Mackinac's Never Sweats Edge Grangers in Classic Ball Game
By Sean Ely

A team photograph was snapped of the Mackinac Island Never Sweats after they defeated the Rochester Grangers 4-3. The Never Sweats are now 2-3 against the Grangers. Top row, from left are Bart Stupak, Bruce Lynn, Craig Knaffle, Larry Rickley, Bill Anderson, and John Hiller; Bottom row (from left), Clay Fuller, Craig Bunker, Todd Callewaert, Phil Porter, Ryan Stephens, and Pete Pellerito.

"Huzzah!"

That was the word expressed by the fans, or "cranks," and the ball players, or "ballists," of the Mackinac Island Never Sweats and the Rochester Grangers, who squared off for the fifth consecutive year in a game of 1880s vintage base ball behind Fort Mackinac. The game was Saturday, July 21, and "Huzzah" is the 1880s way of saying "hoorah!"

The Never Sweats defeated the Grangers 4-3 in a defensive match-up, unlike last year, which saw the Mackinac Island ball club faltering to the Rochester squad 25-14. The Never Sweats are 2-3 against the Grangers in the five-year history of the contests, which started in 2003.

The teams follow all of the rules from vintage base ball. Ballists play with their bare hands, and balls caught on one bounce are considered outs, or dead. When balls hit in fair territory and spin into foul territory before first and third base, they are considered fair balls. Skilled strikers sometimes even try for these fair-foul hits. Pitchers, or hurlers, pitch the ball underhanded, and spitting, swearing, and ungentlemanly behavior is prohibited. Violations would result in a fine of the day's wages.

Former Tigers relief pitcher and 1968 World Series champion John Hiller pitched all nine innings Saturday, July 21, for the Mackinac Island Never Sweats behind Fort Mackinac, giving up just three runs in the fifth annual vintage base ball game against the Rochester Grangers.

Among the star performers on the Never Sweats team were former Detroit Tigers relief pitcher and 1968 World Series champion John Hiller, co-captain, who pitched a complete game went 2-3 at the plate with a run batted in. Centerfielder Craig Knaffle went 2-4 and scored a run, while catcher and co-captain Bill Anderson pounded out two infield hits. U.S. Congressman Bart Stupak touched home plate for the fourth and winning run in the bottom of the 8th inning when Clay Fuller knocked him in on a base hit to left field.

A softer ball was used this year, which didn't fly quite as far, but that didn't deter Phil Porter from anticipating a victory. As player and manager, and director of Mackinac State Historic Parks, which sponsors the contest, he believed a new team could turn a two-year losing streak around.

"We added a couple of guys like Biff [Ryan Stephens] and Larry Rickley, Jr. We practiced more ahead of time and I just felt that we were more prepared this year. It's just the way the ball bounces . . . on any given Sunday."

The hundreds of cranks whistled and screamed from the bleachers overlooking the field, as lead interpreter Joe Frost from Fort Mackinac fired up the crowd with "huzzah" cheers. Fielding coach and ballist Pete Pellerito pointed out that the crowd has continued to grow every year for this event.

First-year Never Sweats player Ryan Stephens, a Fort Mackinac interpreter who is 15 to 20 years younger than the rest of his teammates, said he had "a blast" in his transition to vintage base ball from hardball, which he played in high school in Saline and in intramural leagues at Central Michigan University. He went 1-3 and scored a run.

"I like being around the older guys and listening to them, and being in a historic uniform like this. It's really cool to think back and realize how it was for a historic player in the 1880s to play base ball."

The Never Sweats uniforms are based on a photograph of a Mackinac ball player from around the 1900s. The baggy pants, navy blue button-up shirt with a red "M," and old time cap created a jersey ensemble that no current ball player could match.

Mr. Porter credited Mr. Stephens with the win.

"Difference in the game right here," he said to a group of cranks after the game, patting him on the back.

"I'm definitely going to play in this game again next year," said Mr. Stephens. Being victorious was great. It's tough to learn how to read the ball off the bounce, because obviously if you catch it on a bounce, it is an out, so that's a big part of the game. On a field like this, the oldest ball park in the state of Michigan, it's hard to rate certain bounces, but it's a lot of fun."

The field has been used since 1871, and Mr. Pellerito wants to prove it is the oldest field in the state, as Mr. Stephens contends.

In vintage base ball, hitting was never the problem, Mr. Pellerito said before the start of the game. It was always a matter of fielding a ball, catching it, and successfully throwing it to someone without a glove. That was the challenge they faced every year. Fielding was superb to watch this year, however, with double plays and diving one-bounce snags, while the batting by both clubs suffered. This is the only organized game that the Mackinac Island Never Sweats compete in. The Grangers, on the other hand, play in more than 15 games, giving them more experience with the rules and fundamentals.

"That's why we pick them," Mr. Pellerito said. "We could play teams that are not as successful as the Grangers, but we always want to play hard against them and do the best we can to win. We are confident that, in theory, we could beat other teams who aren't as successful or talented, but we do this because we love the competition.

"When you have a game that finishes 4-3, you're surprised, because these games can be in the high 20s," he added. "Considering the fact that we've only played one game this year, I think we did well. Between the veteran players like Bart [Stupak] and Phil [Porter] and some of the younger players we had this year, like Ryan Stephens, who can really run, I think we had a good team. Those guys really make a difference. As I told Bart years ago, there is one thing I couldn't teach as a coach and that was speed, but today we had some good hitting, some speed, some luck, and a heck of a lot of defense."

Mr. Pellerito has been a long-time hardball coach, and in the 1970s, coached Mr. Stupak at Northwestern Michigan College in Traverse City.

Another man familiar with the game of base ball was Mr. Hiller, who doesn't take the trip to Mackinac Island simply for the competition.

"I think the greatest part of it is realizing that I made some good friends, and coming to see the fellas on the Island, the wives, and the merchants in town at the restaurants, who I've gotten to know," he said. "I get to spend the night at the Grand [Hotel] with my wife for two nights every time we come back, so that's a plus."

He also has a passion for the game of base ball.

"To put a uniform on is great, because I don't get a chance to do that very much anymore," he said. "It's playing baseball, regardless of the rules, and to play baseball on a beautiful Island in beautiful weather, . . . life is good."

The event ended with the two teams singing songs to each other and the cranks in the bleachers.

The Grangers sang their song, "For the Love of the Game," while the Never Sweats belted out their rendition of "Take Me Out to the Ball Game."

"This is baseball the way it is supposed to be played," Mr. Stupak said. "There was no arguing and there were no tantrums. It was all good baseball that was being played today, on both sides. Everyone was playing their hardest and whacking that ball, but there was great defense as well.

The Mackinac Island Never Sweats have voiced their interest in adding some more games to their current onegame schedule next season. Mr. Pellerito, Mr. Porter, and some of the other athletes will work on that possibility over the winter.

"Hip, hip, huzzah! Hip, hip, huzzah! Hip, hip, huzzah!" the Never Sweats screamed, giving three cheers to the visiting Rochester Grangers.