Category Archives: Spaldeen games

Weather is hot today. Well…

Streetplay Discussion Archive Posted on by
Original author: micknpez [e-mail]
 

Weather is hot today. Well over 90 degreed. A large crowd turned out to participate in the stickball contest and Five teams registered. In the first 2 games the scores were Old Timers 4 Bad Boys 3 Washington Bombers 10 Harlem Heat 1 Winners were Washington Bombers and Old Timers. The Bombers then went on to play te Clean Machine. Old Timers played the Bad Boys in a classic stickball game. Looked as though old timers had I made, leading 3-1 going into the th and last inning. But the Bad Boys weren’t about to give up. With some good hitting and an error, the Bad Boys scored 2 runs and sent the game into extra innings. Bad Boys were able to recover and take the game in the 9th. Due to the heat, and the length of th games, the final matchup between today’s winners, to determine the Manhattan championship will be played at the end of August

Longball Competition Winners…

Streetplay Discussion Archive Posted on by
Original author: micknpez [e-mail]
 

Longball Competition Winners of the 2 sewer pin- Richard Mojica – 260 feet Ron Mercedes – 200 feet Joe Rodriguez – 320 feet Albert Santiago Jr.- 320 feet Michael Lentini Jr. – 230 Feet Carlos Santiago – 300 feet Louis Malofsky – 280 feet Eric Rodriquez – 320 feet Carmello Ramirez – 220 feet Carlos Calderon – 240 feet John Lipsett – 270 feet Russ Terlecki – 230 feet (1st time ever hit a stickball) Mike Lentini Sr. – – 260 feet (member of the Stickball Hall of fame Ernest Correa – 220 feet Jose Mandy Rodriguez – 320 feet Steve Plerqui – 250 feet Raymond Vasquez – 300 feet

This all brings back many…

Streetplay Discussion Archive Posted on by
Original author: hammer003 [e-mail]
 

This all brings back many memeries of the guys on CARROLL STREET (now carroll gardens in brooklyn)playing stickball,stoopball and fistballand oh yes slapball(we called it world war three) never a game without disputes.We played against PRESIDENT STREET,FIRST PLACE,SACKET STREET AND SECOND PLASE. Stoopball was great using georges grocery store’s wall and a homer was ralpheals bedroom oh baby !!!BLUPER,BLIMP,SHEA,ERICK,UFATS,THE GANG

It’s great to see other…

Streetplay Discussion Archive Posted on by
Original author: teddy apy [e-mail]
 

It’s great to see other city dwellers sharing their memories about what WE used to play. It is a far cry from little league and soccer moms. I grew up 6 blocks SE of Wrigley Field, before it was “the place to be.” We were busy playing “baseball” while we heard the crowds cheer (rarely!). We played in a back yard which was cement. Overhand pitching of a tennis ball against a mesh net. No balls or strikes. Just hitting. Invisible base runners if the teams were small. On the roof was an automatic out; off the wall of 443 was in play (our own “Green Monster”). We also played football with an all-time quarterback (the only kid w/an acurate arm). Our field was a 100′ driveway w/an equal width patch of grass along side it. It was tag/tackle. You could run on the cement for speed, then cut to the grass to avoid being tagged. Handball, dodge ball, and schmear the queer rounded out our list. I share these games with my 4 kids in central Illinois hoping the rich traditions will spread on the playgrounds. I’d love a reunion w/all the friends who used to play so we could show our kids what sports really are!

Am enjoying the site. Brings…

Streetplay Discussion Archive Posted on by
Original author: gdthings [e-mail]
 

Am enjoying the site. Brings back lots of memories. The one subject > regarding Spaldeens that was not mentioned was their propensity to “go > down the sewer”. The obiquitous street drains at every corner were a > magnet for the Spaldeens. The game had to stop while someone located a > wire coat hanger which was straightened out to it’s full length, with a > two inch circle bent at the end at right angles to the wire. This was > lowered into the sewer and the Spaldeen was fished out of it’s grave so > the game could continue. The gook that was on the balls was of now > concern to anyone. A couple of whacks with the stickball bat would clean > it off. No thought was ever given to sanitation – and it never seemed to > matter in those days! > > With fondest memories, > Alan Steinberg > (Avenue O and 23rd Street, Brooklyn) >

Has anyone heard of “Russian…

Streetplay Discussion Archive Posted on by
Original author: A.B.Klein [e-mail]
 

Has anyone heard of “Russian Seven”? We played it in the Crown Heights section of Brooklyn in the 1940s. It involved tossing a Spaldeen against a building wall while performing various actions. Steps were done in a specific order. You could play against others or by yourself, trying to beat your own record of catching the ball.

Thanks for the link to halfball.com….

Streetplay Discussion Archive Posted on by
Original author: John/Carol - NJ
 

Thanks for the link to halfball.com. After reading your page I went into the website and ordered a bat. I’m very impressed with the quality and workmanship. I recommend people take a look at these handcrafted bats and balls. We played halfball as kids and are looking forward to passing on this game to our children.

Well, lets see,where do…

Streetplay Discussion Archive Posted on by
Original author: Doug Miracco [e-mail]
 

Well, lets see,where do I begin? Around sept. 1993 some guy named Frankie Bisogna puts an ad in the St. Pete Times [ florida ] asking ” is anybody here from Brooklyn “? and his phone # in the ad also. He got 400 calls in one day. So, keeping in touch with the callers, someone gets the idea, lets have a block party. So, the went for a permit to block off the street. Well, no such thing, never heard of it, and lots of other excuses from the St.Pete P.D. Now what? Momentum is growing and more and more ex-Brooklynites are getting interested. Word is spreading like wildfire. AN IDEA? Lets rent the Coliseum in St. Pete. OK. Lets do it. Well, to make a short story shorter. By word of mouth, 2700 people showed up at the St.Pete Coliseum on Oct. 24, 1993. Present were t The Brooklyn Dodger Sym-phony band. Pee Wee Reese [yes] and a few other Brooklyn dignitaries. Also present to Provide other amenities was Nathans of Coney Island, Juniors, complete with Cheesecake. Alba`s Pastries from 18TH ave. Brooklyn T-Shirts, Posters, Pennants, Brooklyn Dodger Memorabilia, Hats, Etc. We played stickball INDOORS? Scully, Johnny on a pony. It lasted from Noon to 11:00 p.m. And most of the people had to be thrown out when the Coliseum closed. [ one colisem sweeper said as we were leaving ” I`ve never seen so many crazy people in one place at one time” Lets face it, you can take a person out of Brooklyn, but you can`t take the Brooklyn out of anybody. Dougie Miracco

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Streetplay Discussion Archive Posted on by
Original author: micknpez [e-mail]
 

A story from Bill Rammelkamp. Years ago the guys from Maujer st and Teneyck st played the Hasidm boys from Marcy Ave in a game of punchball. This must be back around 1960. Before the game a fight almost broke out because we played with a tennis ball and they played with a white pimple ball. It was decided that one game would be played wih each ball. We did some special stuff to the tennis ball. It was taken and put in a brown paper bag. Then the bag was put on fire so all the heavy hair was burned off. We used these heavier balls instead of the Spaldeen because we could get more English on it. When we played stickball if we didn’t have the money for a ball, we would take a newspaper, fold it up to abou 1 1’2 inches. After you had that thickness you’d roll it up, put a rubber band around it as tight as you could get it and then put it on the curb and bang it down with a stickball handle, to make it as hard as possible. You could do all kinds of things with that kind of ball. Great spins & flukes and when you hit it, you could make it fly. ——— Well, we were definitely more interested in that story than the game that was going on. The Bronxfield Bombers won 13-2. We’re cleaning up and getting ready to go. More pictures will be posted on the site over the weekend. See you next week in Manhattan.