Playing By 1800s Rules — Sluggers Go Back In Time With Vintage Team

By Andy Hutchison

Imagine a baseball game in which an out can be made by catching the ball on a bounce — bare-handed, of course, since the fielders do not wear gloves. That is how the game was played in the middle-to-late-1800s and some baseball players, today, play by those old rules.

The Newtown Sandy Hook Vintage Base Ball team, consisting of area throwback ball-playing enthusiasts, honors the early days of the game of base ball by competing with other vintage teams throughout the summer.

Dressed in retro uniforms, the players go back in time and compete in mostly-for-fun games. They play most home games at McLaughlin Vineyards and travel around the state and sometimes out of state for tournaments. The team was established in 2005 and always welcomes new ballists. Founder Ray “Shutta” Shaw keeps score and makes sure the games are well organized as part of his responsibility in running the team.

“It’s an absolutely fabulous game for all ages,” Shaw said as a visiting 12-year-old player from Waterbury connected for a base hit during a recent game. “You get a chance to see a lot of baseball history and see how the game evolved over time. It’s just the way we should all play baseball again.”

Sandy Hook’s Michael “Bulldog” Paes played amateur baseball for eight years and says he prefers playing the game as it was played more than a century ago. “I have a lot more fun doing this because it’s as competitive as any other baseball, but it’s nice being a part of history and doing something different,” Paes, an original vintage team member, said.

John “Lucky” O’Leary joined the local team only about a month ago and has had to make a quick adjustment from the game of baseball as we know it today to the vintage game.

“I love it. It’s very different — very different. Your hands get a little sore because there are no gloves, but overall the play is beautiful, the sportsmanship is great, and it’s just a good time,” O’Leary said.

First basemen were the first players to start wearing gloves and some tried getting away with skin-colored gloves before they were an accepted piece of equipment, Paes said.

Another key piece of equipment that has changed throughout the years is the bat. Bats were longer and heavier in the 1800s than they are today. The balls, too, were not the same. The balls used to be a little bit softer but still sting the hands (and sometimes break the fingers) of fielders.

Sandy Hook resident Ron Miller, a member of the Waterbury team, has been playing vintage base ball for seven or eight years — since before Newtown’s team was formed.

“It’s fantastic. It’s a lot of fun and it’s not overly competitive,” said Miller, adding that his career started at first base since that is the position he played in high school.

Although umpires police the games, the players themselves sometimes ump their own games. Shaw said it was much more of a gentleman’s game in the 19th Century than it is today. Vintage game pitchers throw underhand as they did years ago.

The players all have nicknames as they did many years ago. Shaw's nickname, “Shutta,” was coined by friends on the Hartford Senators' vintage team back in 2004 when he frequented their events to take pictures — hence the name "Shutter" or "Shutta." Then there’s "Bullet" Brandt who earned his nickname because of his speed and "Dirt" Smith who is always on the ground — usually sliding face first, Shaw said.

The mission of the Newtown Sandy Hook Vintage Base Ball Club is to provide an opportunity to experience the national pastime played in the style and traditions of the 19th Century, while recapturing the competitive history of the villages of Newtown and Sandy Hook.

For more information about the vintage team, visit vbbnewtown.com.

For those interested in playing vintage base ball or attending seminars on 19th Century base ball rules and traditions, contact Ray Shaw via email at rcshaw1@earthlink.net or by phone at 270-0596.