On Saturday the Providence Grays, played the Brooklyn Atlantics in a doubleheader. You can see one of the Atlantics among the Grays in the center of the photo below.

The players were happy to explain the rules and techniques of the historical game.

Each vintage baseball club models a specific year of play. The Grays emulate a championship 1884 team. The Atlantics emulate a championship 1864 team. This means different rules. In the doubleheader, the first game was played by 1864 rules, the second by 1884 rules. Most dramatically this meant one slow pitch game and one fast pitch game.

In 1864, pitching was underhand, the ball was quite soft, and an out was recorded if the ball was caught on the first bounce or on the fly.

In 1884, pitching was overhand, the ball was harder, though still softer than the current ball, and the one-bounce out rule was no longer in effect.

Catchers had masks, pads, and very small gloves.

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I once lived in Troy, New York, home of the Troy Haymakers, “One of original nine teams that formed baseball’s first all-paid professional league – the National Association…”

Providence RI, neighbor to my current home town of Pawtucket, has a somewhat more glorious baseball past as home to the Providence Grays, a member of the National League and winner of the first World’s Championship:

[The 1884 Providence Grays] were led by ace pitcher Charles “Old Hoss” Radbourn, who is still remembered for winning a record 59 games that year and leading the Grays to the pennant. When the team’s other pitcher defected to a rival league in July, it looked like the Grays’ season was over, but “Old Hoss” offered to pitch the rest of the team’s games. The Grays went on a twenty-game winning streak and blew past their hated rivals, the Boston Red Stockings.

When the season was over, the Grays had won the league title by five games. They then played the New York Metropolitans, champions of the rival American Association, in a three-game championship series, and won all three games. It wasn’t officially called the “World Series”, but the Grays became undisputed world champions.

The Providence Grays Vintage Base Ball Club recreates that 1884 team, playing to the rules of the time.

(h/t KidoInfo)

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Daniel Bard throws two straight sliders to strike out Ryan Howard who earlier tied the game in the ninth with a home run.

Joe Castiglione says something like “The rookie pitcher has some moxie.”

I don’t think Bard is shaking off Jason Varitek.

Red Sox pitchers fanned 20 in 15 innings. Bard struck out three in the 15th (plus a hit batter) to close out the game and earn the save. (Castiglione mispeaks, saying “Bard strikes out three in the ninth.”)

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