Updated: Holliston's Mudville Men Battle at Gettysburg

They followed in the footsteps of men whose cause was greater than their own. 

The first group was sent to save a country and to free a people.  The second group traveled to honor the first, and to play a little ball.

And so it was that the Mudville Base Ball Club found itself in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania this past weekend, participating in the 2011 Gettysburg Vintage Base Ball Tournament. And in fields where the retort of rifle and cannon once echoed, the chatter of baseball battles prevailed.

The tournament featured eight teams from across the country.  Mudville opened play on Saturday morning and was soundly defeated 21-3 by the eventual tournament winner, The Saginaw (MI) Old Golds.  The Old Golds had previously won the Mudville tournament in Holliston in early June.

The Mudville men recovered, however, with an impressive 17-12
victory over the Mechanicsburg (PA) Nine, Saturday afternoon, and behaved well enough Saturday night to muscle out an 8-6 victory over the Central City Stars of Colorado on Sunday morning.

Once again, Mudville “Boss” Carl Damigella relied on the rubber right arm of “Citizen” Pete Barbieri to lead his team to their two victories.  Offensively, his mischief-making miscreants were led by David “Hops” Robinson with a long grand slam against Mechanicsburg, and Greg “The Needle” Ferrick, whose base running and sliding élan provided an inspiring and informative model for ballists of the future.

Craig “Party-Boy” Landry, Todd “Ace” Kagno, and Ed “The Rabbit" Hunter all proved handy with the willow, while Steve “Sheriff” Lawless proved he could chase and capture a flyball with grace. Jay “The Legend” Wyman demonstrated that although the legs may be slow, true power can never be denied, as he stroked two magnificent shots.

Who am I # 26? 

This week's selection comes from a baseball playing family 

I’m here with my dad Andy

And my cousin Wally Mark.

Tony was my catcher

Right here in .

I’m from a line of players

That continues to this day.

Just tell us there’s a ballgame

And we’ll all come out to play.

Who Am I?