Outdoor museum plays 1870s base ball
By Ryan Spoehr
Staff Writer
At an area historical site, spectators have the ability to view America’s Pastime in a different lens and possibly have a feeling of going back in time.
Old World Wisconsin in Eagle has its own baseball team, but it plays to the style of “1870s base ball” with games customized to 1870s play, uniforms, rules and even customs, including separating “baseball” into two words. There is a rulebook dated from the year 1867 that is used by the team and its opponents. The team plays teams from around the state and even occasionally from other states that also are historically themed and play according to rules from another era.
All players are volunteers of Old World Wisconsin in what is almost a hybrid of Civil War reenactments and the game of base ball.
The team is based on a professional team from the 1870s from Waukesha known as the Waukesha Diamonds. The team at Old World Wisconsin is also called the Diamonds, and players wear replicas of the jerseys worn by the players on the team. The jerseys are made out of 100 percent wool.
“The big focus of our team is the players are meant to look like they stepped out of a picture from the time period,” said Jessica Schmitz, the organizer for the 1870s base ball at Old World Wisconsin. “We have a picture from 1874 of the Diamonds and we try to make things as close to that as possible.”
Players play in what would appear to be dress shoes in modern times.
There is more ceremony with the 1870s game, similar to what is seen prior to the recent All-Star Game or the World Series. Every player is introduced to the crowd and a coin toss determines who will start on offense and who will start on defense.
There are similarities and differences to the modern game.
“The bat is very similar. It’s a little less rounded than modern bats, but there really isn’t much of a standard that everything has to be the same. Obviously though, they need to follow a bat-like shape,” Jessica Schmitz said.
Also, while modern-day umpires have direct say over every play, that is not the case with 1870s base ball.
“Our umpire is there more to settle a dispute. Players will regulate more. If a player is out, the players will call it,” Jessica Schmitz said.
“The biggest difference is the ball. It’s bigger than the modern ball. It’s more like a softball, but it won’t break your hand when you catch it,” Jessica Schmitz said.
Tyler Schmitz is in his third year of being on the team. He plays catcher and first base. However, he said he is always prepared to play even more positions like a modern-day Ben Zobrist, a “super-utility guy” with the Chicago Cubs who plays every position.
“The skills translate so that you need to play every position. Sometimes players will rotate to different positions if people are getting bored at their position or need a rest from the outfield,” Tyler Schmitz said.
Tyler Schmitz did not grow up as a baseball fan. He was interested in football and played that growing up. However, he said he is just a fan of athletics, so the Diamonds gave him the chance to play in a sport.
“Also, the history of it and being able to dress up to the times of the 1800s is pretty cool,” Tyler Schmitz said. “Also, it’s not as intense as modern baseball and you don’t need all the skills of modern baseball.”
In 1800s base ball, hitters are referred to as strikers. When Tyler is a striker, he tends to be what is called in modern times a power hitter by trying to hit the ball far into the outfield, and possibly beyond.
However, that can be more challenging than it seems. While in modern times when MLB baseballs are allegedly manufactured to be harder than they have ever been before leading to hitters sending balls further away from home plate, the 1800s base ball is soft, similar to a softball in modern times.
“I try to crank it out to the outfield, but with the way the ball is so squishy, it’s hard to get it out there,” Tyler Schmitz said.
He said the experience has been great so far.
“There’s great camaraderie. Players are not trying to win at all costs. You’re trying to win though,” Tyler Schmitz said. “There’s no sliding and you try to have fun. You want to still have a beer after the game with opposing players. It’s a little serious, but not as intense as playing regular sports.”
“We build a brotherhood,” he added. “We’re not expecting people to be all-stars. We’re looking for people of all skill levels. We’d love to have 12-15 players.”
Tyler Schmitz said he enjoys dressing up in the uniforms and being able to participate in such a family-based activity.
“We play a regular game, but after we invite kids out to play, we have smaller bats,” he said. “The kids love it. They run like crazy. It’s good and fun to see and teach the kids about the game. I love that part of the game.”
Behavior is much more tame, both with players and fans, in 1800s base ball than in the modern game.
“It is definitely a more respectful game. In early times, fans could be fined too,” Jessica Schmitz said.
Teams even sustain the utmost sportsmanship until the final out is recorded and beyond.
“Teams cheer each other, so it’s a nice way to end the game on good terms,” she said.
In modern times, a catcher, for the most part, calls pitches, even though pitchers may “shake them off” and call pitches themselves. However, that can be different from how the Diamonds and their opponents play.
“Strikers can actually tell pitchers where to throw. That’s different from today because the pitcher would be flabbergasted if a hitter told them where to throw balls,” Jessica Schmitz said.
However, there are advantages taken even more so in other areas.
“Stealing bases is more common. You’ll see high run totals because you can basically steal bases whenever you’d like,” Jessica Schmitz said.
There has been an inability to get enough players to play on the team. There are nine players needed just like in modern baseball.
“We usually have the crowd make up the rest when we don’t have enough. We have adults and children participate. They can try to bat and get up close and do that,” Jessica Schmitz said.
“I would recommend it to anyone. It’s a good time. It’s not a big commitment. It’s only 12 games a month and you get the perks of being a volunteer,” Tyler Schmitz said.
The Diamonds’ last two games of the season at Old World Wisconsin are on Aug. 12 and Sept. 9. Both games start at 1:30 p.m.
Access to games is included with museum admission. For adults 18 to 64, admission is $19. For children five to 17, it is $10. For children four and younger, it is free. For senior citizens 65 and older, it is $16.
Old World Wisconsin is at W372 S9727 Highway 67 in Eagle. For more information, go to oldworldwisconsin.wisconsinhistory.org or call (262) 594-6301.
