Vintage Baseball Teams to Take the Field at Dexter's Civil War Days

America’s favorite pastime will return to its roots when the Chelsea Monitors vintage baseball team takes to the field at Gordon Hall on Sunday.

The team will demonstrate the sport using rules that local clubs followed in the 1860s as part of the Dexter Area Historical Society’s event.

“It’s a little different from what people are used to,” said Jon Van Hoek, the team’s co-captain.

While there are still nine innings and nine players on the field, Van Hoek said some noticeable differences include pitchers (hurlers) throwing a hand-stitched ball underhand to a batter (striker) instead of overhand pitching used in modern games.

“Pitchers in vintage baseball were more concerned about putting the ball where the batter wanted. As time went on and the game evolved, the pitcher became more of a strategic player,” Van Hoek said.

Another strikingly different approach to the game is the lack of umpires and players' gloves to catch the ball.

“We don’t use gloves, so if you don’t catch the ball just right, it does sting a bit,” he said.

Van Hoek said most vintage teams abide by gentlemen’s rules, which include no swearing and eliminate much of the umpire’s responsibilities.

“The teams police themselves, and close plays are decided on the player’s honor,” Van Hoek said.

Other rules, such as tagging a player out if a player on the opposing team catches the ball after its first bounce, promise to keep audiences entertained, Van Hoek said.

“Our goal is to make the game as historically accurate as possible,” he said.

While the Monitors were hoping to face off against the former 1860s Dexter Wahoo team, DAHS genealogist Nancy Van Blaricum said a call for volunteers did not generate enough interest.

“We ran an article soliciting volunteers, but who knows how many people read the paper, wanted to learn a new game in a short amount of time or were even interested in baseball,” she said.

Van Hoek said the Monitors will use members of their team and the Royal Oak club for the game.

“We’d like to generate some interest in Dexter and maybe start another vintage baseball team in Washtenaw County,” he said.

The Monitors are brand new to the vintage baseball scene, launching their team this year.

“There are about 25 total vintage baseball teams in Michigan, and the closest one to play is in Northville. We’re excited to bring the game to Dexter," Van Hoek said.

Van Hoek said starting a team is relatively inexpensive and can be done easily if there is interest in the community.

“It would be neat to see Chelsea have a sister team in Dexter,” he said.

For more information on Sunday's game, visit the Civil War Days website.