Category Archives: 2024

The Bat And Ball Letter

Doc Adams Base Ball (Official) Posted on by

On June 15, 1832, Doc Adams received a letter from his 11-year-old sister that has become known as the “Bat and Ball letter“. In the letter his sister Nancy sent to him at school, she said, “I have not played with your bat and ball as you bid me. I forget it every morning and indeed I have not seen it since you went away”. It is the earliest known evidence of Doc’s interest in the game. Doc was at Yale when he received this letter from his father with all the usual admonitions of you’re not studying hard enough … Continue reading →

John Montgomery Ward On Baseball’s Origins

Doc Adams Base Ball (Official) Posted on by

In Francis C. Richter’s (editor of Sporting Life) book, “Richter’s History and Records of Base Ball” written in 1914, is a comprehensive work among the early books on baseball. From the preface: This volume is designed to supply the growing need of a concise, yet complete, record of our National Game, from its remote inception and humble beginning to the present period of magnificent development to real national stature. It is also designed to serve this purpose in such form as to make it valuable, possibly indispensable, as a book of special information, of ready reference, and of general interest … Continue reading →

All Physicians Team

Doc Adams Base Ball (Official) Posted on by

I stumbled across this interesting article in Reddit. In honor of our hard-working doctors who kept us safe during the pandemic, it lists an All-Physician Team! Actually, it lists 40 players who earned a real medical degree, either before, during, or after their baseball careers. It includes some that are very familiar, more recent players such as Dr. Ron Taylor of the 1969 Miracle Mets, and Dr. Bobby Brown (3B) and Doc Medich (P), both former Yankees. It also includes the likes of Right Fielder Moonlight Graham (Dr. Archibald Graham), made famous in ‘The Field of Dreams’. But of course, … Continue reading →

Analysis of the “Laws of Base Ball”

Doc Adams Base Ball (Official) Posted on by

In Volume 9 of “Base Ball – A Journal of the Early Game” [2016], Theodore A Frank, Jr. (a pseudonym) performed an analysis of the “Laws of Base Ball.” Doc Adams’ handwritten “Laws of Base Ball” were written in 1857, auctioned first in 1999, and re-discovered and auctioned again in 2016. This article evaluates the document’s content and historical significance. The following are excerpts from the article. The full analysis can be found on Internet Archive. Conclusion While not every provision proposed by Doc Adams’ “The Laws of Base Ball” was adopted (as written) by the Convention, it is very … Continue reading →

John Zinn Reflects On Doc Adams

Doc Adams Base Ball (Official) Posted on by

When I give baseball history presentations, I usually begin by saying that “As we all know, Abner Doubleday invented baseball in Cooperstown, New York.”  The statement is usually greeted with laughs and smiles reflecting the increasing awareness that Doubleday had nothing to do with baseball’s beginnings. But this relatively frequent reaction should not lead us to become complacent. Any such thoughts got a rude awakening when I recently learned of a sign in Mendham, New Jersey proclaiming that Doubleday, who once lived there, was baseball’s “founder.”  It’s wrong, wrong, wrong!  Not only is there no evidence, Doubleday invented baseball, to … Continue reading →

The First Shortstop

Doc Adams Base Ball (Official) Posted on by

Due to the unfortunate postponement of the Induction of the Class of 2020, there was an opportunity for a very unique situation with the 2021 Hall of Fame Induction. Derek Jeter who was elected as a member of the Class of 2020, the 26th shortstop to be bestowed the honor of a plaque in Cooperstown received his in 2021. If the Early Baseball Era Committee had elected Doc Adams as a member of the Class of 2021, Jeter would be inducted alongside the man who created the shortstop position. Alas, it was not meant to be as the Early Baseball … Continue reading →

A Little Knickerbocker Base Ball Club History

Doc Adams Base Ball (Official) Posted on by

On June 5, 1846, the first honorary members were elected, viz. James Lee and Abraham Tucker. At the same meeting Curry, Adams and Tucker were appointed a committee to arrange the preliminaries, and conclude a match with the New York Base Ball Club. From all the information the writer has been able to gather, it appears that this was not an organized club, but merely a party of gentlemen who played together frequently, and styled themselves the New York Club. However, the match was played at Hoboken on June 19, 1846, it being the first the Club engaged in, and … Continue reading →

Baseball’s Book Of Firsts

Doc Adams Base Ball (Official) Posted on by

‘Baseball’s Book of Firsts‘ by Lloyd Johnson is a “A comprehensive guide to the record-setting achievements of baseball’s greatest players”. Now what would a baseball book of firsts be if it didn’t recognize the first ever shortstop, Doc Adams, the pioneer credited with creating the position. On February 29, 1896, the Sporting News published an article on Dr. D. L. Adams sub-titled ‘Memoirs of the Father of Base Ball’ in which Doc talks about his contributions to the nascent National Pastime.  In this article, Doc Adams is quoted as saying, I used to play shortstop, and I believe I was … Continue reading →

Baseball Rules And Medical Practices

Doc Adams Base Ball (Official) Posted on by

In our continuing quest to find more Doc Adams references, we came across an article in the Spring 1999 Harvard Medical Alumni magazine. The excellent article, “Baseball Rules”, by James S. Distlehorst is extremely accurate. The article summarizes Doc’s base ball life and contributions, and also includes his post-baseball life. An interesting addendum is another article by Distlehorst, “Treating the Knickerbockers”. It describes the medical practices of the time and what Adams’ practice would be like and the care he would provide. You can read both articles here or within the complete magazine edition on Internet Archive. Distlehorst quotes two … Continue reading →