PHOTOS ARE FOUND HERE

The Rising Sun Club wrapped up the season by hosting the Mason-Dixon Vintage Base Ball Festival.  Finally enjoying fair autumn weather, the boy played 4 official games over the weekend with many ballists lending a hand to other clubs as well.  The weekend started with a hard-fought loss to the Kennett Square Mohican club and a win against the Gettysburg Generals.  Sunday featured a win against the combined Harrisburg/Allegheny clubs from Pennsylvania.  The final match of the year against the Diamond States was a close affair with Rising Sun holding a lead until the 7th inning when Delaware's bats erupted to put the game beyond reach.  

After a seemingly endless period of clouds and rain, the weather in Cecil County, Maryland was finally perfect for base ball.  Both teams enjoyed playing in beautiful conditions at the Cecil County Farm Museum north of Elkton.  As always, the Cecil County rivalry led to two well-played matches.  The Rising Sun boys played fine defense in the first 6 innings of both games before a few miscues and timely Elkton bats were too much to overcome.  The Elkton club was very solid in the field, limited Rising Sun to 5 tallies in the first game and 2 in the second.  Ultimately, the Rising Sun club dropped both games, 15-7 and 7-2.  

The club traveled to Jerusalem Mill on Little Gunpowder Falls in Harford County, Maryland to play the Chesapeake Nine and Hoboken Nine from New Jersey.  The bats struck immediately in match 1 vs. Chesapeake, with the Rising Sun boy tallying runs in nearly every inning.  The offense remained steady to offset Chesapeake's big bats and the Rising Sun club won 17-10.  The second match got off with a quick start as the boys tallied 9 runs in the first two innings.  Hoboken came back to tie the game in the 5th inning.  Both teams played stellar defense for the remainder of the game with either side adding a run in the 6th.  Rising Sun took the lead with a "Tex" double, steal of third, and a well-timed walk.  In the end, the boys took the match 11-10. 

PHOTOS are found HERE.

The club played a doubleheader against the Mohican club of Kennett Square on Saturday.  Both clubs endured a typical Southeastern Pennsylvania hot, humid day, but performed well despite the conditions.  The first game featured fine defense from both clubs and the score remained close throughout the match.  The Mohicans kept the lead until the Rising Sun boys rallied to tie the game in the top of the 9th.  Unfortunately the Kennett bats came alive in the bottom of the 9th and they prevailed with a score of 5-4.  The second game featured a rough first inning for the Rising Sun club, as the Mohicans tallied 8 runs.  The boys did not give up, however, playing solid defense for the rest of the game.  Despite the effort, the Rising Sun club dropped the second game 11-7. 

See photos from day 2 HERE

The boys traveled to Long Island to participate in the 2018 Doc Adams 19th Century Base Ball Festival.  Keeping with the theme of the season, the club played through several torrential downpours on messy fields.  With the help of our friends, the New York Mutuals, the club came away from the weekend with a 2-2 split.  The first game was a rout of the Monmouth Furnace of New Jersey during a consistent downpour.  The team held their opponent scoreless in that affair with a final score of 20-0.  The second game Saturday was impacted greatly by the elements; consistent rain, a water-logged ball, and muddy field.  It was a high-scoring affair that unfortunately fell in favor of the Boston Beaneaters, 24-18.  The first game on a very hot, humid Sunday featured some timely offense, but ultimately the boys fell to the Dirigo club of Maine 15-5.  The second game was a hard-fought win against the Bouckville Summits from Upstate New York, 15-11.

LOT OF PHOTOS HERE:  https://flic.kr/s/aHsmkmo7Ra

The Rising Sun Base Ball Club successfully hosted the 2nd Annual Weekend at the Winery vintage base ball event this past weekend.  The Rising Sun club was joined by clubs from four states for the event: Delaware Diamond States, Gettysburg Generals, New York Mutuals, and Kennett Square Mohicans.  The weather, while humid on Saturday and very warm on Sunday, was beautiful for base ball. 

The first game on Saturday featured Rising Sun and the Diamond States of Delaware.  Both teams were able to make timely, well-struck hits and several quality plays in the field.  The game ended as a defeat for the Rising Sun Club, falling to the Diamond States 15-12.  The second game featured the New York Mutuals (along with Banker and Dirt from RS) and the Gettysburg Generals (and Tex from RS).  The Mutuals were able to hold the Generals in check, winning 12-4.  The third game featured Rising Sun and Gettysburg.  Rising Sun's bats came alive during this game and the club came away with a 18-5 victory.  The final game of the day featured the New York Mutuals (with Dirt and Cheddar from RS) and the Delaware Diamond States.  The Mutuals and their borrowed friends were able to make solid plays on defense as their bats erupted for a 12-6 win over the Delaware club.

Ballists and their families from each of the clubs enjoyed a Maryland crab feast at Banker's residence on Saturday evening. 

Sunday's first match featured the Rising Sun Club and their good friends, the New York Mutuals.  Timely hitting and defensive plays contributed to a 21-10 victory.  The Mutuals then defeated the Gettysburg Generals 11-10 by coming from behind in the bottom of the 9th, only to score the winning tally in the bottom of the 10th.  With a very solid defensive showing, the Mohican Base Ball Club of Kennett Square defeated the Gettysburg Generals 15-0 in the third game of the day.  The final game of the weekend was a very close match between the Mohicans and the host club.  Kennett led most of the game, but Rising Sun was able tie the score in the 8th inning.  Unfortunately, the Mohicans responded with 4 tallies in the 9th.  Rising Sun was able to scrape by one more tally in the bottom of the 9th, but ultimately succumbed to the Kennett team 11-8. 

The elements let up for a few hours on Sunday afternoon to allow the Rising Sun and Delaware Diamond States clubs to get in one full match and three innings of a second before the rain became a great hindrance.  Both teams met at the Paper Mill Park in Newark, Delaware; a first-time location for a ball game.  The Rising Sun boys (with the hep of 2 friends from the Diamond States) were able to make solid plays in the field and maintain a lead with their bats until the 9th inning.  Unfortunately, as the rain started, as did the muffs in the field.  The final score was a 9-8 defeat as the Delaware club came from behind to win. 

The skies over Calvert were gray and ominous as the Boys from Brick Meetinghouse welcomed their friends from the lower shore. The day was warm and viscous as the dank air of the shore moved across the region welcoming the season.
Rising Sun allowed their visiting adversary to take the turn at the bat first as they awaited one more ballist to arrive by a delayed carriage from a weekend in the big city. The contests were hotly contested as Field Captains Brian Tex Besancon of Rising Sun and Scott Tin Can Martino from Talbot employed their fielders and batters in a strategic fashion. The muckles for Rising Sun, Doug Cornbread Wiggins and Captain Tex Besancon provided the bulk of the offense for the hometown club while Banker kept the adversaries guessing at the dish with fine pitching as they defeated the visiting Fairplays in game one 10-7.
In the second game of the match the Fairplay were granted the opportunity to strike last. In the second half of the double dip the Fairplay took the lead in the bottom of the first frame never surrendering and staying strong in the field and at the dish. The Fairplay had full participation from their contingent as Moonlight and Bolt added to the already stout bats with many cloud busters and daisy cutters to force the hometown boys for muff plays and chase herculean blasts to the garden. Rising Sun employed the services of Jamie Spike Workman in the pitchers box and had the Fairplay in doubt many times. Eric Dirt Campion and Robert Cheddar Lambeth found their stroke and got hot at the dish in the match game. Unfortunately the boys were not able to overcome and Talbot took the match game 12-6. A fine day by all as Mother Nature allowed the matches to be completed before unleashing her will in the form a claps and flashes as the day ended the boys share their standard camaraderie and refreshments post match.

The boys opened the season strong against a small contingent of the Chesapeake Nine from Baltimore County. Several Rising Sun ballists volunteered to switch sides to play for the adversary, including two muffins.  The team looked strong in both games, playing solid defense while holding the opponent to 3 runs in the first game and 2 in the second.  The bats were warm during both contests, even if the weather was chilly.  All-in-all, the ballists from the Rising Sun club enjoyed a solid opening day and look forward to next week's opponent.

Game 1:  24-3, W
Game 2:  12-2, W