Fuzzball is a
bat-and-ball street game related
''Related'' is an American comedy-drama television series that aired on The WB from October 5, 2005, to March 20, 2006. It revolves around the lives of four close-knit sisters of Italian descent, raised in Brooklyn and living in Manhattan.
The ...
to
baseball
Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding tea ...
, usually formed as a pick-up game, and played in various areas of the
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
(especially
St. Louis
St. Louis () is the second-largest city in Missouri, United States. It sits near the confluence of the Mississippi and the Missouri Rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a population of 301,578, while the bi-state metropolitan area, which e ...
, but also in
Chicago
(''City in a Garden''); I Will
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where it is called "strikeout",
Florida
Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...
, and
South Carolina
)''Animis opibusque parati'' ( for, , Latin, Prepared in mind and resources, links=no)
, anthem = " Carolina";" South Carolina On My Mind"
, Former = Province of South Carolina
, seat = Columbia
, LargestCity = Charleston
, LargestMetro = ...
). The equipment consists of a bat and a
tennis ball
A tennis ball is a ball designed for the sport of tennis. Tennis balls are fluorescent yellow in organised competitions, but in recreational play can be virtually any color. Tennis balls are covered in a fibrous felt which modifies their aerodyna ...
that has had its outer layer burned or worn off.
The rules come from baseball and are modified to fit the situation, i.e. whether it is played indoors or outside. Fuzzball can be played by as few as two players; outside of leagues in St. Louis, the Bevo Area Fuzzball League and the St. Louis Metro Fuzzball League and the annual Kearns Park Fuzzball Tournament of Champions, it exists as a pickup game, which has been successfully transplanted to "players leagues" which play a quasi-legal, quasi-outlaw version in
Philadelphia
Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...
and
Northern California
Northern California (colloquially known as NorCal) is a geographic and cultural region that generally comprises the northern portion of the U.S. state of California. Spanning the state's northernmost 48 counties, its main population centers incl ...
(
San Jose and
Santa Cruz, specifically). There are also fully official organized leagues for indoor fuzzball in St. Louis.
Interest in the game was waning, however, at the turn of the century: by 2004, most serious players were in their 40s, with a decreasing number of new players becoming interested.
Many St. Louis locals consider fuzzball to be a
minor league
Minor leagues are professional sports leagues which are not regarded as the premier leagues in those sports. Minor league teams tend to play in smaller, less elaborate venues, often competing in smaller cities/markets. This term is used in Nor ...
training ground for future
corkball
Corkball is a "mini-baseball" game featuring a ball, which is stitched and resembles a miniature baseball. The bat has a barrel that measures in diameter. Originally played on the streets and alleys of St. Louis, Missouri, as early as 1890, ...
players.
History
Fuzzball developed from the forms of
bottlecaps and
corkball
Corkball is a "mini-baseball" game featuring a ball, which is stitched and resembles a miniature baseball. The bat has a barrel that measures in diameter. Originally played on the streets and alleys of St. Louis, Missouri, as early as 1890, ...
that were played in St. Louis in the 1920s and 1930s.
Fuzzball Nation has hosted a tournament in South St. Louis County since 1982 every Labor Day weekend. John Enger serves as the commissioner.
Game play
Fuzzball rules follow the same general rule structure as
baseball
Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding tea ...
, with the finer details varying considerably by region. The one consistent difference between fuzzball and baseball is the use of a tennis ball instead of a baseball. Players may or may not use a baseball glove while fielding.
Indoor fuzzball is usually played inside of a large net with no base runners. Outdoor fuzzball can be played either on paved school playgrounds (typically marked off for
kickball
Kickball (also known as soccer baseball in most of Canada and football rounders in the United Kingdom) is a team sport and league game, similar to baseball. As in baseball, one team tries to score by having its players return a ball from home ...
) or on a baseball or
softball
Softball is a game similar to baseball played with a larger ball on a smaller field. Softball is played competitively at club levels, the college level, and the professional level. The game was first created in 1887 in Chicago by George Hanc ...
field. Serious players will also use a cigarette lighter or a blowtorch to burn the felt off of the ball, thereby making it much faster when pitched. Bats may consist of
broom
A broom (also known in some forms as a broomstick) is a cleaning tool consisting of usually stiff fibers (often made of materials such as plastic, hair, or corn husks) attached to, and roughly parallel to, a cylindrical handle, the broomstick. I ...
handles,
baseball bat
A baseball bat is a smooth wooden or metal club used in the sport of baseball to hit the ball after it is thrown by the pitcher. By regulation it may be no more than in diameter at the thickest part and no more than in length. Although histor ...
s,
corkball
Corkball is a "mini-baseball" game featuring a ball, which is stitched and resembles a miniature baseball. The bat has a barrel that measures in diameter. Originally played on the streets and alleys of St. Louis, Missouri, as early as 1890, ...
bats, or official fuzzball bats, such as those made by
Markwort Sporting Goods of St. Louis, Missouri. Markwort also makes an official fuzzball for use in games.
The batter may be out after one, two or three strikes. The batter may also walk after three, four, or five balls. If a batter is hit by a pitch, it can be worth two balls or the strike count may be reset. Once again, this depends on regional rules. If the ball lands behind a fence, on a roof, on a porch, or breaks a window far away it is usually ruled a home run. In some versions of fuzzball where space is a concern, hits are decided by how far the ball travels, in which case there is no running (similar to corkball).
If small teams play, "ghost runners" can take the place of an on-base player who must go back to home plate to bat once more. Ghost runners move the same number of bases as the batter gets on a hit. For example, if a "ghost runner" is on second base and the batter hits a double, the ghost runner passes home plate and scores a run.
Game length (including innings and outs-per-inning) also varies considerably from region to region.
See also
References
Additional sources
*
External links
The Rules of Cambrian Rules Fuzzball{Dead link, date=December 2019 , bot=InternetArchiveBot , fix-attempted=yes
Baseball genres
Street games
Team sports
Ball and bat games