For Immediate Release

PLAY BALL! Ohio Village Muffins And Their Grand Old Game
Season Opener Saturday, April 12

(Columbus, Ohio, March 22, 2008) - The Ohio Historical Society announces the 2008 season of the Ohio Village Muffins, the nation’s premiere men’s vintage base ball club. The opening game will be Saturday, April 12 at the Ohio Village in Columbus.

For those unfamiliar with vintage base ball (two words prior to the 1880s), the game is played by the rules and customs of the 19th century. Players, umpires and scorekeepers dress in period attire and play base ball as it was meant to be played, according to James R. Tootle, historian and longtime Muffin player.

The Muffins play 1860s base ball based on the original rules of the game drawn up by the New York Knickerbocker Club in 1845. Muffin players use wooden bats that are no bigger than 2.5 inches in diameter, but may be of any length. The ball is covered by a single piece of leather. There are no gloves or protective equipment. They don’t keep track of individual statistics. They do keep track of courtesy, sportsmanship, and the true gentlemanly code of the Victorian Era. Muffins are intent on fresh air, exercise, education about the game, and mixing with the crowd, which is encouraged to cheer for good plays on either side. Players range in age from 16 to over 60.

"Many of us have played with the club for nearly two decades, and we take Ohio history and our gentlemanly sport seriously," Tootle passionately shares. "We'll travel to 17 Ohio counties in the coming season, logging more than 2,600 miles."

Tootle also shares that because the game is slow pitch, "Everyone hits, everyone runs and the game is exciting." The Muffins subscribe to the philosophy of 19th-century sports legend Walter Camp, who observed, "Base ball is for every boy a good, wholesome sport. It rests his eyes, strengthens his lungs, and teaches him self-reliance and courage. Every mother ought to rejoice when her boy says he is on the school or the college nine."

From mid-April through mid-October, the Muffins will play 19 matches on eight dates at the Ohio Village Muffin Meadow. Their gentlemanly talents will be showcased on 18 dates throughout Ohio, including three matches at Ohio Historical Society sites. In June they will participate in the Washington D.C. Vintage Base Ball Classic.

2008 Muffins Schedule Of Matches:

Home Game Date Home Game Description Home Game Time Sat., April 12: Club Match 2 p.m. Sun., April 27: Ohio Village Muffins vs. Clodbuster Base Ball Club of Dayton noon Sun., April 27: Ohio Village Muffins vs. Cincinnati Red Stockings 1:30 p.m. May 2008 Sat., May 3: Ohio Village Muffins vs. Canal Fulton Mules 2 p.m. July 2008 Fri., July 4: Ohio Village Club Match 2 p.m. August 2008 Sat.-Sun., Aug. 30-31: 17th Ohio Cup Vintage Base Ball Festival 9 a.m.– 5 p.m. September 2008 Sat., Sept. 13: Muffins vs. Wood County Infirmary Inmates 2 p.m. Sun., Sept. 14: Ohio Village Muffins vs. Champion City Reapers of Springfield 2 p.m.

Away Game Date Away Game Description Away Game Time Sun., April 20: Wood County Infirmary Inmate - Bowling Green, Ohio 1 p.m. May 2008 Sun., May 4: Oxford Blues - Oxford, Ohio 1 p.m. Sun., May 4: Miami Big Red - Oxford, Ohio 3 p.m. Sun., May 18: Carey Base Ball Festival - Carey, Ohio All day Sat., May 24: Sycamore Grasshoppers - Piqua Historical Area - Piqua, Ohio* 2 p.m. June 2008 Sat.-Sun., June 7-8: Classic Vintage Base Ball Festival - Washington D.C. All day events Sat., June 21: North Columbus Sports Biscuits - NCS Fields - Columbus, Ohio noon Sun., June 29: Delaware Cowboys - Delaware, Ohio 2 p.m. July 2008 Sat. July 5: Local Bicentennial Nine - Westerville, Ohio 2 p.m. Sun., July 6: Local Bicentennial Nine - Pickerington, Ohio 2 p.m. Fri., July 18: Local Steam Thresher Festival Nine - Plain City, Ohio 8 p.m. Sun., July 20: Akron Cup Stan Hywet Hall - Akron, Ohio All day Sat., July 26: Hoover Sweepers - National Road/Zane Grey Museum - Norwich, Ohio* 2 p.m. August 2008 Sat., Aug. 2: Rogue’s Hollow Miners - Doylestown, Ohio 2 p.m. Sun., Aug. 17: Clodbuster Base Ball Club - Carillon Park - Dayton, Ohio 1:30 p.m. Sun., Aug. 17: Cincinnati Buckeyes - Carillon Park - Dayton, Ohio 3 p.m. Thu., Aug. 21: Carroll Blues - Carroll, Ohio 6:30 p.m. Sat., Aug. 23: Sylvania Great Black Swamp Frogs - Sauder Village - Archbold, Ohio 2 p.m. September 2008 Sun., Sept. 7: South Bass Island Mossbacks - Put-in-Bay, Ohio 2 p.m. Sun., Sept. 28: Champion City Reapers - Springfield, Ohio 2 p.m. October 2008 Sun., Oct. 12: Cincinnati Red Stockings - Fort Ancient - Oregonia, Ohio* 2 p.m.

*OHS Site

Admission is $7 for adults and $3 for students ages 6 and older. Ohio Historical Society members are free. Children ages 5 and under are admitted free. Parking is $4 per vehicle and free to OHS members. Please call the Ohio Historical Society to confirm dates and times of games.

The Ohio Village Muffins and Lady Diamonds, the vintage base ball club for women, are dedicated to the preservation of the game’s legacy and the growth of vintage base ball throughout the state and country. For more information about the Muffins or Lady Diamonds, go online at www.ohiovillagemuffins.org. (External resource will load in a new browser window).

Ohio Village is a recreated 19th-century town and is located next to the Ohio Historical Center at I-71 and East 17th Ave. in Columbus. It is one of 59 sites operated by the Ohio Historical Society, a nonprofit organization that serves as the state's partner in preserving and interpreting Ohio’s history, archaeology and natural history. To confirm the Muffins' games or for more information about other Ohio Historical Society events, call 614.297.2300/800.686.6124 or visit www.ohiohistory.org.

Thank you for your interest in the Ohio Historical Society!