“Porter's Spirit of the Times” Base Ball in America. The Eagles and Gothams playing their great match at the Elysian Fields, on Tuesday, September 8th.” in Hoboken, New Jersey, 1857.
Click the above drawing to read “The Batter's Area and Position (Pre-1856 to 1873).”
To learn more about baseball at Elysian Fields go to https://sabr.org/journal/article/new-yorks-first-base-ball-club/.
Basic Rules of Vintage Base Ball, 1858
Base Ball is a gentleman’s game.
There is no bunting, stealing bases, leading off of bases, wagering,
spitting, or cursing.
Base Ball is a game of fielding.
Bases are 90 feet apart, the pitcher’s line is 45 feet from home plate.
The hurler delivers the ball underhanded when the striker requests it.
Balls and Strikes are not called unless otherwise directed by the umpire. The fielders play the following positions until the striker makes contact with the ball:
- First, second, and third basemen play within one stride of their bag.
- Left, mid, and right fielders play in the center of their
respective outfields.
- Behind (catcher) plays not farther than 45 feet behind home plate.
- Shortstop may position himself anywhere on the field.
Rules of Play
Balls struck foul are not considered strikes.
A batted ball is determined fair or foul by the umpire. All bases are in
fair territory.
The Striker is dead when:
- a ball is caught on the fly, fair or foul.
- a ball is caught on one bounce, fair or foul.
- three pitched balls are swung at and missed.
A Baserunner is dead when:
- forced at a base.
- tagged out in a non-force situation.
- runs three feet outside of the base path.
A baserunner returns safely to base when the ball is caught on the fly.
All questionable calls are arbitrated by the umpire if the players involved can’t agree.
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1858 Rules and Regulations
The Quarrymen play by the rules of baseball used in 1858. Click below to see the rules on the Vintage Base Ball Association website.
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1858 Base Ball Terminology
1850s base ball was filled with colorful lingo like ace, ballist, daisy cutter. Recent research has clarified some of the verbiage.
The Quarrymen have kept track of their record and statistics for several years. You can explore some of those stats here.
Batting and Pitching Stats
Schedules and Scores
Scorekeeping and Statistics
The Quarrymen use a blend of modern and old school statistics. Box scores in the 1850s and 1860s were no where near as robust as they are today. As you can see below only Hands (Outs) and Runs (sometimes called Aces) were the only items tallied in some box scores of the period.
For more on that period visit the Society of American Baseball Research at https://sabr.org/journal/article/baseball-1858-1865-by-the-numbers.
Summer 1858: The Brooklyn-New York baseball rivalry begins, SABR. Click the box score above to read about the history of the Dodgers/Yankees rivalry and to see more 1858 box scores.
Baseball in Lemont, Illinois
The Quarrymen were created in 2011 but baseball goes back to at least 1870 in Lemont.
“The Naperville Clarion, August 3, 1870, under the headline "Visit to Lemont" has a long article on the Naperville (Base Ball Club) going to Lemont to play the Marble City BBC of Lemont. Naperville won, 38 to 31. The game was played the Friday before (July 29th). A box score was included.”
Click the box score to view the entire article.
“A South Lemont Reapers club was defeated 49-11 by the Lockport Sleepers in 1874. See Will County Courier, August 19, 1874.”