Group playing baseball in an open field with trees

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Players in a wide, open field, with a line of trees standing behind them, make this one a scene of ordinary sandlot ball rather than a formal ballpark game. Pickup games like this were a common part of American life in the late 1800s and early 1900s, when baseball was spreading from organized clubs into towns, schools, and neighborhoods. Such informal contests were often played on whatever flat ground was available, with makeshift bases and few rules beyond agreement among the players. The open setting and the spread-out figures are worth noticing, since they show how the game was played before enclosed stadiums became the norm.

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