Athletic Base Ball Club of Philadelphia is a

vintage base ball Vintage base ball is baseball presented as if being played by rules and customs from an earlier period in the sport's history. Games are typically played using rules and uniforms from the 19th century. Vintage base ball is not only a competiti ...

team based in

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania#Municipalities, largest city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the List of United States cities by population, sixth-largest city i ...

, which plays by 1864 National Association Rules. Athletic is a member of the Mid Atlantic Vintage Base Ball League, competing in the Eastern Division. The club made its debut on the diamond in April 2010 and plays many of its home matches at

Memorial Hall A memorial hall is a hall built to commemorate an individual or group; most commonly those who have died in war. Most are intended for public use and are sometimes described as ''utilitarian memorials''. History of the Memorial Hall In the aft ...

in Fairmount Park, located in the

West Philadelphia West Philadelphia, nicknamed West Philly, is a section of the city of Philadelphia. Alhough there are no officially defined boundaries, it is generally considered to reach from the western shore of the Schuylkill River, to City Avenue to the nort ...

section of the city.

Inspiration

The original Athletic Base Ball Club was founded in 1859 when several members of the Handel & Haydn Society (a singing club) came together with the express purpose of playing “the New York game." They would go on to dominate amateur play in Philadelphia through the early and mid-1860s. The team went professional in the late 1860s and helped establish the National Association of Professional Base Ball Players, winning the first pennant in 1871. Athletic went on to be a charter member in the

National League The National League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the National League (NL), is the older of two leagues constituting Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada, and the world's oldest extant professional team ...

until being ejected after the 1876 season. They played one more independent season in 1877. During the period 1878-1880, top-level Philadelphia ballplayers would form a series of minor independent Athletic clubs. The name Athletic was then adopted by three subsequent major league teams, including two

American Association American Association may refer to: Baseball * American Association (1882–1891), a major league active from 1882 to 1891 * American Association (1902–1997), a minor league active from 1902 to 1962 and 1969 to 1997 * American Association of Profe ...

teams in Philadelphia, and the current Oakland Athletics of the

American League The American League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the American League (AL), is one of two leagues that make up Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada. It developed from the Western League, a minor league ...

. Athletic’s uniforms are based on descriptions in ''The Book of American Pastimes'' by Charles Peverelly, and images in Harper’s Weekly. The team was founded by Philadelphia native Scott Alberts. He came to learn about vintage base ball clubs playing on the East Coast from a magazine article and found that Philadelphia did not have its own club. Alberts founded the Athletic Base Ball Club of Philadelphia in October 2009, with assistance from Ryan & Eric Berley, ice cream purveyors in Old City in Philadelphia, and members of the

Society for American Baseball Research The Society for American Baseball Research (SABR) is a membership organization dedicated to fostering the research and dissemination of the history and record of baseball primarily through the use of statistics. Established in Cooperstown, New ...

Philadelphia Base Ball Fair & Exhibition

Athletic hosts a biennial Philadelphia Base Ball Fair & Exhibition at the Naval Yard Marine Parade Ground. The inaugural event in August 2011 drew twelve MAVBBL teams.

Seasons & Records

2016 Season: 11-20 Captain: Steve "Loveseat" Couch 2015 Season: 7-23 Captain: Steve "Loveseat" Couch 2014 Season: 6-17 Captain: T. James "Mouth" Ford Vice Captain: Tim "Ironsides" Sweeney 2013 Season: 6-32 Captain: T. James "Mouth" Ford Vice Captain: Steven "Love Seat" Couch 2012 Season: 4-24 Captain: T. James "Mouth" Ford 2011 Season: 3-29 Co-Captains: David "Sticky" Frank & Steven "Love Seat" Couch 2010 Season: 1-12 Captain President: Scott "Smooth Bore" Alberts 2009 Season: Founding. No matches played. One practice/scrimmage with the Diamond State BBC of Delaware.

References

External links

*
Mid Atlantic Vintage Base Ball League
{{Authority control Sports in Philadelphia Philadelphia Athletics (1860–1876) Philadelphia Athletics 2009 establishments in Pennsylvania