British Baseball (Welsh Baseball)

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Curated by Larry McCray and Jeffrey Kittel
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Game	British Baseball (Welsh Baseball)
Game Family	Baseball Baseball
Location	Wales and England
Regions	Britain
Eras	Derivative, Post-1900
Invented	No
Tags
Description	This adult game, sometimes known as Welsh Baseball, has been played since the early 1900s, reportedly reaching a high point in the late 1930s.  Something of a blend of modern baseball with some cricket features, is known in Liverpool England and in Cardiff and Newport in Wales. Owing to cricket, presumably, the game has no foul ground, comprises two (all-out-side-out) innings, teams of 11 players, and flat bats.  42-inch posts are used instead of bases.  Underarm pitching is required.  Runs are counted for each base attained by a batter (one run for a single, two for a double, etc.).  Batters are required to keep a foot in contact with a peg in the batting area. An annual "international game" has been played between a Liverpool team and one from Wales. In the 1920s crowds of over 10,000 were reported to attend the international context.  Liverpool had been very active in rounders in the 19th century, they and the Welsh but switched to use the term "baseball" in 1892, possibly to distinguish the adult game from juvenile rounders play. A common set of rules was agreed to between the two governing groups in 1927.
Sources	Andrew Weltch, "British Baseball: How a Curious Version of the Game Survives in Parts of England and Wales, The National Pastime, (SABR) volume 28 (2008), pages 34-38.
Source Image	[[Image:|left|thumb]]
Comment	The rules of British Baseball are found on the Protoball site at http://protoball.org/British_Baseball.   Query: Are the original rules of Welch baseball and Liverpool baseball known from the time before common rules were written in 1927? "Back hitting" is disallowed: is this the intentional hitting of the ball backward?         Edit with form to add a comment
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