As temperatures approached the mid-80s on Sunday, it was a sight to see a group of ball players outfitted in pants, long-sleeved button down shirts, suspenders and old style hats in the middle of a wide-open field of grass in Wintergarden Park.
Even more odd, the players were warming up without gloves and swinging wooden bats in the on-deck circle.
But that's how the game was played back then.
Just replace a 90 mph fast-ball throwing pitcher with an underhanded "hurler" lobbing in a ball a little bigger and softer than a modern baseball, change out a batter for a "striker," throw out the multi-million dollar contracts, subtract any swearing or bench clearing fights and the recipe for vintage base ball (two words back then) from the 1860s is complete.
As a tribute to old style play and also for their own enjoyment, players from the Wood County Infirmary Inmates and the Spiegel Grove Squires of Fremont competed in the gentleman's game.
With swearing or fighting costing a player 25 cents to be issued by the umpire, an amount that went a long way back then, a few other rules govern over play:
¥ A "striker" is out if the ball is caught "on the fly" or on the first bounce.
¥ There are no balls and strikes. If a player swings and misses three times he or she is out.
¥ The umpire can consult with players on rulings of close plays.
¥ A run is called an "ace." When a player crosses home plate he or she must announce to the scorekeeper that an ace has been earned. They must also ring a bell to announce to the "cranks" (fans) that an ace has been tallied.
"That's illegal I know," said an inmate player as he slid into third taking the base with him, knowing sliding is usually not permitted on the grounds.

The Inmates team was established in 2004 by the Wood County Historical Center and Museum and is a member of the Vintage base ball association.
"There were a lot of museums in the county and especially in Ohio that had vintage base ball teams and it's one way to get adults interested in the museum," said Michael McMaster, education programs coordinator for the historical center.
A second area vintage team, the BG Senators, modeled after the 1897 semi-pro Wood County league and named to honor the city as the county seat, also played a few outs in Sunday's game.
"We're named as an honorary to that but we don't play their rules," said Stephen Merrill, coordinator of the team, which formed after 22 players showed up to play for the Inmates. "Their rules would have been much harder ... this is very much a gentleman's game."
While the field may not have looked like much, with just a few benches parked in the grass and nothing but a woods 400 feet away, "Inmate Field" is one of the nicer facilities the team has played at as a flat, naturally diamond-shaped area.
"Cow pastures, forests you name it," McMaster said, recalling some of the terrains the team has played on.
With "two hands down" in the bottom of the ninth, the bell wouldn't ring again for the Inmates who lost the game 14-3, facing the tricky spin of the Squires hurler.
"Hip Hip Huzzah," said the Squires as they lifted their caps in salute to the Inmates as both teams stood in a line at home plate. The Inmates followed suit as the game officially came to a close.

Vintage Baseball. Photos by Aaron Stevenson/Sentinel-Tribune