Hoboken Roots for the Home Team at the Old Ball Game

As the old ballpark song goes, it's a shame if the home team doesn't win. On Saturday afternoon Hoboken's home team, the Hoboken Nine, played a vintage baseball game under 19th century rules.

More than 100 fans watched the game at Dobbelaar Field on the Stevens campus.

For the second straight year the  has organized a game against the throwback Flemington Neshanock club to celebrate Hoboken's history as a landmark in the evolution of baseball. Historians cite the game between the New York Nine and the New York Knickerbockers at Hoboken's Elysian Fields—now the intersection of Washington and 11th Streets—on June 19, 1846 as the first organized and recorded modern baseball game between two distinct teams. The New York Nine won 23-1.

The Neshanock, who formed in 2001, take their name from an actual team that played around Flemington in the late 1800's. They play games under the vintage rules all over the east coast, including at the official baseball museum at Cooperstown, New York.

Lara Hanson, a volunteer at the Hoboken museum, has recruited the Hoboken team both years. Hanson said that this year she had a better idea of how the Neshanock play. “I expect them to steal everything,” she said.

Hanson said she thought she was able to field a stronger team this year. “It looks like we're more athletic than last year,” she said. However, the ad hoc team was only able to practice together for a few minutes before the game.

Brandon English was one of the players who returned from last year's team. A history buff, he is on the museum's mailing list. “They emailed and I said I'd love to play,” English said. English played catcher, just as he did growing up, and set the rest of the fielders in their positions.

Before the game the lone umpire, who like the players was also dressed in period costume, explained some of the vintage rules. Back then, three strikes made an out but three balls made a walk, fielders could catch fly balls on one bounce for an out, runners could not overrun first base, and all balls hit into fair territory stayed fair even if they rolled into foul territory. The pitchers threw underhand to the batters, known then as strikers, and none of the fielders wore gloves.

The Hoboken Nine seemed to understand the vintage rules, and did flash some athleticism in their throwing and running, but throughout the game the Neshanock pitcher, Bob Ritter, gave them a lot of trouble. A member of the Neshanock since the beginning, Ritter worked quickly and without pause between pitches, leaving the Hoboken strikers little time to prepare.

Despite his quick pace Ritter said he is still able to pitch with a strategy. “I make the ball sink a bit, and move it up and down the strike zone,” he said.

Ritter and his teammates held the Hoboken Nine to only three runs. The Neshanock – who as Hanson predicted were aggressive on the basepaths – scored 16.

At the end of the game the Neshanock lined up along the first base line, and the Hoboken Nine lined up opposite them along third. Brad Shaw, the Neshanock's founder, recapped the game, telling the Hoboken Nine that they played well considering they weren't a full-time team.

“If you played us more I fear your would almost beat us,” he joked.

The Neshanock then saluted the Hoboken Nine with three cheers of huzzah, huzzah, huzzah.