When Casey Slugged The Ball

A rare follow-up to the Mighty Casey striking out. This time Casey gets his revenge...written by Nat Wright as published in Sporting Life June 1895

WHEN CASEY SLUGGED THE BALL


Oh, you all have heard of Mudville,

Heard of mighty Casey, too;

Qf the groans amid the bleachers

As the ball thrice past him flew;

But you haven't heard the story,

The best story of them all,

Of the day in happy Mudville,

When great Casey slugged the ball.




"Twas the day they played "the Giants;"

And the score stood ten to eight;

Two men were on the bases,

And great Casey at the plate,

"Swipe her, Casey," yelled the rooters,

And the hero.doffed his cap;

Three to win and two to tie

And Casey at the bat.




Mid a hush of expectation,

Now the ball flies past his head;

Great Casey grins a sickly grin:

"Strike one," the umpire said.

Again the pitcher raised his arm,

Again the horse-hide flew;

Great Casey spat upon the ground,

And the umpire said, "strike two."




"It's a roast,” came from the grand stand,

"He is bought without a doubt."

"He is rotten!" roared the bleachers,

"Throw the daylight robber out!"

"I'll break yer face," says Casey,

"That wan wint below me knee;

If I miss the nixt, ye blackguard,

Ye won't live long to see."




The next one came like lightning,

And the umpire held his breath,

For well he knew it Casey missed,

"Twould surely mean his death;

But Casey swung to meet it,

Backed by all his nerve and gall:

Oh, if you had but heard the yell,

As Casey smashed the ball!




He caught the pigskin on the nose,

It cleared the big town lot,

It sailed above the high church tower,

In vain the fielders sought;

And Casey didn't even run,

He stopped awhile, to talk,

And then amid the deafening cheers

He came round in a walk.




And now he keeps a beer saloon,

He is Mayor of the town,

The people flock to see him,

From all the country round;

And you need not look for Mudville

Or the man upon the wall,

Because the town's called Caseyville

Since Casey slugged the ball.

#####

Happy Thanksgiving!

Modified 19th Century Glove

The next time I get any grief regarding my catchers glove I will direct them to these photos from an item that appeared on eBay.

19th Century Ballists Took PEDs

Why are we so hard on Barry Bonds and others when 19th Century ballists openly took PEDs? Checkout the ad from the 1890s promoting the benefits of sarsaparilla and then read the following excerpt from an on-line article titled 'What Are The Benefits of Sarsaparilla?';

"Sarsaparilla contains the plant steroids (steroidal saponins), which some believe can mirror the work of human hormones. However, the body is not able to transform plant steroids into human hormones, and the claim is yet to be validated by scientific evidence. Such perceived properties have resulted in the advertisement of sarsaparilla as a sexual enhancer for men and as an anabolic steroid replacement, for athletes and bodybuilders (sometimes under the name Smilax)."

WOW! I guess what Mark, Sammy and Barry did was exactly what any ball player would do in any era. HUZZAH!

19th Century Catcher's Hands

No those are not my hands (although sometimes I feel like they are) they are the hands of Doug Allison a 19th Century catcher. I truly believe I broke both my hands this year catching (1886 style) which proves the fact that what we 19th Century vintage ballists do is closer to the actual game than people realize or give us credit for. Its too bad more modern day ballists don't man-up and give it a try. Personally, I think they would shribble-up instead. Anyways, the challenge still stands...if you are out and want to take on the Wheelmen in 2011 contact me.

Westfield Wheelmen Unveil New Uniform Look

Here we see "Silky" Nick Och recently wearing a new prototype Wheelmen uniform outside of the Wheelmen offices on Elm Street in Westfield. The Wheelmen are entertaining new uniform styles for the 2011 season and will consider many ideas and options. "The problem," according to Wheelmen owner Anheiser Van Pilsner, "is that there are very few companies out there that support our trade...we could use a few more options to choose from...until then...(Pilsner looking depressed) what "Silky" is wearing is all we got so far."

Wheelmen Have Their Day at Kingston New York

The long awaited trip to Kingston New York to play the newly formed Kingston Washington Guards Base Ball Club happened this past weekend and it was quite a success. Of course the main purpose of the visit was to help raise funds for the Angels in the Outfield American Cancer Society group. The Wheelmen were armed with a BIG check valued at over $1,770.

In return the Kingston Guards presented the Wheelmen with a rare framed photo of a 1934 River Valley Baseball team known as Foster Machine...a perennial championship team of the River Valley League here in Westfield from the mid 1910s to the 1950s. The photo was taken at historic Whitney Playground, home of the Westfield Softball League where many of the Wheelmen spend their weeknites from April through October alongside the ghosts of many of these players (see above).

As for the games, the Wheelmen took the doubleheader and executed a rare hidden peeled apple trick much to the delight of the capacity crowd on hand.

A great time was had by all and we hope to return to Kingston in 2011.

Click here to watch an hour and forty-one minute recorded "live" stream of game two.

Wheelmen Clean House at Old Bethpage

The Wheelmen returned from their weekend trip undefeted at the much heralded Old Bethpage Village Annual Vintage Base Ball Festival this past Sunday evening. A throng of loyal cranks greeted the victors at the Westfield Train Station as bonfires were lit throughout the city as the news spread of the Wheelmen victories. On Saturday, victories over the mighty Brooklyn Atlantics in an 1864 match stunned the fans in attendance and the victory over the Providence Grays in the afternoon was a classic 1884 heated battle.

On Sunday, the Wheelmen again defeated the Grays in an 1886 match in what would be another heated battle. The Wheelmen wrapped up their sweep of Long Island with a victory over one of the Old Bethpage house teams Manetto Hill in another 1864 match.

Speeches were made at the train station Sunday evening as the Mayor declared Monday Wheelmen Day in Westfield complete with a massive parade until the mayor's assistant reminded the mayor that with all the downtown road construction underway in Westfield that would be impossible. Plans are in the works for a possible concert celebration to take place Friday evening at Bullens Field. It is rumored that several bands have committed to appear such as Dokken, Small Faces, Dick Dale and Kiss. Details to follow.

Photo by Brian Sullivan