All good things, so they say, must come to end and such was the case on Sunday as the Neshanock closed out the 2023 vintage baseball season. Although it was indeed a finale, it was also a first, the initial time Flemington played our friends, the Monmouth Furnace Club, at the Parker Homestead in Little Silver. Dating back to the 1600s, the homestead is reportedly the oldest surviving English style house in New Jersey. Much more modern, but still historic was a display of 1909 baseball cards, owned by a former occupant of the house. Further enhancing my appreciation of the venue was seeing a copy of my book A Cradle of the National Pastime on display. In addition to the historic venue, it was good to finish the season against Monmouth Furnace. New Jersey needs vintage baseball teams and Russ McIver along with the Monmouth players are to be commended both for starting and sustaining their team over the long term.
Having won the coin toss, Flemington took the field and kept Monmouth Furnace off the scoreboard in the top of the first. The Neshanock then took control, scoring six times as eight of the first nine strikers reached base. Continuing to play solid defense, Flemington added 12 more runs over the course of the game to earn an 18-2 victory. Tom "Thumbs" Hoepfner led the Neshanock attack with five hits, followed closely by Dan "Sledge" Hammer with four. Next came Paul "O'Neill" Cincotta, Jeff "Duke" Schneider, Sam "Ewing" Ricco and Dave "Illinois" Harris with three apiece. Batting lead off for the first time, Thomas "Hawk" Prioli had two hits, both triples. He was joined at the two hit level by Jim "Jersey" Nunn, Matt "Fly" Nunn and Bob "Riverboat" Smith. Bobby "Melky" Ritter, Chris "Lowball" Lowry and Mark "Gaslight" Granieri each contributed a hit as every member of the Neshanock lineup reached base safely at least once.
On the defensive side, "Gaslight," the Neshanock's veteran catcher, made team history, although not in a way that should be encouraged. Usually a master at retiring strikers on foul bound outs, the fifth inning saw the wily Neshanock veteran muff five chances. Another muff followed in the sixth before "Gaslight" finally held on to one, earning a rousing cheer from the spectators and a somewhat sarcastic one from his teammates. In order to end the season on a fitting note, all of the Neshanock long time veterans played in the field in the last inning. It took some persuading to convince "Riverboat" to pitch with that lineup behind him, but he, and they, manfully responded to the challenge. With the victory, Flemington finished 2023 with a 15-7 record, the same number of wins as the two prior seasons. If nothing else, the Neshanock are consistent.
A future post will offer some overall thoughts on the 2023 season, but I want to reflect here on the relatively large crowds who attended Neshanock games this season. While it's not something entirely new, the good attendance was more noticeable this year or at least it was to me. This was probably partially due to playing at two new venues - Lambertville and Washington Borough before a large number of enthusiastic fans. To be clear, we're talking about "relatively" large crowds, relatively being the operative word - perhaps an average of 100 people. Hardly a vast throng, but a not insignificant number, especially compared to other forms of amateur baseball or softball.
Why do people attend vintage baseball games? There are a number of reasons, perhaps beginning with a desire to experience baseball played by very different rules. First and foremost, is the absence of gloves, an aspect of early baseball which is extensively used to advertise vintage games. It's clearly an effective way to get people there, but it's only the beginning. At every game there are many questions about the rules, equipment and other features of 1860s baseball. And make no mistake, all of us on the Neshanock enjoy the interaction. Watching a game that is both similar and different is even more attractive when played at an historic baseball site. That's especially true of places like Gebhardt Field in Clinton and Washington Borough Park - homes to baseball for over a hundred years, but not so much today.
There is, however, I think, something deeper at work here, something neither conscious nor intentional. Vintage baseball recreates not only the early game itself, but how baseball was first experienced - in person and in daylight. If we date organized baseball back to the 1840s, in person was the only way to "see" a game until television was introduced about one hundred years later. And it was almost just as long before night baseball got started. These were important and useful innovations, but as John Thorn, the Official Baseball Historian for Major League Baseball, wrote in a recent blog post "Baseball is best enjoyed outdoors, in the sunshine." Again, it may not be conscious, but I think the opportunity to see daytime baseball in person, is an important part of the appeal of vintage baseball. Whatever the reason or reasons, the Neshanock are grateful for the good attendance and hope it will continue in 2024.
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