flies with the prairie grass.  I opined that I thought the way the wind was blowing would keep any balls hit to left well short of the boundary.

You can see how thick the brush is behind me.

Naturally, the Ground Squirrel's first batter "Click" made a liar out of me and hit a ball deep to left.  Pitchfork tracked it back towards the prairie grass border and just as it settled into his hands, his feet hit the prairie grass and he tumbled backwards into the weeds, dislodging the ball from his hands, and sending it flying into the deep brush.

"It's right here somewhere..."

An easy trot around the bases for "Click"

Still can't find it, as Chatterbox joins me, Hammer, and Pitchfork.

All Hands On Deck!!!

How many does it take to find it? Nine, of course.

After that I thought it might be a long day for the scouts but we were able to recover and our hurlers "King" and "Danger" kept the Squirrels away from deep drives most of the day.

It really was a beautiful day...and a gorgeous ball field!

I had a good day striking myself, with six hits in nine times to the plate, including a couple of doubles.  Now striking fifth behind "Hammer" and "Chatterbox" I have more opportunities to drive in runs.

No high-fives in this gentleman's game.  Turnpike greets
me as I "tally my ace."

After the rather inauspicious debut, giving up the home run to the first batter on the first pitch, we rebounded nicely, claiming victory in the first game 17-3 and taking the second game 12-3.

Doffin my cap to the scorekeeper and "cranks" (fans) as
I ring the bell to register my ace (run).

We seem to have come together nicely as a team here during the summertime and hope to keep up those winning ways this weekend as we take on our friendly rivals from across the river, the Belleville Stags.

Dixie

Hittin' The Road

Our last episode ended at the Shepard Barclay Festival where we swept to victory by besting our three opponents on Sunday (after nearly getting swept away...literally...by a tornado on Friday).  That was fun...

Scene from the Shepard Barclay Festival

Last weekend the Perfectos kept to their winning ways with victories over the Belleville Stags and Springfield Long Nine, where teams from around the area introduced the game to fans (young and old) from the Scott Air Force Base military community.  The Perfectos season record now stands at 7 victories and 4 defeats.  Sweet Tea and I did not participate in the festivities as we already had another commitment last week...a wedding:

Sweet Tea and I, non-vintage...or at least she is non-vintage.

NOT our wedding...but that of a friend.  It was a delightful little gathering despite the fact it took us back to the bustle and gridlock of the nation's capital.  (btw...it IS possible to have both bustle and gridlock, and if you've ever been to D.C. you know what I mean).

This weekend is Father's Day and many of us have other plans, so we have no games on the schedule.  But next weekend we hit the road for a tournament in Indianapolis, Indiana where we will face the Indianapolis Hoosiers, Indy Blues, and Batesville (IN) Lumbermen.  The Hoosiers were scheduled to play in the Barclay Festival but canceled when the weather turned ugly, so it will be nice to get to square off with them after all.

Hoosier Daddy?

In the meantime, my younger son is in town to visit and we have things to do...

"I believe I can fly..."

Happy Father's Day!

Dixie

Shepard Barclay Festival

June signaled the beginning of the second month of the base ball season and my second month in the Saint Louis metro area...and yet, we only had six games in the books due to various unpredictable weather circumstances.  After lackluster performances at our matches in Springfield, Illinois against the Springfield Long Nine, our record stood at a disappointing 2 victories and 4 defeats, with rainouts taking another six matches off the books.  But June would be different.  It was summer, and it was time for the Shepard Barclay tournament.  To the victors go the spoils:

The Shepard Barclay trophy with
engraved participants from the past
decade.

The Shepard Barclay festival this year was scheduled to include us (the Saint Louis Perfectos), our sister team (the Lafayette Square Cyclone), the Murphysboro (Illinois) Clarkes, the Rock Springs Ground Squirrels (from Decatur, Illinois), and the Indianapolis Hoosiers. The Barclay tournament also happens to coincide with the Lafayette Square spring home and garden tour, which was set to celebrate its 44th year.  The spring home and garden tour is a major fund-raiser for the Lafayette Square neighborhood, bringing in visitors from around the region (and indeed around the country) to view the centuries old mansions. It kicks off the summer season in Lafayette Square:

Summer in Lafayette Square Park features free concerts
or movies every Friday night.

As the unpredictability of 2013 would have it...a funny thing happened on the way to the first weekend in June:

Let's just say "severe weather" has had its way with us so far this spring.  With tornados sweeping through the Saint Louis metro area and flooding being a risk around the Mississippi River, we wisely chose to cancel the first day of the Shepard Barclay festival.  This would effectively remove the Indianapolis Hoosiers from the tournament as they weren't willing to travel for just one day of base ball on Sunday.

Despite the scary weather on Friday night, the storms passed through and the spring home and garden tour began on Saturday without a hitch.  Altogether there were 11 homes and 6 gardens on the tour, including this house on Park Avenue which belongs to our friends Bruce and Jean-Paul:

Bruce and Jean-Paul's house is a fine
example of the "Second Empire" architecture
within Lafayette Square.

Bruce and Jean-Paul have lived in the neighborhood and worked on rehabbing their house for the past 13-years.  They are committed to keeping the architecture of the neighborhood true to its Victorian roots and ensuring that Lafayette Square remains an elegant destination for tourists in Saint Louis.  Bruce has done an incredible amount of work in the garden behind the house:

Bruce and Jean-Paul's garden which they
share with their Miniature Schnauzer
"Baron von Krieger"

This mansion on Lafayette Street, just south of us, recently underwent major upgrades to the interior:

Not to be outdone, the lovely backyard garden of Mike and Kathy's "Park Avenue Mansion Bed and Breakfast," one of three B&B's in the neighborhood:

If you got tired from walking around the neighborhood to the various house and garden tours, you could take a horse-drawn carriage ride around the park:

Or, if you were feeling particularly adventurous, simply walk through the park on one of the hidden garden paths:

This path is adjacent to what used to be
the "West Pond" which we hope to
rebuild in the next couple of years.

On your walk, you just may run into some folks dressed in "period" garb from the 19th century, there to take in a vintage base ball game:

These lovely folks happen to be
the parents of Perfectos team Captain
"Danger" Pellegrino.

Sunday proved to be a fine day for base ball and the Shepard Barclay festival went on with six games on tap, including this one featuring the Lafayette Square Cyclone and the Rock Springs Ground Squirrels:

Note the hay bales which serve as a backstop in back of
the catcher (a position referred to as "behind" in
vintage jargon).

By now you may be asking yourself, "Well, who was Shepard Barclay?"  I'm glad you asked...

Shepard Barclay (1847 - 1925) is most well known as a lawyer, judge, and member of the State of Missouri Supreme Court.  But that is only a small part of why we honor him with this festival.  Barclay is also considered a pioneer of base ball in the state of Missouri.  While still a young lad, Barclay remembered being taught the game of base ball (along with other youth in Saint Louis) in Lafayette Square Park by a man from New York whom he referred to in his writings as "Jere Frain."  Additional research shows one "Jere Frain" to likely be Jeremiah Fruin, a somewhat well known player from the east, who along with Merritt Griswold admitted to developing the game in Missouri while being stationed there during the Civil War period.

Shepard Barclay, one of the two men's pupils, would go on to become a well known local player with both Saint Louis University and one of the top local amateur teams, the Saint Louis Unions.  We honor all three men in our league, with the "Shepard Barclay Festival" in June, the "Jeremiah Fruin Festival" in September, and the Missouri Cup at the end of the season in which all of the local Missouri teams compete in a tournament to win the "Merritt Griswold Trophy" and bragging rights as the top vintage team in Missouri for that year.

This year's Barclay festival would be just one day, and coming off the two match defeat in Springfield in which I did not play, I wanted to play well and help the Perfectos win the tournament.  Although I had played mostly as first tender (first base) and right scout (right field) so far, we were without our center scout "Pitchfork" Bergdorf for the festival, so I would play there.

The great thing about playing center in Lafayette Square Park
is that at least you have lots of interesting things to look at
while you're chasing drives into the power alleys...

Fortunately I played well in center on this day and we easily dispatched our rivals in the first match, the Lafayette Square Cyclone, by a score of 10-2.  I hit the ball sharply but finished 0-3 on the match, flying out to the Cyclone's superb left scout "Wheels" Olmsted twice.  I also made several plays in center, although the one I will most remember is one that I dove for but ticked off my hands.  It was a dink over the short scout's head and I tried to catch it on the first bound, diving full out.  It was only after hitting the ground and attempting to roll that I realized the true difference between being 48-years-old and 18-years-old.  My ribs and shoulder are still aching.

In the second match we were taking on our chief rivals for the tournament, the Murphysboro Clarkes.  We knew the winner of this match would likely win the tournament and it was a hard-fought game 'til the end.  We played excellent defense against the Clarkes good hitters.

Perfectos left scout "Hawkeye" MacKenzie tracks a drive
off the bat of a Clarke's ballist.

I was able to get one base hit against the Clarke's superb hurler "Knute" Schultz, and tally one of our five aces.

Doing the only thing that matters in vintage base ball...
tallying an ace.

A difficult match but we would hold on for the 5-4 victory.

After the victory over the Clarkes we had a couple of hours to relax, talk to the cranks (fans) that had gathered and explain the game to them, and take in some of the other matches.  We would then play the final match of the tournament against the Rock Springs Ground Squirrels, all the way from Decatur, Illinois.  I began the final match with just one hit in six at bats, not living up to my raised role in the batting order as the fifth striker.  But that would change in the final match as I had three hits, drove in a runner, and scored another ace.

Finally driving the ball into the gap during the last match.

Taking an 8-1 lead into the final inning against Rock Springs, we would let them back into the game with several muffs that allowed them to tally more aces.  We would hold on for an 8-6 victory, ending the tournament undefeated at 3-0 and raising our season record to 5 victories and 4 defeats.  Altogether a successful festival, home tour weekend, and adventure in Saint Louis.

The Clarkes congratulate us on our tournament victory:
(l-r) Chatterbox, Dixie, Hawkeye, King, Stoney, Turnpike,
Walnuts, Mute, Hammer, and Danger.

Huzzah!

Dixie.

A Little Video For You...

I can't take credit for this video (other than stealing it).  The credit goes to the Saint Louis Unions VBBC, one of our local rivals and our opponents in the first match of the season (which you can read about by clicking here).  It is a well done video and gives a good flavor of the vintage game.  A couple of notes to remember as you watch:

- The ball is slightly larger and slightly softer than today's baseball...but not the size of a softball and not rubbery at all.
- No gloves were used back then and no gloves are used by us today.
- The batter (or striker) is out if the ball is caught on the first hop (the "fly" rule was not enacted until the 1880's), but runners can still run on the bounce.
- The hurler throws under-handed from a distance of 45 feet.  It's not quite slow-pitch arch but not fast-pitch speed either.
- Ringing the bell (as "Mayhem" does in the video) signifies a run (or "ace") was scored.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5R6N9tefygw

* Did you catch Sweet Tea and Lucy's cameo at the 0:42 mark in the pink chair?
* What about the nice "one-bound" catch by yours truly at the 1:17 mark?
* Surely you caught the sweet drive into the alley by me at the 2:30 mark???

Until next time

Dixie

Quit Your Wine-ing and Play Ball!

Saint Louis has had an unusual amount of rain this spring which has wreaked havoc on the base ball schedule.  By this point in the season we should have 10 games complete but we still sit with a record of 2-2.  This past weekend, the weather was spectacular and perfect for base ball...but we had other things on the schedule.

The annual wine tasting event is the biggest fundraiser of the year for the GSLBBHS (Greater Saint Louis Base Ball Historical Society), bringing in a lot of the league's operating expenses through this one event and making it possible to buy equipment and uniforms, lease fields, and have some stipend money for visiting teams or for our own overnight trips to cities outside of the Saint Louis metro area.  We also rely on the donations from businesses and other volunteers to provide items to be auctioned.  Our local Lafayette Square wine bar (33 Wine Bar) generously offers the use of their space during the event.

Inside 33 Wine Bar, with "Cyclone" and "King" pouring
while "Pitchfork" entertains guests.

The back patio of 33 Wine Bar

In addition to the Wine Tasting and Mother's Day this weekend, Sweet Tea and myself were also hosting visitors: "Sweet Tea Sis" and "Rockclimber Reed," in town from Arkansas.

Rockclimber, Sweet Tea Sis, me and Sweet Tea enjoying
wine and snacks.

It was "Rockclimber's" first visit to Saint Louis and we wanted to make it count.  He's the kinda guy that's up for anything and he came up bearing gifts: four fantastic seats to the Cardinals - Colorado Rockies game.

View from the Red Bird Club at Busch Stadium

After the game, the four of us walked the four short blocks over to the Gateway Arch to make sure that "Sweet Tea Sis" and "Rockclimber" got to view the city from the best possible vantage point...630 feet up at the top of the Arch.

If you look closely you can see the
windows in the observation deck
at the top.

While walking through the park, we caught a few minutes of our old pal "Mayhem" and his club nine, the St. Louis Unions.  The Unions were playing a quad-header under the arch against visiting clubs from Illinois and Indiana: the Rock Springs (IL) Ground Squirrels, the Springfield (IL) Long Nine, and the West Lafayette (IN) Couriers.

Vintage base ball under the Arch.

We also caught a glimpse of other signs of spring besides base ball and green grass:

Goose eggs in the park at the Arch.

Not unlike goose eggs are the tiny little capsules that transport people from below the base of the Arch, up the interior of the North or South leg of the arch, and deposit them on the observation platform high above the city.

These capsules transport you to the top...or you could
walk up the 1,076 steps.

The inside of the capsules don't look quite this cool and "space-agey" in real life...they are actually quite cramped inside once you climb in with four of your closest friends.

I bump my head every single time.

But the trip to the top is well worth it, when you are treated with this spectacular view at the top.

It was quite a packed weekend of events and outings, even without a base ball match. Until next time...

Dixie