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4 Aug 2008	Social Committee Sought
20 Jul 2008	Junior Information - Summer 2008 / 2009

Social Committee Sought Monday, 4 August 2008 120 YEARS OLD AND FULL OF AMBITION Only Les Arthur was around in 1888, when the Melbourne Baseball Club was founded, but what a world it was. Melbourne was known as Marvellous Melbourne, a heaving, bustling, chancing city on the tail end of a 40 year gold rush. On the sporting field in England, which was still the Mother Country, WG Grace was 40 years old and already known as "the old man" of cricket, although he would continue playing with the Gentlemen of England until he was 60. A horse by the name of Carbine had just arrived in Melbourne and was considered well worth watching. In December 1888, an American by the name of Al Spalding also arrived in Melbourne with two baseball teams – the Chicago “White Stockings”, which he owned, and an All-American team they would play exhibition games against. Spalding was the supremo of American baseball. A former star player who quit the game after the development of the curve ball, which he could neither hit nor throw, he had published the first official rules guide for baseball (which stated that only Spalding balls could be used) and now he was taking baseball to the world. He arrived in Australia with 50 players and managers and 10 newspaper reporters. Among the teams the “White Stocking” played on that historic tour was an MCC team made up of the best cricketers in the colony who imagined they could also play baseball. And so here we are, 120 years later, the baseball section of the MCC. This season we will be celebrating our origins, our legends and our future. If you would like be involved in a 120th Anniversary Social Committee please let us know. Contact: Jo Taylor pembroke@hotmail.com, secretary; or Stuart Rintoul, junior chairman srintoul@bigpond.com

Junior Information - Summer 2008 / 2009 Sunday, 20 July 2008 Melbourne Cricket Club - Baseball Section Playing baseball for 120 years 1888-2008     Thinking about playing baseball? The MCC Baseball Section is looking for new players. Melbourne has junior teams from T/Ball (age 5-8) to U/18. We will hold three free come and try days for junior players   * Sunday, August 17, 10am-12pm * Saturday, August 23, 9.30am-11am * Saturday, August 30, 9.30am-11am   Melbourne's diamond is at Surrey Park, Surrey Drive, Box Hill South (cnr Canterbury and Elgar Rds) Played on Friday nights and/or Sunday mornings, baseball is a fast and exciting game open to boys and girls of all ages. For more information about the MCC Baseball Section go to www.melbournedemons.baseball.com.au   Contact: Stuart Rintoul, Junior Chairman 0438-809181, or srintoul@bigpond.com