  |
|
|
|
Baseball originates from games played on the English Islands. Derived mainly from rounders, Alexander Cartwright and Doc Adams, are the true fathers of modern baseball.
The origins of baseball are sketchy. They most likely were derived from games played on the English Islands, during medieval times. Below is a description of how baseball became uniquely American, encompassing the different games and rules from many different cultures. Ye olde daysBaseball-like games can be traced back to early English folk games. Very little is known about them. We do know that they were mainly played by peasants, had no real rules and were somewhat discouraged by the religious institutions of the day. The game had a ball thrown at a target, a batter, running between bases and outs. Stool ball as it was known, seems to be a direct precursor to our baseball and seems to have been popular with the younger folk. It has been suggested that it was used as an old day form of spin the bottle. During the American Revolution, bat and ball was played by many soldiers as a favorite pastime. This game is a closer version to our modern day baseball. Cricket and RoundersOf course both cricket and rounders are related to baseball. Both involve bats, balls and bases. Rounders in particular, encompassed many of the rules that are present in modern day baseball. American rounders evolved into what baseball is today. In rounders a batter would hit, then run to a base. If he wasn’t tagged or hit by the ball, he would continue to hit. He would do so until out. As more people got involved more bases were added, evolving into the present day four base system. Each batter would advance up systematically as batters made outs. The games would continue on endlessly until either darkness or exhaustion set in. The winner would be the team that scored the most runs, after each team has been "IN" the same number of times. The current word inning seems to have been derived from this word. TransformationAs the game became more popular, many towns developed teams. Two forms of the sport started to develop. They were known as the Massachusetts game and the New York game. The Massachusetts version involved a smaller, harder ball and the pitcher could throw overhand. The New York game more resembled rounders. Both employed the rules of rounders. Both were played on a square field with four stakes. In the 1840’s the sticks were replaced by sacks filled with sand. Doc Adams and Alexander CartwrightMost attribute Abner Doubleday as the founder of baseball. Documentation doesn’t support this. Alexander Cartwright and Dr.Daniel Lucius Adams, members of the first formal baseball club, the New York Knickerbockers, adapted twenty standard rules of play for the club. Doc Adams, as we was known, also invented the shortstop position, setting the distance between the mound and home plate and eliminated first hop outs. A the game evolved, more space and teams were needed. Contests were moved to more rural areas, the rules made by Cartwright were adapted by other clubs, foul lines were created to allow a safe area for spectators and ultimately a place to erect stands as the popularity of the game increased. The late eighteen hundreds saw the evolution of many teams and leagues and further developed into the game we know today. The roots of baseball seem to come from the British Isles. The origins of baseball ironically went from a peasant’s game to a game for the privileged few in the mid-eighteen hundreds. Derived mainly from rounders, Alexander Cartwright and Dr. Daniel Lucius Adams molded the game into what we know as modern day baseball. ReferencesBlock, David . Baseball Before We Knew It: A Search for the Roots of the Game. Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press,2005.
The copyright of the article The Origins of Baseball in Baseball is owned by Cyrus Dehkan. Permission to republish The Origins of Baseball in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.
|
|
|
|
