The City by the Sea boasts an ambitious baseball history dating back to the early days of America's favorite pastime. In 1897, the Newport Colts became the first professional baseball team to ever tie in a playoff series. By the 1900s, baseball was being played daily on open fields and diamonds throughout Newport. The city has sported six major ball fields, including Cardines Field, host to the oldest continuously running amateur baseball team in the country. Discover the humble beginnings of players like Newport native Frank Corridon, who allegedly invented the now outlawed spitball, and the legacy of the great Trojans baseball club. Team up with baseball historian Rick Harris and walk through the history of Newport baseball from amateur games to the major leagues and all the strikes, homers and grand slams in between.
RickHarris was born and raised in Iowa and currently resides in Cranston, Rhode Island. Rick began his baseball research and writing career in 1992. He has authored "Rhode Island Baseball: the Early Years, " published by The History Press in 2008, and "Brown University Baseball: A Legacy of the Game, " published by the History Press in 2012. He has presented at numerous baseball research conferences, provided countless public talks, written many articles and made several appearances on local TV news shows.