Anyone who watched television in the past week saw at least onepromo for the programs that aired this weekend about John F.Kennedy. I don't understand our fascination with this formerpresident's life and, perhaps more so, his death
Maybe it's because the Warren Commission created a theory thatwas so implausible to understand through basic logic that peoplethought it was a cover up.
Unfortunately, it wasn't the first time for this kind of coverup.
Common belief tells us that baseball -- more American than JFK,apple pie or hot dogs -- evolved from Cricket, which AbnerDoubleday debased into the sport we know.
Research, however, tells a much different tale.
Historians believe that baseball is just a slightly changedversion of a popular boys sport called rounders in England.
Rounders and baseball have many similarities. A rounders fieldhas four posts laid out like a pentagon with one open side. Thebatter stands in a batting square, which is 28 feet from thebowling square.
The bowler is supposed to throw the ball between the head andknees, and the batter is supposed to try and hit it.
It all sounds pretty close so far.
Here's where it changes: As long as the pitch is fair (or thebatter swings), the batter runs to the first post. His goal is tomake it to the fourth post. Each post is placed 28 feet apart fromthe previous one.
If the ball ends up behind the batter, he must run to the firstpost only and wait there until the ball is in front of the battingsquare. Three bad pitches allow the batter to move to the secondpost, a play known as "half a rounder."
All of the baseball rules for outs remain, although there areonly two innings and nine outs in a inning.
Most historians agree that these two sports are close enough tobe directly related to one another, ruining the "American"myth.
In 1903, Spalding's Baseball Guide published a work by HenryChadwick, the world's first baseball writer. Chadwick, a native ofEngland, claimed that baseball's origins were in rounders. Thisangered A.G. Spalding, who published and obviously read theguide.
In 1905, Spalding called for a commission to investigate theorigins of baseball. James Sullivan, who worked for Spalding, ledthe commission, and he received a letter from Abner Graves, whosaid that Abner Doubleday invented baseball in 1939 as a student inCooperstown, New York.
Gee, Abner must have been a popular baby's name that year.
Doubleday was the perfect American candidate for the creation ofbaseball. His actual historical contribution was having the firstshot fired in the Civil War.
But that doesn't explain how Doubleday never set foot inCooperstown. He was schooled in Auburn and lived in Ballston Spa,not to mention the fact that Doubleday, in all of his manyjournals, never even mentioned baseball.
Doubleday inventing baseball might be a myth, but if you reallyneed proof baseball isn't the American sport, look to this year'sOlympics. The United States failed to qualify.
Write to Will at wjohargan@bsu.edu
Read More
Three Air Jam teams take home the win
October 12, 2012Nineteen teams shimmied, shook and flipped for a sold out John R. Emens Auditorium on Thursday night during the 25th annual Air Jam.
Bill Clinton Speaks at North Central High School
October 12, 2012Former President's Speech Could Have Effect on State Senate Race
