The boys from Bethlehem put up a valiant fight on a sweltering day, but in the end the more experienced New York Mutuals pulled away to gain a 16-6 win over the local nine.
Well, that’s how the story would have looked back in 1864.
In truth, the game was played Sunday at Elm Avenue Park, but the rules under which it was played were from the Civil War era back when pitchers threw underhand, you could record an out by catching the ball on one bounce and the umpire could consult with three people he deemed trustworthy` to determine a controversial call.
`It adds a whole new dimension to the game,` said state assembly-man Tim Gordon. `Some of the rules help you make up for your mistakes.`
The Mutuals ` a traveling base-ball team based out of Long Island ` specialize in playing by 19th-century rules. They were founded in 1999 to educate the public about the roots of the game, and they’ve traveled through the Northeast, the Midwest and parts of Canada playing games against local teams.
`We’re just trying to spread the word about turn-of-the-century baseball,` said Mutuals captain Al `Rocky` Belbol.
This year marked the second time that the Mutuals played Beth-lehem on the Fourth of July. Last year’s inaugural game went badly for the home team, as the Mutuals scored early and often for a 28-3 victory,
Bethlehem fared better in this year’s game. The Braves trailed 7-2 heading into the top of the sixth inning before the Mutuals put the game out of reach with four runs in the frame.
`I think they got 20 runs in the first inning last year, and we didn’t want that to happen again,` said Bethlehem captain and event organizer Steve Peterson.
That was fine with Belbol. `We like it to be a competitive game,` he said.
Several Bethlehem players were back for their second try at playing under 1864 rules including Gordon, Bethlehem town supervisor Sam Messina, town councilman Mark Hennessey and LaSalle baseball coach Jesse Braverman.
`This is a nice thing,` said Messina, who pitched a couple of innings and had a base hit. `It’s kind of fun. Tradition is important, I think.`
There were still several times when the 19th-century rules tripped up the 21st-century players. The most problematic was the rule concerning not over-running first base, as both teams suffered gaffes that led to outs.
Mutuals player Brian `Samurai` Sullivan said that’s normal. `It took me about a month to get used to the rules,` said Sullivan, who is in his eighth year with the team.
Ultimately, the old-time rules brought baseball back to an era where it was played for fun, and not money.
`It’s just about the purity of the game,` said Belbol. `Men can be boys for a day.`
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