They go by the names “Irish” and “Deke,” Stonewall,” and “Hawgcooker.”
There’s “Crusher” and “Ice Box,” “Grizzly” and “Walleye,” “Quickstep” and “Stick Boy.”
Then there’s “Squirrel Bait”, “E-Rev”, “Kid”, “Hands”, “Gear Head”, “Moonlight”, “Lumberjack”, “Professor” and “Freight Train.”
Meet some of the members of your Monitor Base Ball Club of Chelsea, who will be hosting a vintage baseball exhibition game as well as a match this Sunday, June 23, as part of Chelsea History Fest at Timbertown.
Vintage baseball, says team captain “Honest Jon” Van Hoek, is fast becoming a popular pastime in the Midwest. And, after playing the game elsewhere, when he moved to Chelsea, he decided to start a team here.
Three years ago, Van Hoek formed the Monitor Base Ball Club, and it’s one of more than 30 clubs in Michigan.
Van Hoek says vintage baseball is “gentlemanly base ballists playing by the rules of 1860.”
There are special uniforms and rules, (some negotiated by team captains depending on the field on which the team’s play) and combines a gentleman’s game of base ball with historical reenactment.
The Monitors (yes, in the 1860’s, there was a team by this name in Chelsea) will play an exhibition game against members of the community at 12:30 p.m. and a match against a new team, The Lumber City BBC of Flint at 2 p.m.
Van Hoek says that both Michigan and Ohio are “hotbeds” for vintage base ball and the Chelsea team has a roster of players that spans more than 50 years with 4-5 players in their 60’s. In fact, one player is 68 years old, he says.
“Everyone can contribute,” Van Hoek says, because the style of play is very inclusive. It’s similar to modern baseball, but not quite.
Players do not use gloves to catch the ball, and good plays are cheered by members of both teams.
“The ball can be caught in the air or on a bounce, which adds a realistic strategy,” Van Hoek says.
And, some of the lingo used back then is incorporated into the game they play today.
All the Monitor players are members of the Chelsea Area Historical Society, and not only do they promote history, but also offer a family-friendly event for the community and their fans to see.
The Monitors have a rather ambitious schedule this year, which includes a number of tournaments, and team holds weekly practices so as many interested players can get involved in this game that’s built on sportsmanship.
Yes, the players want to win and they play hard but Van Hoek says he stresses sportsmanship, not gamesmanship.
Before the match, the captains get together and negotiate the ground rules — based on the type of field that they play on. The Monitors have a rather wide open expanse of grass at Timbertown and try to place the fans as close to the action as possible.
They play 9 innings and the base paths are 90 feet, but players cannot overrun first base. “We have to stop on a ground ball,” he says.
Plus, players have to negotiate how to catch the ball without a glove.
Van Hoek says the team has played on fields with trees in the center or on corn fields with ruts.
Vintage baseball has been around about 20 years, he says and he hopes its popularity continues to increase so there is a cluster of teams in the area. That way, no one would have to travel that far to play. Just like in the 1860’s when every little town had a club and they’d challenge their neighbors, Van Hoek says.
Dexter recently formed a club with his help and he hopes other neighboring towns will follow suit.
For more specific information about vintage base ball, click here.
For more information about The Monitors, click here or go to and like the club’s Facebook page.
“We’ve had such a great first two seasons, and have a good following around town,” he says. “But I’d like to be able to get the word out to even more members of the community.”
