A Pitch From The Past

A Pitch From The Past” – Kathleen Edgecomb/The Day

“The outlook was never brilliant for the Mudville Nine that day Casey came to bat, but the Thames Base Ball Club is hoping to pull off a victory Saturday against the Long Island Atlantics.

The New London County Historical Society is hosting a vintage doubleheader at 11 a.m. and 1:30 p.m. Saturday at Fort Trumbull State Park.

The New London club is new and plays by rules spelled out in 1861. With only three full games played so far, they are still looking for their first win. The Long Island Atlantics like to play by the rules that were adopted in 1864, the year the Brooklyn Atlantics captured the national championship. Called balls and strikes were new at that time.

Saturday is the Thames Club’s final games of the season. One game will be played according to the 1861 rules, the other by the 1864 rules. Seven teams make up the New England Vintage Base Ball League.”