Lewes Base Ball Club starts another season
The Lewes Base Ball Club is back in action after the COVID-19 pandemic forced cancellations of most games last season.
The vintage team, which plays by 1864 rules, kicked off its season April 10 with a doubleheader loss to Fair Play Club of Talbot County, Md., 8-5 and 14-5. The team plays its home games at the Villages of Five Points off Old Orchard Road outside Lewes, as a member of the Mid-Atlantic Vintage Base Ball League.
Formed in 2012, the club won the Eastern League title in 2016. The team traces its roots back to 1874, when the earliest town ball game was played between Lewes and Milton.
Fielders do not wear gloves, and a ball can be caught on one bounce for an out. Pitchers throw underhand, batters are called strikers, strikes are called when a striker does not attempt to swing the bat after a warning from the umpire, and foul balls can be caught on the bounce for an out.
The club’s uniforms are replicas of the original uniforms worn by the team in the 1870s.
Dogfish Head and Dover Downs are sponsors this year. For more information and a schedule, go to facebook.com/lewesbaseball. Included on the schedule is the Cape Base Ball Festival set for Sept. 26 and 27 at Cape Henlopen State Park, which will be the Eastern League championship tournament.
