As the Neshanock's schedule has evolved over the past few years, we've been playing an increasing number of games against what we call "town" teams - teams that represent a local community, assembled for just that one day. Vintage base ball, at least initially, is difficult for town teams, no matter how talented, since they have to adjust to playing without gloves and rules that haven't been used for well over 100 years. With experience, however, such teams can become very competitive, witness the Newtown Strakes who could hold their own against the top vintage teams in the country. On Saturday, the Neshanock made their annual visit to River Edge, New Jersey to take on the Enterprise Club of New Bridge, an event hosted by the Bergen County Historical Society. This was the Neshanock's second encounter with the Enterprise Club and, as any Neshanock who was there will confirm, they've picked up the game very quickly. The result was two very well played seven inning contests with the second game ending in dramatic fashion.
Striking first in the opening game, Flemington tallied four times for an early 4-2 lead after one inning. The Enterprise Club tightened their defense after that, shutting out the Neshanock for the next two innings and tying the game at 4-4 in the bottom of the third. Flemington got its offense going again in the top of the fourth, tallying four more times in route to a 9-5 victory. While a five run difference may seem decisive, no one on the Flemington bench was comfortable until the last Enterprise striker was retired. The Neshanock were led by Dan "Sticks" Mahony with three hits, followed by a balanced attack that saw six Flemington strikers - Danny "Lefty" Gallagher, Jeff "Duke" Schneider, Mark "Gaslight" Granieri, Dave "Illinois" Harris, Jim "Jersey" Nunn and Tom "Hawk" Prioli each contribute two hits. Of special note was a home run by "Lefty" so well struck he was on cruise control around the bases. Bobby "Melky" Ritter handled the pitching responsibilities in his usual competent style.
The Enterprise Club played solid defense in the opener, committing only two muffs, a very low number for a town team in only its third game. When they came to bat in the first inning of the second game, the local team demonstrated they had also gotten the hang of the offensive end, scoring five times on line drives sprayed all over the field. Nor was the Bergen County squad satisfied, adding four more over the next two innings for a 9-2 lead going to the bottom of the third. Fortunately, Flemington hadn't yet expended all of its offensive fire power, scoring five times to close within striking distance. Once again, however, the Enterprise defense tightened, shutting out the Neshanock over the next two innings while adding three more runs for a 12-7 lead going to the bottom of the sixth. Recognizing this was their next to last at bat, with one out Flemington erupted for six hits which along with the Enterprise's only two muffs of the second game, sent five Neshanock across the plate, tying the game 12-12. Flemington had the bases loaded and only one out, but the local squad responded manfully, recording the last two hands without any further damage.
Tied as the last inning began, the Enterprise Club put one run across and might have had more, but for "Gaslight," who dipped into his bag of tricks to induce an unsuspecting base runner to try to advance on a foul ball, thus recording the third out. With Flemington down one, "Duke" led off with a single and advanced to second on an out, but was still there with the Neshanock down to their last chance. Fortunately, "Illinois" came through with a clutch hit that sent "Duke" charging towards home. It took a great slide, but he beat the throw in a very close play to tie the game. Now the Neshanock needed only one hit for the win and "Jersey" did the honors, driving in "Illinois" with the winning run. The Enterprise Club was a very worthy opponent who did themselves and their community proud. Once again the Neshanock had a balanced attack with "Duke," "Sticks," "Illinois," Joe "Mick" Murray and "Hawk" contributing three hits apiece. "Hawk's" three hits also marked the first clear score of his vintage base ball career. "Jersey" and Chris "Low Ball" Lowry had two hits each while "Melky" and "Illinois" shared the pitching duties. Next week the Neshanock travel to Gettysburg for the National Nineteenth Century Baseball Festival hosted by the Elkton Eclipse.
Jeff "Duke" Schneider
Any visit to Hackensack and vicinity reminds me of the Zinn family's long history in the area. After arriving in this country in 1849, Johannes and Catharine Zinn settled in Hackensack and the family remained there or in neighboring Maywood for well over one hundred years. Saturday's visit along with my work for the Century Committee of SABR (Society for American Baseball Research) on the centennial commemoration of the 1921 season made me wonder about baseball in Hackensack that same year. My grandfather and namesake, John Zinn, was then 28 years old and had recently begun working for the Bordens Milk Company where he would remain literally until the day he died in 1955. In addition to a new job, John had recently moved his family including my father Henry, then seven, to neighboring Maywood. Fortunately, the leading local paper of the day, the Bergen Record, is available online opening a window on baseball in July 1921, almost exactly 100 years before Saturday's games at New Bridge Landing.
One major difference was that although there were only about one-half as many major league teams as today, five of the sixteen were within a day's travel from Hackensack. Trips to the Polo Grounds, home to both the Giants and Yankees, and Ebbets Field, not yet a decade old, were probably time consuming, but not that difficult. Also possible for those so inclined was taking the train to Philadelphia to see either the Phillies at Baker Bowl or the Athletics at Shibe Park. Feasible as these trips may have been, however, it's doubtful any of them ever took place, since no family memory of a father and son trip to any major league park has survived. If they wanted to follow major league baseball from a distance both John and Henry had to rely on newspapers. Television was decades away and while the first radio broadcast of a baseball took place in 1921, it wasn't until Larry McPhail arrived in Brooklyn in the late 1930s that the local teams began broadcasting home games on the radio. Using the newspaper, however, meant something other than the Record which while it published major league scores and the standings, didn't offer box scores, much less game accounts.
That's not to say, however, that the Record didn't cover baseball, but rather that the focus was local and there was no shortage of local baseball to report. At the top of the pecking order was the Hackensack-Bogota team in the Newark Semi-Pro League. Unpaid, but probably no less intense was the Hackensack Industrial League comprised of teams of players from local business including the Bordens Milk Company. After that came a series of teams with names followed by A.A., for Athletic Association, local amateurs who competed with their peers throughout Bergen County. Hackensack had at least three-four such teams with neighboring and much smaller Maywood having one. But the array of baseball teams didn't stop there, fraternal organizations and churches had teams and it appears Hackensack's first ward didn't have just a team, but, it's own league. Nor was participation limited by race of gender. There are a number of references to black teams and a fascinating article about an upcoming game between two women's teams, one black, one white.
The high degree of participation in baseball in 1921 is impressive, even more so when we consider that it wasn't solely a matter of getting a team together. Someone, for example, had to manage the Hackensack Industrial League, make up a schedule, arrange for fields and hire umpires, just to name a few things. While it's dangerous to romanticize the past, this small sample of the 1921 season in Hackensack made me feel the lack of such broad based participation in organized baseball today is a real loss. It's not just the camaraderie or wearing a uniform, both of which are important, direct participation brings a level of satisfaction that's hard to match. Saturday's second game was a case in point, a close well played contest that wasn't decided until the last at bat. Overall the game had no lasting significance, but it was meaningful to both teams in ways that can never be equaled by participating indirectly as a fan. It was a reminder of much we lost without direct participation in baseball in 2020 and how fortunate we are to have it back in 2021.
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