In writing about the Neshanock's 2023 season opener at Fosterfields Living History Farm in Morristown, I explored how scheduling vintage base ball matches today is very similar to the way games were setup in the 1860s. Although it's not always the case, vintage teams sometimes share another experience with the first baseball clubs - figuring out how to play a game on a field not designed for that purpose. In some places like Gebhardt Field in Clinton and Pickering Field in Newtown, Pennsylvania, very little needs to be done. In other venues like Fosterfields, the field has to be laid out in accordance with 1860s rules, but it's basically ready for baseball. There are other places, however, where as much as we enjoy playing there, the field was never intended to host a baseball game. Sunday's matches with the Elizabeth Resolutes at Ringwood Manor State Park are a perfect example.
The challenge in Ringwood is that no matter where home plate is located, trees, bushes and a small building are in fair territory, especially along the left field line. Obviously adjustments are necessary, but making them is easier said than done. Thinking about this ahead of time made me wonder about the history of ground rules which, as usual, led back to Peter Morris' classic baseball reference book Game of Inches. Perhaps unsurprisingly Peter's history of ground rules confirmed that the situation at Ringwood was very similar to what faced early teams who regularly played in places that had never hosted any kind of sporting event. Although adjustments to the field of play weren't originally called ground rules, the potential problem was recognized as early as 1857. Rules adopted that year authorized clubs to make rules specific to individual fields "as the circumstances of the game may demand."
Sunday's "circumstances" certainly so demanded and a pregame conference with umpire Sam Bernstein worked through most of the issues. With that done, baseball got underway in a seven inning game played by 1864 rules. After a scoreless first, some timely Resolute hitting drove five tallies across the plate in the top of the second. Elizabeth added three more in the third and the Neshanock were down 8-0. Flemington rallied for four runs in the bottom of the inning, but the Resolutes tallied three more times for a 11- 4 lead. Another Neshanock four run rally in the fifth, closed the gap to 11- 8, but constantly playing catchup against Elizabeth is a hazardous undertaking. Although the Resolutes added only one more run, the Neshanock didn't cross the plate again and Elizabeth prevailed 12-8. Flemington's attack was led by Renee "Mango" Marrero with three hits followed by Tom "Thumbs" Hoepfner, Mark "Gaslight" Granieri, Jim "Jersey" Nunn and Bob "Riverboat" Smith with two apiece.
After a break for rest and refreshment, the two teams returned to the field for a second, seven inning game, this time by 1870 rules. The most significant difference between 1870 and 1864 rules is that all fair balls must be caught on the fly. In my experience, this leads to high scoring games with a lot of back and forth and Sunday was no exception. Flemington went first to the striker's line and promptly tallied nine times, more runs than the Neshanock scored in the entire first game. The Resolutes got four back in their first at bat and added a nine run inning of their own for a 13-12 lead as the game went to the top of third. Clearly the key thing was to keep scoring and the Neshanock did just that, tallying 21 more times more less equally divided over the last five innings. The Resolutes manfully tried to rally, but it was simply too steep a hill to climb and Flemington won 33-21.
Needless to say numerous Neshanock strikers had productive games, led by "Thumbs" and "Mango" who both earned seven at bat clear scores - no small accomplishment. "Mango" also had the day's only home run. "Gaslight" and "Riverboat" just missed clear scores with "Riverboat" recording five hits while "Gaslight" had four. Other offensive contributors were Chris "Sideshow" Nunn with five hits while Joe "Mick" Murray and Ernie "Shredder" Albanesius each had two. Flemington also got solid pitching from Bobby "Melky" Ritter and Dave "Illinois" Harris with some help from "Riverboat." There was also one key early defensive play when a relay from "Jersey" to "Thumbs" to "Mick" nailed a Resolute runner at third short-circuiting an Elizabeth rally. It was a long, but highly enjoyable (splendiferous by any other name) day of baseball played before a large, appreciative crowd. One thing is for sure, regardless of the challenges presented by the field, both teams look forward to returning to Ringwood Manor again next year.
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