I picked this ball up off of Ebay the other day because I thought it was an antique baseball. Boy was I wrong. This thing is bigger than a softball. My question, I guess, is what kind of ball is this, then?
I mean, I think it's awesome, but what sport did it come from? Anyone have any ideas? How old is it? I've seen baseballs of similar design that dated to the late 1800s - early 1900s.
Here you can see the difference in sizes between the mystery ball, a softball and a baseball. I'm hoping someone out there can shed some light on this for me. I'm a little disappointed that it wasn't a baseball (the auction picture did not account for scale, so I thought I was getting a baseball...). I still think it looks really cool, though. An addition to the china cabinet, for sure...
I mean, I think it's awesome, but what sport did it come from? Anyone have any ideas? How old is it? I've seen baseballs of similar design that dated to the late 1800s - early 1900s.
Here you can see the difference in sizes between the mystery ball, a softball and a baseball. I'm hoping someone out there can shed some light on this for me. I'm a little disappointed that it wasn't a baseball (the auction picture did not account for scale, so I thought I was getting a baseball...). I still think it looks really cool, though. An addition to the china cabinet, for sure...
Looks like a "clincher" softball used mostly in adult softball leagues. The softball you have pictured looks like the smaller size used in youth girls softball. There is a larger size used in high school much closer to the same size as the ball you got. they can be found at most all sporting goods stores, Modells, Dick's, Sports Authority, etc.
ReplyDeleteWhat you have there is a good old Chicago style 16 inch softball. The game is played without gloves and still lives on all over the Chicagoland area. Not sure if it's popular anywhere else, but in Chicago it's as much of a staple as the deep dish pizza.
ReplyDeleteI played it as a kid. If you weren't good it caused a lot of jammed fingers. Here's a link to a picture of a ball with the classic red box: http://static.upillar.com/pictures/resources/384589/scaled/151.JPG?1274298708
ReplyDeleteI agree with the others...a 16" Clincher. That brings back memories of church picnics and sore hands. Out of the box it is as hard as a 12" softball, and with no gloves, it can sting! It softens up some after being hit a while, but it's no "soft" ball. I brought a new one with me when we moved to Michigan, and when I break it out to play, I get some strange looks and lots of questions. "What is that?". "Where is your mitt?"
ReplyDeleteWe called them moonballs and we played softball with them, gloveless, at recess in grade school (late 60's, early 70's) If it was all boys playing, we'd usually throw the ball *at* you to get you out. We couldn't do that to girls, the nuns would have beat us silly with that pointer stick they used to whack our knuckles!
ReplyDeleteWow, thanks guys. I was a little disappointed at first, but now, I'm kind of amused at it. I'm going to add it to the man cave as a conversation piece.
ReplyDeleteVery cool piece. I wish I had a man cave.
ReplyDeleteFirst time I saw one of these was 1981. It had been used so much that it was very soft. At college we played an intramural sport called: mushball. Like softball, but the sphere was rarely hit out of the infield.
ReplyDeleteIn fact, we would have two games going on at the same time on the football field in opposite corners. Never any interference from the other game.
When I moved to Chicago in the mid 1980s it was the game to play.