HEARKEN back to a time before sports equipment, when "ballists" snagged grounders and fly balls with their bare hands, and when the pitcher's mound was only thirty-five feet from home "base." After 150 years, baseball continues to represent the best of the American spirit. As our nation split in a Civil War, sportsmanship, athleticism, respect for the rules of the game-all earmarks of the sport we call baseball-took on new meaning as young men gathered in grassy meadows to play the game we call America's pastime. RPress Books is pleased to publish this first in a collection of classic base ball (base-ball) literature. In addition to "Base-Ball: How to Become a Player, " by John Montgomery Ward and Henry Chadwick's "Beadle's Dime Base Ball Player," the reader will also find in this publication a short story titled "The Redheaded Outfield" published in 1915 by renowned author Zane Grey, and a first chapter excerpt from "I Love Base Ball," a new, original story from the 2013 RPress Books "Batter Up" series. Also included are short biographies of authors Ward, Chadwick, and Grey.