A tall, gangly baseball pitcher with skinny arms and legs pitches a baseball. The ball is shooting through the air, going nearly 100 miles per hour towards home base, and the batter is crouched over, arm muscles flexed, ready to swing. The batter hits the ball with all his might, and it starts going the other way – way, way, far away.
The ball takes off and starts flying up high in the sky, making its way out of the park. It is up there in the air with the birds and the clouds, shiny bright white in the light of the sun.
The batter knows that he hit a homer. He watches the ball for a second and admires how it looks up there, arching through the sky. The pitcher knows he got beat and hangs his head. The batter smiles and drops his bat. He begins to run to first base. The pitcher is upset with himself and kicks the pitching mound with his foot. A little puff of dust pops up and blows in the wind. The batter circles to second base. By this point the ball has gone out of the park. The crowd is cheering. The batter rounds third base and jogs home. All his teammates are waiting for him there. They give him high fives and pats on the back. He knows he really did it. He hit that ball. It was going one way, and he made it go the other – all the way out of the park.
Have you ever seen a baseball stadium with a hill in it? In Nashville, Tennessee, there used to be a ballpark called Sulphur Dell. It was one of the strangest ballparks in history.
In most ballparks, the right field fence is about 330 feet from home plate. In Sulphur Dell, it was only 262 feet—which made it very easy to hit home runs, if you hit the ball to just the right spot. That's pretty odd, but not half as weird as the hill in the outfield. It sloped up in front of the right field fence, until it got to about 22 feet high!
Skip Nipper, a historian who wrote about Sulphur Dell in his book Baseball in Nashville, calls the stadium "quirky." He likes to tell a story about a player named Phil Weintraub, who had some trouble with the outfield hill in 1934.
"A hard line drive came his way," says Nipper, "and he ran down the hill and reached down to catch the ball and missed it. It went between his legs. He turned around, went up the hill to catch it, and once again it went between his legs. When he finally got it, he threw it over the third baseman's head."
In baseball, when a player makes a mistake, he's charged with an "error." It's pretty bad if a player makes more than one error in a game, but on that play, Phil Weintraub made three!
A lot of great players came through Sulphur Dell, including Bill Dickey, Honus Wagner, and the sultan of swat himself: Babe Ruth. When Ruth came to town, the whole city was excited. The state Senate even made a special resolution, allowing them to leave the Capitol early so they could all go to the game. Back then, you couldn't watch players on TV, and they didn't want to miss their chance to see Babe Ruth. Ruth was in the outfield when he played there in 1934, Nipper says, and "almost broke one of his legs" running on it.
But even though the ballplayers didn't like hills, the people of Nashville loved their ballpark. They called it "the Dell." Nipper started going to games at the Dell when he was a child. His father would take him, and so would his grandfather.
"My dad would take me and my cousin or my brother," he says, "and we would sit on the first base side, so we could see that right field hill. And my grandfather would not let us go to the concession stand until the seventh-inning stretch. He wanted us to watch the game."
One of the greatest games ever played at the Dell was on July 11, 1916. A pitcher named Tom Rogers was on the mound for the Tennessee Volunteers. They called him Shotgun Rogers, because he threw the ball so fast. That night, he pitched better than he ever had. He did something that's only happened a few dozen times in all of baseball history: he threw a perfect game. That means that, in nine innings of play, nobody on the opposing team got a hit. Nobody got a walk. Nobody even got to first base!
By 1963, the old ballpark wasn't so popular anymore. Teams stopped playing baseball there, and eventually Sulphur Dell was torn down. It had been around for almost 100 years.
In 1978, a new team came to town: the Nashville Sounds. They built themselves a brand new ballpark called Greer Stadium. A lot of famous players have played there: Don Mattingly, Ryan Braun, Rick Ankiel—even Michael Jordan, when he was playing baseball. The Sounds played at Greer Stadium through the 2014 season. A new ballpark called First Tennessee Park was built for The Sounds. It opened its doors in 2015, and it is located right beside the state Capitol, on the spot of land Sulphur Dell once stood.
Where does Skip Nipper think they should have built First Tennessee Park? He doesn't care.
"I'm a baseball fan," he says. "I'm going to go wherever they play.”
Most people do not know any major league baseball players. It is hard enough to even find a family in America that has just one member who plays for a big league team. There is a family though that has had five of its members play professional baseball, which is more than any other family in history. They are the Hairston family.
Jerry Hairston, Jr. and his younger brother Scott have played on many baseball teams in the major leagues. Jerry has played for nine different teams, like the Baltimore Orioles and the New York Yankees. Scott played for the Oakland Athletics and another team in New York, the Mets. However, during the 2010 season, Jerry and Scott both played on the same team: The San Diego Padres. Scott was asked about how their parents felt now that they had the chance to watch both of their sons play in the same game for the same team. “They love it. They’re excited to come out and watch opening day, and watching the same game on TV is going to be something different,” he told The Sporting News in 2010. Scott explained that usually their parents would have to change the channel back and forth so that they could watch Scott and Jerry play on the same night. Watching TV became much easier for the Hairston family then!
Jerry Hairston, Sr. is the father of Scott and Jerry, Jr. He played on a few different major league baseball teams in the 1970s and 1980s. In 1983, Jerry, Sr. played an important part in an exciting game. The pitcher of that game was named Milt Wilcox. He only needed one more out for a perfect game, which is when a pitcher gets every single batter out in a game. Jerry, Sr. came up to bat and got the first base hit for his team. Wilcox was probably not very happy that Jerry, Sr. ruined his chance at pitching a perfect game!
Jerry Hairston, Sr. also had a brother play in the major leagues. Johnny Hairston is the uncle of Scott and Jerry, Jr. Like Scott, Johnny played for the Chicago Cubs, but Johnny was on the team in 1969. Johnny only played for a very short time. He played in three games and got one base hit.
Johnny and Jerry, Sr.’s father also played baseball! His name was Sam Hairston and he played for the Chicago White Sox in 1951. The grandfather of Scott and Jerry, Jr. was the first Black man to ever play for that team after he played in the Negro Leagues for many years.
That is the story of the Hairstons: a family that has had three generations of major league baseball players.
Choose the answer that best completes the sentence below.
It is hard enough to find a family that has just one member who plays for a big league team;, the fact that five of the Hairstons have played baseball is particularly impressive.
Mo Vaughn of the New York Mets wears number 42. He wears it for a special reason.
A baseball player named Jackie Robinson wore number 42. He was an African American. He entered the major leagues in 1947. Until then, no African American had ever played in the majors. Robinson broke baseball's "color barrier." He opened the door for Black athletes to play in pro sports.
Vaughn wears number 42 as a tribute to Robinson. He also works with Robinson's daughter Sharon. She keeps her father's spirit alive by helping young people break through barriers of their own.
Before 1947, some team owners didn't think that Black athletes were good enough to play in the majors. Some fans didn't want to see Black and white athletes play together. Black players belonged to all-Black teams in all-Black leagues. A man named Branch Rickey wanted to change that. He ran the Brooklyn (New York) Dodgers. (Years later, the Dodgers moved to Los Angeles, California. They play there today.) In 1945, Rickey formed a plan to hire the game's first Black player.
Rickey chose Robinson. Rickey told Robinson that many people wouldn't like his playing in the big leagues. They would call him names. Other players would try to hurt him. But Robinson couldn't fight back, Rickey said. If he did, Black athletes would never be allowed in major-league baseball.
Robinson joined the Dodgers in 1947. He was the target of abuse from fans and other players. But he didn't fight. Instead, he played brilliantly. He won over his critics. He proved that Black athletes belonged on the field.
Robinson died in 1972. Today, his daughter Sharon runs a program called Breaking Barriers: In Sports, In Life.
In the program, she works with Vaughn and other major-league stars. She and the ballplayers visit schools all over the country. They talk to students about the kinds of barriers they face in life.
In one class, a boy talked about his mother's death. A girl talked about her parents' divorce. In other classes, students discussed problems with learning at school.
Students also learn that big-league ballplayers face problems in life. Vaughn missed a whole season because of an injury. But he used that time to train and get stronger. This year, he hopes to have his best season yet.
Sharon Robinson talks about what students need to overcome their problems. They need courage, she said. They need to use teamwork. And they must never quit.
Sharon Robinson said her program reminds people of the barriers her father broke. Vaughn agrees. He tells students why he wears Jackie Robinson's number.
"This number isn't mine," he said. "I just put it on and try to keep his memory alive as long as possible."
Choose the word that best completes the sentence.
Branch Rickey wanted a Black player on his major league baseball team, he asked Jackie Robinson to join.
What word or phrase best completes the sentence?
Corinne especially likes Cory Alvarez he seems to have the ability to predict where the ball will go and get there first.
Where does the passage The Motion of Baseball take place?
Based on the passage: The Motion of Baseball, the pitcher is upset with himself. What evidence from the text supports this statement?
Based on the passage: The Motion of Baseball, why didn’t the batter start running immediately after hitting the ball?
According to The History of Baseball, why is baseball sometimes called “America’s Pastime”
Which event happened FIRST in the history of baseball?
How are the two passages different?
Based on information from BOTH passages, what can readers infer about baseball?
What was Sulphur Dell?
What does this passage describe?
Sulphur Dell was a strange ballpark.
What evidence from the passage supports this statement?
Based on the information in the passage, how did baseball fans feel about Sulphur Dell?
What is this passage mainly about?
Read the following sentence:
"By 1963, the old ballpark wasn't so popular anymore. They stopped playing baseball there, and eventually Sulphur Dell was torn down."
What does the word ballpark mean?
Choose the answer that best completes the sentence below.
Sulphur Dell was eventually torn down, it had once been popular and loved by baseball fans.
How many members of the Hairston family have played professional baseball?
What does the author describe in the passage?
In the passage, the author describes how Jerry Jr. and Scott’s parents would change the channel back and forth to watch both of their children play. Based on this evidence, what conclusion can be made?
Based on the passage, what can be concluded about the Hairston family?
What is the passage mostly about?
Read the following sentence:
“The pitcher of that game was named Milt Wilcox. He only needed one more out for a perfect game, which is when a pitcher gets every single batter out in a game. Wilcox was probably not very happy that Jerry, Sr. ruined his chance at pitching a perfect game.”
As used in the passage, what does the word “ruined” mean?
Why did Mo Vaughn wear number 42
What are the two main topics described by the author in this text?
Read this paragraph from the text.
[Jackie Robinson] entered the major leagues in 1947. Until then, no African American had ever played in the majors. Robinson broke baseball's "color barrier." He opened the door for Black athletes to play in pro sports.
What can you conclude about Jackie Robinson based on this evidence?
Based on the text, why might Jackie Robinson not have fought back against abuse from fans and other players?
What would be another good title for this text?
Read this sentence from the text.
Sharon Robinson talks about what students need to overcome their problems.
In this sentence, what does the word "overcome" most nearly mean?
Corinne skipped through the parking lot. She couldn’t hold back her excitement. Her family was going to the baseball stadium for the first time!
“Corinne, chill out,” said her brother, Jake. Jake was only two years older than Corinne, but he thought that gave him the authority to boss her around. Corinne slowed to a walk and waited for her family to catch up.
“I can’t help it,” she said. “I’ve never been to a baseball game before.”
Corinne had watched countless baseball games on television. Baseball was her favorite sport, and she had been a Chicago Cubs fan as long as she could remember. Corinne thought that the best moment of her life would be when the Cubs finally broke their curse and won the World Series. The team had been losing for decades, but she knew that sooner or later, they had to win.
But tonight her family wasn’t going to see the Cubs. They were going to see the Cougars, a new minor league team that had come to their town. Jake wasn’t excited about the game. He thought the minor leagues didn’t count. “The minor league is for players who aren’t good enough for the major league,” Jake always said. But Corinne liked the idea that these players weren’t famous yet. They were still training and learning, just like her. Maybe she’d see baseball’s next big star. Maybe he’d even sign a baseball for her.
“Mom,” Corinne said, “Can we wait outside the dugout after the game? I want to get some autographs.”
“Sure, we can,” said Corinne’s mother. “But let’s enjoy the game first.”
They pulled out their tickets and walked into the stadium. The stadium security guard checked Corinne’s mother’s purse and waved them through. “Mmmm,” Corinne breathed in deeply. The air smelled like a delicious mix of popcorn and soda. Corinne looked at the tickets and saw that they were sitting on the upper level, just past third base. They walked up the concrete stairs and found their seats as the first inning was beginning.
Corinne couldn’t decide whether to watch the field itself or the enormous screen behind the outfield. Her eyes darted back and forth between the two. The Cougars were pitching first. She cheered at the top of her lungs for every strike and booed when anyone on the other team, the Cyclones, got a hit. Even Jake looked like he was having fun, cheering just as loudly as Corinne.
The game was close. The Cougars would score, and then the Cyclones would score. Back and forth, the two teams battled. The Cyclones had a better pitcher, but the Cougars were quicker. Corinne especially liked the shortstop. He was short, like her, and he was really agile. No matter where the ball was, he was there first. He seemed to have a magic ability to predict its path.
“Mom,” said Corinne, tugging on her mother’s sleeve. “What’s the shortstop’s name?”
Her mother looked through the program, searching. “Cory Alvarez,” she said. “Cory!” thought Corinne. “Just like me.”
By the end of the ninth inning, the teams were still tied, and the Cougars were up to bat. “This is it,” Corinne said to Jake. “If the Cougars can manage to score just one run, then we’ll win!”
“Don’t be such a baby,” said Jake. “It doesn’t really matter. It’s just the minor leagues.”
Corinne noticed, though, that Jake was leaning forward in his seat and watching the batter with interest. Jake could pretend to be as cool as a cucumber, but inside he was just as excited as Corinne.
The batter turned, and Corinne saw that it was her favorite player, Cory Alvarez. “Come on Cory,” she thought, “You can do it!”
Cory walked up to the home plate and tapped the bat on the ground twice. Then he lifted the bat and waited. The pitcher wound up and then threw a ball so fast, Corinne didn’t even see it. She heard the crack when the bat hit the ball, though, and saw the ball flying through the air toward third base. The ball sailed past the base, then over the stands and straight toward Corinne’s family. Corinne climbed up on her seat and put her hands out. She felt a sting and tumbled backwards as the baseball slammed into her palms. She tumbled out of the chair, and her parents kneeled over her. “Corinne! Corinne! Are you okay?”
Corinne held up the baseball and smiled. “I’m much more than okay,” she said.
Why was Corinne so excited at the beginning of the story?
What can readers infer about Jake?
"He was short, like her, and he was really agile."
What does the word agile most likely mean?
Why did Corinne like the idea of watching a minor league team?
Which statement best describes the theme, or lesson, of the story?
Read the sentences and answer the question.
"Corinne noticed, though, that Jake was leaning forward in his seat and watching the batter with interest. Jake could pretend to be cool as a cucumber, but inside he was just as excited as Corinne."
What does the phrase “cool as a cucumber” mean in this text?