Playing America’s game by 1864 rules

It was hot Aug. 13, and so were the Lewes Base Ball Club bats. The team topped Diamond State (Delaware City) 19-6 to win its first Delaware Cup since it started playing in 2010.

The team was formed by Mike DiPaolo, executive director of the Lewes Historical Society, as an educational outreach. DiPaolo, who plays second base on the team, spends time at each home game explaining the 1864 rules to spectators.

Sponsored by Dogfish Head Craft Brewery, the Lewes team plays a full schedule in the Mid-Atlantic Vintage Base Ball League and is also a member of the Vintage Base Ball Association.

DiPaolo said the first recorded baseball game in Lewes was an 1874 contest between Lewes and Milton with the final score lost to the years. Lewes had a team in the Eastern Shore League in the early to mid-1900s.

Although a game similar to baseball dates back to the 18th century, the first official baseball game using modern rules was played in 1846 between the New York Knickerbockers and a cricket team. One of the major rule changes prohibited players from throwing the ball at runners to get an out. The popularity of baseball grew throughout the mid-1800s and even during the Civil War. By 1867 there were 400 baseball clubs throughout the United States.

1864 rules: No gloves; pitching is underhand; no bunting; players can catch the ball on a bounce for an out; fouls don’t count as strikes; three balls for a walk; umpire can warn the pitcher for not throwing strikes and can warn the batter for not swinging at strikes; umpires must be agreed on by both team captains; bases are canvas bags filled with sand or sawdust; home plate and pitcher’s mound is a flat, circular white plate.

 Terms: Umpire is arbiter; batter is striker; hands are outs; match instead of game.