Philadelphia, PA- The Mid Atlantic Vintage Base Ball League (MAVBBL) is ready to kick off its 5th year after a very successful Presidents and Scheduling Convention at Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia on January 6, 2013.  17 of the 18 clubs were represented along with 1 associate member swelling the room with over 40 representatives of clubs from New York to Virginia eager to start the 2013 campaign.

It was a very constructive meeting which started with the introduction of new clubs to the League which included the Milford (DE) BBC, the Carroll County (MD) BBC, the Brandywine BBC of West Chester (PA), and the Hoboken Nine (NJ).  The only loss from 2012 was the Cecil Club of Chesapeake City which has decided to take a run at modern baseball and has withdrawn.  The Jersey City Skeeters were introduced as an associate club who will be playing an era up to 1922.

The first order of business was constructing a forum for club executives and ultimately all of the players of the MAVBBL.  This forum will house general rule interpretations and discussions, as well as historical information that each club has been charged with finding about their club.  In this historical information will be language that was used by local newspapers to describe the action in each club’s individual game stories.   The MAVBBL is making a special point of emphasis to use actual language that was really used in the 1860s and 1870s during a match so fans really know what it was like.  The league will continue to research every aspect of game action that it can find related to 1864 (and for some 1873) to get the most realistic interpretation of how the game was actually played.

The next discussion focused on umpires and carrying out the rules and interpretations that we established.  It was decided that each club should make it a top priority to find 2-3 umpires for their individual clubs.  When match notices go out on Monday it should state if the home club has an umpire available.  If it does not, the visiting club has an opportunity to bring their umpire.  If one is not found by Tuesday, clubs are strongly encouraged to form pools of umpires made up of local clubs.  A favor can then be asked of a non participating club to send an umpire.  If still none is found by Friday, it is up to the individual clubs to self umpire which is frowned upon.  Umpires should either be in civilian attire or in their own uniform which is different than the two on the field.

Uniform and equipment tweeking was next on the agenda.  The Philadelphia Athletics gave a presentation on shoes and what kind were available to players.  Being that there is nothing authentic out there at this time, and with safety trumping all else, it was still decided that players can just black out modern day logos.  However, there were shoes with color so it is not completely banned to have them.  A presentation on belt styles was also discussed.  A discussion on approved vendors that supply authentic work was discussed and decided that only those who could supply period correct merchandise would be allowed to do business with our member clubs.  Even hand turned bats have to meet the discription of the style that was used in the period you are interpreting.

It was strongly suggested that clubs supply the league office with emergency room information including location, directions and a phone number.  Each home club should also give this to visitors the week before.  There was also a discussion on match notices as well.  Finally, the last half hour was devoted to scheduling and finalizing clubs schedules.  All in all, it was a great time had by all the Presidents and they can’t wait to hit the field the first week of April.  Stay tuned for more information

All is quiet in the base ball world right now as clubs have settled in for a long Winter’s nap, or so most fans would think.

After clubs have finished up their 2012 campaigns, handed out their awards, and had their club banquets, there is some rest for the players of the Mid Atlantic League, but not for the club executives.  On January 6th, they will once again conveine in Philadelphia for their annual President’s and Scheduling Meeting.  There they will talk about issues that affected clubs in 2012 and what can be done to improve the product on the field in 2013 so fans every year get an even more authentic product when they come to one of our matches.  Clubs are busy getting their histories together as we try to diseminate all of the facts from fiction on accounts of games in period newspapers.  The league is in the middle of putting together a list of accepted terms that base ball players would have used in the middle 19th century to describe a match.  The other big thing for club presidents right now is scheduling.  At the conclusion of the President’s meeting there is a 15 minute block for all clubs to complete their schedule.  It looks like the trading floor of the stock exchange on Wall Street.  Within 10 minutes or so, clubs have set their schedule for the upcoming season in a whirlwind of activity.

Clubs right now are also starting to think about their rosters and how many extra players they will need for the season.  They are debating on what overnight road trips and tournaments to go to.  They are purchasing uniforms and equipment for the upcoming season and they are out getting sponsors.  Each conference is also gearing up.  The Capitol Conference in Baltimore/Washington has already had its conference meeting and others are on their way.

Yes its quiet as a mouse on the fields, but there certainly is a flury of activity behind the scenes!

Hurricane Sandy put a damper on the last remaining games of the 2012 MAVBBL season, but overall the season was another successful one for all the clubs that participated.  Hundreds of players from New York to Virginia participated in the League this season and played many spirited matches.  The Philadelphia Festival featured all of the Clubs in the League as each played 2-4 games against other members throughout the weekend.  New clubs joined this year and even more are slated to join in 2013 including the Hoboken Nine, the Minerva BBC of Bridgeton, NJ, the Brooklyn Eckford, the Rising Sun BBC, the Carrol County Club of Western Maryland, and the Brandywine BBC of West Chester.  If you are interested in joining any of these clubs, look through our website for more information about them and we’ll be happy to place you!  Look for club schedules to start appearing in January and we look forward to another successful season!

ELKTON, MD— It was a perfect afternoon at the Terrapin Station Winery for 19^th Century Base Ball and the 6^th Annual Maryland 19^th Century Base Ball State Championship Tournament.  The Elkton Eclipse reclaimed the state title for the 5^th time in 6 years with an 11-8 victory over in-county rival, the Cecil Club of Chesapeake City who were the defending champions.

In the first match of the day, the Cecils played the Talbot Fair Plays who had been finalists the first 5 years of the state tournament, but never took home the championship.  Chesapeake City, the number 3 seed, started the game looking like the defending champions and jumped on top with a 8-0 lead.  Talbot, from Easton, Maryland chipped away at the lead until it was 8-8.  It stayed that way until the 8^th inning when the Cecils scored 8 times en route to a 16-8 victory and take them to the second straight title game.

In the last semi-final, the Eclipse who were the number 1 seed as well as the Mid Atlantic Vintage Base Ball League’s current leader, took on the Chesapeake & Potomac squad from the Baltimore/Washington area.  The Chessies have never won a state playoff match and the streak continued in 2012 as the Elkton Nine scored early and often on its way to a 30-6 rout of the club from the southwest.

This set up an all Cecil County final.  The Cecils scored the first ace, but the Eclipse came back with 2 of their own in the first.  After Chesapeake City tied it up in the 2^nd, the Eclipse never looked back and scored 5 in the third inning.  In a close match the rest of the way, the Eclipse were up 9-7 going in to the 8^th.  The Cecils scored one and were threatening with much more, but the Eclipse shut them down and then tacked on 2 more in the bottom of the 8^th.  Cecil was determined not to give up though and rallied to have the bases loaded with one out in the 9^th.  A pop out and a ground out ended the Cecil’s run and the Eclipse once again had the pennant back in the County Seat.

If you have been looking at wanting to play 19th century base ball but didn’t know where to go or maybe you wanted to start your own club because there are none around you, well you’ve come to the right place!  We are currently stocking players to play in new cities and towns in 2013.  Already ready to go are the Hoboken Nine and the Brooklyn Eckfords in the north.  In eastern Pennsylvania, the Brandywine BBC of West Chester is in the early formation stages and is looking for charter members.  In north eastern Maryland there are a few opportunities.  You can hook up with the Cecil Club of Chesapeake City who is looking to strengthen its roster for 2013.  They have a great set up that is taking place between the town of Chesapeake City and the Club so you don’t want to miss out on that.  Rising Sun is starting up a club as well in Cecil County and they are looking at bolstering their roles.  Moving to 2014, we are looking at adding a club in the Lancaster/Strasburg area as part of the Strasburg Rail Road.  Moving back to 2013, players are needed to fill spots for the Chesapeake Nine of Baltimore, the Potomac Nine of Washington, and the Arundel Exclesiors.  If you live in northern Virginina, the Old Dominion BBC wants to talk to you.  Out “west” the Mechanicsburg Nine and the new Carroll County BBC are looking for new members.  Finally, there is a new club forming in St Mary’s County on the Maryland Western Shore.  Still not close enough for you?  Well contact us and we’ll help you get a club started in your town.  Our ultimate goal is to have a 19th century base ball club within a 1 hours drive from everywhere along the east coast from Connecticut to southern Virginia.  Contact us at admin@mavbbl.com for more details and we’ll get back to you with everything you need to know!  Are you man (or woman) enough to play without a glove!?!

The 6th annual Maryland 19th Century Base Ball State Championship Tournament will take place this Sunday, September 30th at the Terrapin Station Winery in Elkton, Maryland.  Come out and see if the Cecil Club of Chesapeake City can defend its title as the #3 seed this year, or will the Elkton Eclipse who won the first 4 years be able to take the flag back?  Maybe the Talbot Fair Plays (the #2 seed) will finally break through after coming up short at all 5 championship games or maybe this will be the year that Chesapeake & Potomac surprises everyone and takes the pennant to Washington/Baltimore. 

Games start at noon with the first being Chesapeake City vs Talbot.  Immediately following will be Elkton vs Chesapeake & Potomac.  Bring your picnic baskets and your lawn chairs or blankets or enjoy our concessions including wine tastings in the tasting room at the Terrapin Station Winery.  Admission is free and there is plenty of parking.  Come out and see why Maryland Life selected the Terrapin Station Winery as the state’s best winery and the Elkton Eclipse as the best kept secret in the state!

The Atlantics welcomed their cross-borough rivals the Eckfords to their scenic home grounds of the Smithtown Historical Society this past Sunday. The original Eckfords and Atlantics were rivals in Brooklyn and their modern day recreations continued their competitive matches just where they left off all those years ago.

The first match featured pitching from Frank “Hammy” Obidienzo of the Atlantics and Eric “Express” Miklich of the Eckfords, with umpiring by Sean “Toothpick” Ness of the Manetto Hill Surprise BBC. The Atlantics scored first and last with a few in between as William “Billy Goat” Kowalczyk, Dean “Dreambucket” Emma and Kevin “Flash” Harrison each struck two hits a piece leading the Atlantics to an 8-4 victory.

The second match showed a change in pitcher for the Eckfords while the Atlantics kept Captain Hammy out between the pitching lines. Billy Goat was replaced by George “Blackjack” Pappas who recently returned from a scouting trip. In this match the Eckfords came out strong scoring three aces in the first frame and featured a tight contest with a tie game going into the sixth inning. Behind the plate Matt “Krawler” Kouyoumdjian played aggressive defense throwing out a couple of would-be base stealers.

The Atlantics moved ahead by two aces in the eighth inning but even a two run deficit and a double play, Anthony “Willy Mo” Stelmach to Dreambucket to Flash, did not hold down the Eckfords. In the top of the ninth, Rich “Fingers” Effinger, Al “Rocky” Belbol, Express and the rest of the Eckfords combined to score three aces and take a 9-8 lead. Despite fine hitting by Greg “Hawk” Dengel with four hits, Flash with three hits, and Dreambucket and Krawler with two hits, the Atlantics failed to tally an ace as the Eckfords split the doubleheader.
ELKTON DOWNS ELIZABETH

The Eclipse welcomed the Resolutes back to Elkton for the first time in many years with a match of 2 games at beautiful Terrapin Station Winery.  In the first match the two clubs were close up until the 5th inning when the Eclipse finally pulled away with a 13-7 victory.  In the night cap, the game featured rules from 1873.  Elkton kept its streak of never losing a non bound underhand game alive (1865 rules to about 1875) handling the Resolutes 40-9

DELAWARE TAKE A PAIR

The Diamond States were in action at Ft DuPont for the last time this season and they brought in two clubs- the Atheltic BBC from Philadelphia and the brand new Rising Sun BBC from Rising Sun, Maryland.  In the first match the First Staters easily handled their rival from the north 18-6.  In the second match they took care of their new ones from the south as the muffins could not last with the Diamond States as Delaware won 30-6.