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When you send for a brochure from Charles Sidman (creator of Ball Bark Baseball) you will receive some literature on the game that includes; sample player cards, a price list/order form and the following documents ...
Dear Baseball Fan,
Welcome to the exciting world of "Ball Park Baseball" (tm). Jacques Barzun, an eminent French-born historian, has written that to understand the United States of America one must know the game of baseball. How right he was! While not many baseball fans can become professional players, as spectators and readers of sports pages there is ample opportunity to follow baseball closely. No less stimulating to the mind and imagination is a board game of baseball that conveys all the fascination of the real game.
"Ball Park Baseball" (tm) is not merely one such board game. It is the best one on the market because it most nearly resembles baseball as it is actually played on the field. It makes realistic participants out of those who play the game insofar as they become managers (and general managers) of the various major league baseball teams they own. Often, proper use of player skills, knowledge of park characteristics and appropriate strategy decisions mark the difference between winning and losing. You have joined the ranks of those who want to test their ability to achieve the best results from the talent on hand. May your enjoyment of the game match or exceed your anticipation of the good times ahead!
Enclosed is a Description of the Game and a Price List for use when purchasing game parts -- Teams, Parks, Play Book, Strategy Cards and Random Number Generator. Every American or National League team and the parks in which they played are available from 1901 to the present (with the most recent season available by mid-November). In all, over 2000 teams and 125 parks provide a remarkably rich assortment of choices for play by even the most avid baseball fans.
Here are some suggestions on how to organize the game for play:
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With all the best,
Charles Sidman
Charles Sidman
5000 S.W. 25th Blvd #4123
Gainesville, Fl 32608
"Ball Park Baseball" (tm) is a board game played by rival managers (and general managers). They make decisions about the play of the game just like their counterparts in major league baseball. The excitement of the game brings with it situations that are authentic in every way. While the game is easy to play, it is intricate in design. To be a consistent winner takes more than average knowledge of the game. It requires intelligent play and an appreciation of the many factors that make for success. "Ball Park Baseball" (tm) is a game of skill, not chance. Baseball players have finely tuned abilities; the parks in which they play exhibit their individual characteristics; strategy, timing and good chances are ever important.
This game is played according to the rules of baseball. The action is based upon the generation of random numbers 1-25 controlled normally by the batters and numbers 26-50 by the pitchers. There are six components to the game.
1. Players Cards - represent the individual baseball players in all of their various skills for one particular season of major league baseball. Each team has its batters and pitchers, including the total number of games-in-the-field, pinch hit or pinch running appearances and designated hitter games for batters, and games and innings pitched for pitchers. For playing a shortened season, play-offs or a World Series, consult the Play Book for how to compute allowable games for batters or innings for pitchers.
The top section of the Batters' Card gives the name of the player, his team, the year, whether he bats left-handed (L), right-handed (R) or is a switch-hitter (S), games in the field (GIF), pinch-hit or pinch-run appearances (PH-PR), designated hitter games (DH), his batting average (BA), slugging average (SA) and on-base average (OBA), his fielding ability at different positions (F), the rating of his arm (A) if an outfielder or a catcher, his base running (BR) and stolen base (SB) speed, whether he is a good bunter (BUNT), and his handling (H) and passed ball rating (PB) if a catcher.
The top section of the Pitchers' Card gives information about whether the pitcher throws left-handed or right-handed and if he is a 9-inning, 7-inning or 5-inning pitcher (R9, R7, R5 or L9, L7, L5), how well he holds runners on base (Hold: 2, for example), his fielding ability (F), won-loss record (W-L) and earned run average for that year (ERA), his team, the year, and if he is a knuckle ball pitcher.
The bottom section of the Batters' and Pitchers' Cards contains information about those outcomes controlled on the opposite card by the batters and pitchers, respectively. When this override occurs, draw another number to determine if the controls apply or not. Remember that both sides and all columns on the opposite card are subject to the altered results.
The meaning of the symbols located next to the numbers 1-50 on the Batters' and Pitchers' Cards:
K = Strike out
IH = Infield hit ..
= see top center of Park Chart
W = Walk
SS = Sharp single 2B
= Double
HB = Hit batsman
TL = Texas leaguer 2B*
= Long double
WP = Wild Pitch
1B = Single
3B = Triple
2BE = Two-base error 1B*
= Long single HR =
Home run
GB = Ground ball:
ground out or force out, often a double play
DP = Double play:
automatic double play or ground out as with GB
GO = Ground out: ground
out or force out, seldom a double play
DG = Deep grounder:
ground out, often with runners advancing on the play
PO = Pop out: a short,
easily caught fly ball, to infielder or outfielder
MF = Medium fly: medium
range fly ball to outfielder, always caught
DF = Deep fly: a deep fly
ball to outfielder, always caught
For each of the following symbols, generate another random number and consult the Park Chart:
PU = Pop up: a fly
ball to infielder, sometimes misplayed
T = Tap: tricky
grounder to infielder, sometimes misplayed
SM = Smash: difficult
chance hit to infielder, sometimes misplayed
H = Hard one: very
difficult chance to infielder, often misplayed
SF = Short fly: shallow
fly ball to outfielder, sometimes misplayed
D = Drive: ball hit
in the gap or down the line to outfielder, sometimes misplayed
L = Liner: long fly
ball to outfielder, possible home run, hit or out
The one special case result is:
1B? = Either 1B or PO depending on the situation (see bottom right section of Pitcher's card) As with all control numbers, the altered results apply to both sides and all columns of the opposite card.
The numbers adjacent to the symbols (GB6 or SF8, for example) indicate the fielder to whom the ball was hit; thus
1= Pitcher; 2= Catcher; 3= First baseman; 4= Second baseman; 5= Third baseman; 6= Shortstop; 7= Left fielder; 8= Center fielder; 9= Right fielder
Not obvious perhaps, but quite important, the Players' Cards identify that part of the field where the pitchers induce the ball to be hit or the area where batters hit the ball, the ratio of ground balls to fly balls for pitchers and batters, the left-right bias in batting and slugging average of pitchers and batters, and how well they both do with none-on as against with runners on.
2. Park Charts - give chance play outcomes (PU, T, SM, H, SF, D, L) when fielder to whom the ball is hit is playing at his normal depth. Each Park Chart has its own outfield characteristics in the batting average, errors and extra base hits (including home runs) it yields, rain outs or rain delays, and in the number of playable pop ups.
3. The Play Book - contains five categories of information on the play of the game, to wit: a) advancing of runners (which deals with runners on base and how they fare); b) strategy (which deals with offensive and defensive strategy); c) information about fielders and pitchers (which describes how players may be employed during play and the penalties when they are used differently); d) special rules (which explain the control of outcomes on the opposite cards, what certain symbols mean, which way switch-hitters bat, how rain outs occur, the use of pinch-hitters and pinch-runners and play between teams from different eras and games allowed in shortened seasons or series); e) x-y-z; pop up chance plays (which test the range and error factors of the fielders.
4. Strategy Cards - give each of the initiatives the offensive manager may take in calling strategy (take a pitch, no strategy, safe bunt, suicide squeeze bunt, hit-and-run, steal of one or several runners, and double steal) by placing the appropriate card face down on the table, to which the defensive manager must respond (with no strategy, pitch out, pick off, or by moving his fielders around).
5. Score sheets - provide a place to keep a running account of the game, with a new one being used for each game.
6. Random number generators - are the means by which the ball is put into play for each situation. Two possible random number generators are a pair of ten-sided dice whose numbers yield 1-50 outcomes (with a roll of 3 zeros = 50) and a calculator programmed to produce number 1-50 randomly upon command.
Charles Sidman
5000 S.W. 25th Blvd #4123
Gainesville, Fl 32608
"BALL PARK BASEBALL" (tm) may be played by one person playing both teams or by two persons acting as rival managers. Games may be played individually, as part of a series or in league competition. Teams may be played as they existed historically or as built through a draft from any major league season from 1901 to present. To play a game:
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