Original printed scorecard, completed (through 6-1/2 innings) in pencil, for the Princeton-Yale Championship Series, June 14, 1890 at Brotherhood Park (latterly the Polo Grounds), New York.
first edition
[1890]. · (New Haven:
by [Baseball]. [Fair Weather Fans]. [Princeton]. [Yale].
(New Haven: Press of O. A. Dorman), [1890]. First edition.. Small flaw (about a half-inch by a quarter-inch) to the final page, with loss to a couple of letters in the printed headline; some light staining and browning; in good condition.. Unbound card stock printed in orange, blue, and black, 6.5 x 3.75 inches, [4] pages. Played in the inaugural year of the third (and best-known) iteration of the Polo Groundsóoriginally known as here as Brotherhood Park because it was the home field of the Playersí League New York franchise and an outgrowth of the first baseball playersí union, the Brotherhood of Professional Base-Ball Players. The printed lineup card includes the stalwart pitcher Amos Alonzo Stagg (All-American football player, future member of the Basketball Hall of Fame and the College Football Hall of Fame) here leading off for the home team Yale. This scorecard neatly completed in pencil through the middle of the 7th inning, shortly before (per the detailed recap of the match provided in the June 15, 1890 issue of the New York Times) the first of two rainstorms rolled through to delay the game at the top of the eighth inning the first of two rain storms rolled through and delayed the game. Princeton was holding an 8-7 lead when the heavens opened, but Yale managed to tie the game after play resumed; the rain started up again in the top of the ninth and the game was called and ended up a tie. The nearly 6,000 spectators evidently enjoyed themselves thoroughly, despite the disappointing result; the scorecard here suggests an attentive fan and agrees with the game account provided by the Times. The printed records of each team included here for the 1890 season include a match-up between Princeton and the Cuban Giants, the first professional African-American baseball team. Includes marginal printed ads for New York businesses, including Keefe & Becannon General Sporting Goods, 157 Broadway. (Inventory #: 18445)