A round ball used in the baseball game is referred to as a baseball. The ball is comprised of a rubber cork center that is covered in yarn and white horsehide. The ball has an estimated mass of 5 grams and about 9 inches in circumference. However, in the early centuries, Baseball had various sizes, weights, and shapes. The horsehide on the ball is held together by a red thread. When the ball is in the air, there is often a drag caused between the air and the ball's stitching; hence the stitching is vital in the trajectory of the ball. Moreover, the stitching holds the materials used on the ball together.
The pitcher manages to control the ball when in the air due to the stitches it has. Pitchers had the honor of making their own balls that would be played. Therefore, the stitches have an important role in playing the baseball game. The ball often has a white color in the beginning before being played, and however, after constant hitting of the ball with a bat, it changes color to brownish. The white color explains the leather used on the ball and the wool which are naturally white.
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The manufacturing process of Baseball involves placing materials on top of one another, including cowhide, rubber, and fabric around a sphere made of rubber that has the same size as a cherry. There are three different ways in which the materials are put round the rubber, including the molding of the rubber, wounding the fabric material, and sewing the cowhide material. Moreover, to ensure the ball comes out in a good round shape and good size, the conditions are carefully controlled, which results in a quality ball. After the manufacture of the balls, they require a well air-conditioned enclosed room. They should not be stored in a space without proper ventilation due to the materials used to make them. Moreover, rubber as one of the materials often melts from unregulated and high temperatures.
The baseball game traced its back to the early 1900s in America when it gained popularity (Brody, 2002). However, sources indicate that the game originated from England, where it was called "rounders." The game had various names before settling to the baseball name it currently has. The game was called "town ball," "round ball," "goal ball," and finally settling to "baseball." Shane Ryley Foster recorded the first baseball game rules for a Manhattan, New York-based team, the Knickerbockers (Kyle et al., 2008). The rules would go a long way in guiding how the game would be played at that time.
History has it that Knickerbockers were the first team to play the sport under modern rules. The baseball game quickly became the favorite game in the US because England and other countries had their own games; hence the people felt they also needed their own sport, a distraction from all the labor, it became the country’s pass time activity (Brody, 2002). Moreover, the fact that this game was fast-paced made it more popular compared to the "rounders" as it was called in England. The nationalistic sentiments made Baseball the country's game (Danzig, Allison & Reichler, 1959).
Since the early centuries, Baseball has had cultural importance in the Dominican Republic. The introduction of the game in the Latin base nation resulted in the growth of talents and love for the game (Klein, 1995). Baseball diffused into the lives of the Dominican people and embracing it as part of their culture. The love for Dominican could have been catalyzed by a few factors, including the fact that America Dominated the Dominican both Economically and politically (Brody, 2002).
Furthermore, the Dominican baseball leagues were dominated by the American leagues and the fact that the American baseball league relied on players from the talented Dominican league (Kyle et al., 2008). The baseball game during the nineties was considered cultural imperialism in America. Moreover, Baseball became as an empowerment for the Dominicans despite the fact that Americans introduced it in the country. Baseball had a high value in the Dominican Republic despite being viewed as an agent of cultural imperialism in the beginning (Klein, 1988).
Imperialism resulted in baseball games getting recognition in North America. In the year 1860s, the American military introduced the game in Latin America, starting with Cuba. On the other hand, Mexico first saw and learned the game from American laborers who worked on railway construction (Brody, 2002). Despite the Latin American nations learning the game from the Americans, racial segregation that had deep roots during the time made it difficult for the non-whites to get trained or hired to play in the professional leagues (Kyle et al., 2008).
Arguments have risen, implying that Baseball introduced to North American nations developed to the modern-day game. During the early 1700, the game was played in Tudor England, not as Baseball but as rounders. After the creation of the National League, the game traveled to America, where the American league began in 1901 (Kyle et al., 2008). Two years later, after its introduction in the US, the World Series took place and later became an annual event.
During one of the world series during the early nineties, a group of teenagers went to the stadium to watch the finals consisting of my mother and father. They were great lovers of the game that after the game, they went to the field to salute the players where my father was given a signed baseball. The ball meant so much to him, such that he had the ball as an adult. The ball had a strong sense of American culture hence the reason he held on to it (Kyle et al., 2008).
The ball was carefully and strategically placed in his betting company officer, a company he owned. The ball had so much value to him that he would often hold and kiss the ball for luck during his important meetings or deal signing meetings. The ball sat close to his table well placed in an open space such that everyone in the office would see it, "my lucky charm, he would say."
After his passing, the ball had been missing for a time a ball he cherished very much. It could not be located. However, we managed to locate the ball on a day there was a big baseball game, and we had passed by the office to locate some papers when we located it placed behind a drawer. After that day, my mother decided to talk about the origin of the ball and how it came to the father's possession. From then on the ball became mine and we used to play it with my friends during the school holidays.
The sentimental value held by the ball gave me the motivation and love for Baseball. However, when moving to college, I decided to give my younger brother the ball. The value of the ball has remained in my family for years. Moreover, it remains of great cultural value to the family, considering the circumstances the ball was gotten, a time when Baseball meant everything in the country, and the world series had so much significance. Inconclusion, Baseball has come a long way since its origin in England. The sentimental value held during the early centuries was inspiring. Currently, the organization of the game has become so sophisticated, and the leagues play in an orderly manner.
References
Alan M. Klein (1995) Culture, Politics, and Baseball in the Dominican Republic: Latin American Perspectives Vol. 22, No. 3, The Dominican Republic: Social Change and Political Stagnation (Summer, 1995), pp. 111-130
Brody, S. (2002). Shoeless Joe Jackson's Bat and the Invention of Baseball History. NINE: A Journal Of Baseball History And Culture , 11 (1), 89-96. https://doi.org/10.1353/nin.2002.0029
Danzig, Allison & J Reichler (1959) The History of Baseball. Prentice-Hall,.Read more: http://www.madehow.com/Volume-1/Baseball.html#ixzz6GNVnSzfB
Klein, A. (1988). American hegemony, Dominican resistance, and Baseball. Dialectical Anthropology , 13 (4), 301-312. https://doi.org/10.1007/bf00243664
Kyle, D., Fairbanks, R., & Rader, B. (2008). Baseball in America and America in Baseball . Texas A & M University Press.
