Vintage Base Ball season opens with doubleheader on April 8

Vintage Base Ball returns to the 6th Cavalry Museum and polo field on Saturday, April 8, with a doubleheader. The museum is located at 6 Barnhardt Circle in Fort Oglethorpe, Ga.

Watch Mountain City of Chattanooga play Phoenix of East Nashville at noon followed by the Lightfoot Club of Chattanooga vs. Quicksteps Club of Spring Hill at 2:30 p.m.

New this season is the addition of an outdoor arts and crafts festival.

“The opening games of the new season are always exciting, but this year promises to be even better,” says Chris McKeever, director of the 6th Cavalry Museum. “The addition of the arts and crafts festival adds another dimension to the event and has the potential to bring even more people to experience Vintage Base Ball for the first time. Think of opening day as fun for the entire family.”

Vendor booths are $25. There is no electricity at the site, and vendors must supply their own tables, tents and chairs. Vendor applications can be found on the museum’s website, www.6thcavalrymuseumn.org.

Vintage Base Ball is played by rules, equipment, uniforms and culture of the 1860s. Players become living historians as they demonstrate how our national pastime got its start. The game, called a match, is played with wooden bats and no gloves. Neither balls nor strikes are called, and disputed calls are settled by the spectators.

Admission to the base ball match, the 6th Cavalry Museum and the arts festival are all free on April 8. Concessions will be available for purchase. Bring a lawn chair or blanket because there is no bleacher seating.

For more information: www.6th cavalrymuseum.org.