This day in baseball: Foul call?
Posted: May 12, 2013 Filed under: 19th Century, This day in baseball | Tags: Baseball, Boston, Boston Beaneaters, Detroit Wolverines, history, Mike Hines, South End Grounds Leave a comment
Source: historicballparks.com
Even early baseball history had its chuckle-worthy moments.
At South End Grounds in Boston, on 12 May 1884, Umpire Van Court calls a Detroit Wolverines batter out on a foul tip. The Wolverines are enraged by the call, however, arguing that the ball clearly had not been caught by the Beaneaters’ catcher, Mike Hines. Rather, the contested strike three ball was lodged in the Boston catcher’s mask.
I have to confess, part of my motivation for posting this story has to do with the team names. You don’t see names as creative as the “Beaneaters” in Major League Baseball these days.
