Vintage baseball slides into Elmhurst for free game

Summon the "strikers" up to "the dish" and let the "kranks" hiss and boo!

The Vintage Baseball Game is back for another competition in Elmhurst at 2 p.m. Sunday, June 23, with a game played by the wildly different rules of 1858.

For the second year in a row, the Elmhurst History Museum and the Elmhurst Heritage Foundation present the Vintage Baseball Game on the Elmhurst College Mall at 190 S. Prospect Ave., in front of Hammerschmidt Chapel.

Fans (known as "kranks") will learn to cheer and jeer in fine Victorian fashion as two Elmhurst clubs play for their favor. The Elmhurst History Museum's executive director, Dave Oberg, will lead the activities in the role of "barrister" (an umpire by today's standards) and share the rules and slang with the audience. The roster includes a number of local Elmhurst community leaders, baseball enthusiasts and elected officials.

"Vintage Baseball celebrates the history of America's favorite pastime in a fun and interactive way," Oberg said. "Vintage Baseball honors the traditions and history of a sport that everyone knows so well, and allows participants and fans to learn the way the game was originally played in baseball's early days.

"Last year we had nearly 300 guests and it was a wonderful afternoon, so we're anticipating another great day at Elmhurst College."

The game is free and open to the public, and tickets are not required. Guests are encouraged to bring a picnic basket and lawn chairs to enjoy a family-friendly game played by true sportsmen from an era of wooden bats and iron men. Free parking is available in the Elmhurst College parking lots.

For details, visit www.elmhursthistory.org or call (630) 833-1457.