2006 -- H 8287 ======LC03322 ======STATE OF RHODE ISLAND

IN GENERAL ASSEMBLY

JANUARY SESSION, A.D. 2006 ______

H O U S E R E S O L U T I O N

HONORING THE 1884 OF THE MAJOR LEAGUE BASE BALL'S , RECOGNIZING THE TEAM'S INAUGURAL CHAMPIONSHIP OF AMERICA, AND THANKING THE PROVIDENCE GRAYS VINTAGE BASE BALL CLUB FOR ENTERTAINING AND EDUCATING THE PUBLIC REGARDING RHODE ISLAND'S UNIQUE AND LITTLE KNOWN 19TH CENTURY BASE BALL HISTORY

Introduced By: Representatives Dennigan, Rose, McNamara, Malik, and Laroche

Date Introduced: June 22, 2006

Referred To: House read and passed

1 WHEREAS, The City of Providence was once to major league 's first

2 World Champions in of 1884. The Providence Grays existed from 1878 to 1885, they

3 defeated the Metropolitans of the American Association to make the City of

4 Providence the Capitol of the baseball world; and

5 WHEREAS, Charles "Old Hoss" Radbourn won an astounding 59 games for Providence

6 in 1884, leading the Grays to the pinnacle of their sport. The team played home games at the

7 Messer Street Field in the west end of Providence, while traveling far and wide demonstrating

8 their clear and thrilling superiority; and

9 WHEREAS, The Grays defeated the Metropolitans at the in New York,

10 winning all three games and distinguishing themselves generally in varied and historical ways;

11 and

12 WHEREAS, The Providence Grays employed the first African-American player, William

13 E. White, for a game; and

14 WHEREAS, Sandy Nava was the first Latino player to toil for the Grays or any

15 Major League team. Partially deaf completed the game's first unassisted

16 play while helping bring about the use of hand signals by umpires of the era; and

17 WHEREAS, The Grays' success lent recognition and glory to Providence, a leading and

18 vital metropolis, then as now; and 1 WHEREAS, The great George Herman "Babe" Ruth played briefly for the

2 Providence Grays of 1914 and struck his only official minor league home for that team; and

3 WHEREAS, Baseball Hall of Famer , Providence Grays

4 and leader of the first player's union, pitched for the original team and was inducted into the

5 Rhode Island Heritage Hall of Fame for his many accomplishments; and

6 WHEREAS, The Providence Grays Vintage Base Ball Club was founded in 1998 by Tim

7 Norton, Kevin Faria, Gil Faria, Rick Stattler, and other devoted men who refused to

8 let this important piece of Rhode Island history go unremarked upon; and

9 WHEREAS, Brian Travers, Charlie Dryer, Dave Watson, Justin Munroe, Chris Perkins,

10 Neal Bogosian, Byron Bratt, Erek Bratt, Kevin Neves, Frank Lucas and others sacrificed for the

11 good of baseball and for greater awareness of Rhode Island's proud sporting history; now,

12 therefore be it

13 RESOLVED, That this House of Representatives of the State of Rhode Island and

14 Providence Plantations hereby honors the Providence Grays of the National League, as well as

15 the Providence Grays Vintage Base Ball Club. We thank the modern team for its long fidelity to

16 Rhode Island's sporting heritage; and be it further

17 RESOLVED, That the Secretary of State be and he hereby is authorized and directed to

18 transmit duly certified copies of this resolution to the members of the Providence Grays Vintage

19 Base Ball Club.

======LC03322 ======

2