Baseball returns to Buhl Park on Saturday

Jun. 15—It's been years since adult baseball was played at Buhl Park. Games were common in the early 20th century, but the games came to a stop in July 1915 due to "blue laws."

Baseball will return to Buhl Park on Saturday. The Vintage Baseball Association, traveling teams that replicate 19th century baseball, will make a stop in Sharon.

Three teams from the VBA — the Addison Mountain Stars, Akron Black Stockings and Crossing Rails of Alliance — will play, and a group of locals will take the field to bring the total of four teams playing on Saturday. First pitch of the opening game is 1 p.m. Games will continue throughout the day.

"I think it will be cool for people to come down to see how it was played," said Markee Juranovich, sports and recreations coordinator at Buhl Park. "I think people will get a kick out of the uniforms they wear, using authentic equipment, and I just hope people come and enjoy a good, old-fashioned ballgame."

Tom Kuster, one of Buhl Park's directors, contacted Juranovich shortly after being named coordinator. He wanted to see if she could bring the VBA in for a series of games. Buhl Park tried to bring the group to Sharon in years past but things didn't work out.

They did in March as Juranovich reach out to the ballplayers.

"I reached out to a few of the team managers, and the ball just started rolling," Juranovich said. "Three days later, we had three teams that wanted to come and play."

Eric Bombeck, editor of the monthly newspaper The Way it Was, organized a team of locals when the VBA teams asked if anyone wanted to participate. The locals will play at 5 p.m.

The games are free to attend, but fans need to bring their own seating. Peanuts, Cracker Jacks, lemonade and 10-cent hot dogs will be available to add to the nostalgic atmosphere.

"I hope that because it's Father's Day weekend, I hope a lot of dads and grandpas come out with their kids and it can kind of turn into a tradition of some sort," Juranovich said.