Litchfield enquirer., 1867-08-22
Base Ball.

MIR. EDIroE.-You published commit l aication, last week, which embodied most of the objections usually urged by players of the old fashioned New England game of base ball against the Improvements, now adopted. I have heard these changes so often, and, as it seems to mo, so unjustly denounced, that venture on such explanations as occur to mere clock cr-on. /" The objections arc these:
 lst. To the rules declaring balls struck back wards, or to either side, ''foul;' which pro- hibit men on bases from running on them; and which, nevertheless, declare the strik- CT out if they are caught.
 2d To the rules declaring tho side out whenever three of the nine strikers are out and which prohibit running on ''fy balls'' that are caught.
 3d. To the present mode of "deiiver ing" the ball to the striker, and to the OK treme hardness of the ball itself.
 The reasons for these changes will be best understood by glance at the chief objections to the old game. Then, bats men were allowed to run on balls struck backwards or to either side; the bases were much nearer to each other than now; and whole side struck in succession till all were out. Hence, much larger num- Der of players were necessary to field the back and side balls; running bases was a very easy matter; and strikers were in lit tie danger of losing tallies from being ''left on base" The rules objected to under the two first of the foregoing heads remedy those difficulties: The rule requiring the batsman to strike his ball somewhere be- tween the 1st and 3d bases before he can run, reduces the number of players neces- sary, to nine; players on bases are not al- lowed to run in such case, or the batsmcn would strike "fouls, purposely, in order to bring them in; the striker may be caught out on fouls or he might hit back purpose ly, in order to tiro the opposing catcher, or to delay the play. Running the bases is made very difficult and exciting part of the play by placing the bases farther apart; by prohibiting runs on fly balls that are caught; by declaring the side out when three of it's players arc out, thus making it constantly necessary to risk hazardous runs to avoid being Cleft on base.''
 The kind of ball used, and the mode in which it is delivered are infinitely more fa- vorable to the striker than in the old gamo. Then, the ball was M,oecn; it was soft and consequently much more liable to be ''tick, ed" (''Looker-on" to the contrary notwith- standing); and the batsman was allowed but a single strike if our recollection serves us. Now, the ball is tossed and must be delivered in such convenient place for strik- ing as the batsnan himself designates; with hard ball partial hit causes much greater defection of the ball from its straight course, and consequently there is less risk of it's being caught; the striker must miss three times be fore he is out. The smooth covering of the regulation '' ball does not, imagine, make it harder to sUl1he. bnt the rule against ssfnr1n" ","'1n hard ball absolutely necessary; otherwise, the batsman could scarcely strike a ball far enough to escape being caught or put out. To prevent unfair play if the pitcher fails to give good balls, the umpire allows the striker to take his base as if he had made successful hit; while if the bats man refuses to strike at fair balls, they are counted against him as misses.
 The changes objected to seem to mo, in short, to simplify the mode ofplay; to put q righteous stop to ''back balls" and simi- lar iniquities; and to make really beauti- full game of what was before scarcely more than "One old Cat' triflo aggravated. ANNoTHER ''LooKER-o ON"