Historic Pelham: Pelham Manor Club Defeated Gramatan Country Club in Baseball Game in August, 1902

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Members of the Gramatan Country Club baseball team and its supporters were not happy in August, 1902. The Pelham Manor Baseball Club simply had not played fairly when the two clubs met for a baseball game at the Gramatan Country Club. It seems that the Pelham Manor Club brought with it a massive entourage of beautiful women dressed to the nines as spectators in a ploy to distract the Gramatan players. The ploy worked.

Members of the Gramatan Country Club team, it seems, were overwhelmed by so many beautiful women from Pelham Manor. Indeed, a local sports reporter claimed that the susceptible young men of the Gramatan team "could not withstand the charms of the feminine partisan of the Pelham Manor Club." Indeed, according to the sports reporter:

"Never did they play much worse. They seemed not to care how many balls they failed to catch as long as they caught a smile from the visitors. It is not reported how far they succeeded in the latter, but if success was in proportion to their failure in the former they had things quite their own way."

Pelham baseball, of course, was an important social outlet in that simpler time. There was no Internet; no television; no radio; no local movie outlet. Baseball games between local teams were nearly day-long affairs with players and spectators alike enjoying not only the spectacle, but also the social interactions. Indeed, by 1902 Pelham already had a long tradition of baseball gatherings beginning as early as the waning days of the Civil War and continuing through the many games of the Country Club Giants on Shore Road during the 1880s. Pelham had teams on City Island, Shore Road, in Pelham Manor, and in Pelhamville. Games attracted hundreds and, occasionally, thousands, of spectators at times when the Town's entire population ranged between 1,500 to 3,000 people.

I have written repeatedly about early baseball in Pelham. For a list of such articles with links, see the end of today's article.

During the summer of 1902, the Pelham Manor Baseball Club played a series of five games against the baseball team of the Gramatan Country Club. The game that is the subject of today's article was the third in that series and was played on Saturday, August 23, 1902. The game was followed by a Tea that was served at the Gramatan Country Club.

Pelham Manor won its baseball game against Gramatan by a score of 13 to 6. (The news headline said 13 to 7, but the box score included with the article makes clear that the score was 13 to 6.)

The Pelham Manor lineup was:

J. Canty, 3b
E. Nichols, 2b.
Johnson, lf.
O'Neill, 1b.
C. Nichols, ss.
Woods, rf.
Smith, cf.
T. Canty, p.
Douglass, c.

Luckily, Gramatan had a ten-man lineup because in the sixth inning, its pitcher and catcher collided while trying to make a play on a pop fly. The Gramatan pitcher was hurt so badly that he never returned to the game. Gramatan's second baseman took over the pitching duties thereafter.

The Pelham Manor nine leaped out to a quick 4 to 1 lead at the close of the first inning. Though Gramatan scored a second run in the third inning, Pelham Manor replied with another run in the fourth. Then, in the fifth inning, the bats of both teams heated up with Pelham Manor scoring five runs and Gramatan scoring four to bring make the score 10 to 6. Gramatan never scored again while Pelham Manor added two runs in the seventh and another run in the top of the ninth inning. Pelham Manor's ploy, it seems, had worked.

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Below is the text of a news article about the baseball game that is the subject of today's article. It is followed by a citation and link to its source.

"PELHAM MANOR CLUB VICTORIOUS.
-----
Defeats Gramatan C. C. Score 13 to 7.
-----

They came with banners flying
And pretty girls galore.

They played tag with the home team
Which made the rooters sore.

And when the game was over
One heard ’midst cries and song

“You can not play at base ball”
“So why not try ping pong?”

Quite a large delegation of pretty maids and matrons journeyed over from Pelham to see their gladiators of the diamond play the Gramatan Country Club. This they did and it is a great question whether it was not a clever ruse on the part of the manager of the Pelham Manor Club to see that so many of the fair ones accompanied the team. Did he not know that nine susceptable [sic] young men who made up the opposing nine could not withstand the charms of the feminine partisan of the Pelham Manor Club? Did he not see that no eye would be kept on the ball that day? We think he did and the playing of the home team bears us out. Never did they play much worse. They seemed not to care how many balls they failed to catch as long as they caught a smile from the visitors. It is not reported how far they succeeded in the latter, but if success was in proportion to their failure in the former they had things quite their own way.

The game outside of the 'gallery' was uninteresting as the visitors played far better ball than the home team, the latter at no stage of the game being dangerous. An unfortunate accident happened in sixth inning when Makepeace and Gibbons collided when running for a fly. Gibbons was so badly hurt that he had to retire from the game.

Pelham Manor Club -- J. Canty, 3b; E. Nichols, 2b.; Johnson, lf.; O'Neill, 1b.; C. Nichols, ss.; Woods, rf.; Smith, cf.; T. Canty, p.; Douglass, c.

Gramatan C. C. -- Grant, 2b. & p.; Kebler, 3b.; Conkey, 1b.; Makepeace, c.; Gibbons, p.; Dinsmore, rf. & 2b.; Ferris, ss.; Burritt, lf. & rf.; Britton, cf.; Gorman. lf.

Score by innings:

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
P.M.C............4 0 0 1 0 5 2 0 1 -- 13
G.C.C...........1 0 1 0 0 4 0 0 0 -- 6"

Source: PELHAM MANOR CLUB VICTORIOUS -- Defeats Gramatan C. C. Score 13 to 7, The Bronxville Review, Aug. 28, 1902, Vol. I, No. 32, p. 3, col. 1.

"Gramatan Country Club
-----

The third of the series of five ball games between the Gramatan Country Club and the Pelham Manor Club will be played Saturday in Bronxville. Tea will be served at the club after the game. . . ."

Source: Gramatan Country Club, The Bronxville Review, Aug. 21, 1902, Vol. No. 1, No. 31, p. 5, col. 1.

Cover of 1902 "Spalding's Official Athletic Library Base Ball

Guide." NOTE: Click on Image to Enlarge.

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I have written more than forty articles regarding the history of baseball in Pelham and early baseball games played in the Town of Pelham. Below is a listing, with links, of some of my previous postings on the topic of early baseball in Pelham.