Batboy

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

A Lansing Lugnuts batboy (in white) carrying a baseball bat away from home plate.

For the fictional character, see Bat Boy.

A batboy is the person who carries the baseball bats around to a baseball team. A batboy may also lay out the equipment and mud the baseballs to be used in the game.

Mascots and batboys had both been part of baseball since the 1880s. Perhaps the most famous batboy was Eddie Bennett, who was hired as a mascot by the Chicago White Sox at the urging of Happy Felsch in 1919. After the 1919 World Series scandal, he was hired by the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1920. When the Dodgers lost the 1920 World Series to the Cleveland Indians, some suggested the four straight losses on the road were due to leaving Bennett behind. He then served for almost 12 years as batboy.

[edit] Batboys in the news

On June 30, 2000, police discovered steroids and syringes in the glove compartment of the Mercedes-Benz that had been loaned to Boston Red Sox batboy Carlos Cowart by infielder Manny Alexander.

In 2005, a Florida Marlins batboy was suspended six games for accepting a dare from Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Brad Penny, a former Marlin, to drink a gallon of milk in less than an hour without vomiting.

Matthew McGough described his batboy experiences with the New York Yankees in Bat Boy: My True-Life Adventures Coming of Age with the New York Yankees, a book published by Doubleday in 2005. McGough's book served as the basis for Clubhouse, a prime-time television show that aired on CBS in the fall of 2004 and now in reruns on HDNet.

Dominick Ardovino wrote about his batboy experience with the New York Mets in The Bat Boy (New York: McGraw-Hill, 1967).