View source for Baseball in Ireland

{{short description|History and current information on baseball in Ireland}}
{{Use Hiberno-English|date=August 2023}}
[[File:HelicopterFields.jpg|thumb|Aerial view of O'Malley Fields in Dublin, Ireland]]
The first baseball game in Ireland was held in Dublin in 1874,<ref>{{cite web |url=https://protoball.org/Philadelphia_Athletics_v_Boston_Red_Stockings_on_24_August_1874 |website=Protoball|title=Philadelphia Athletics v Boston Red Stockings on 24 August 1874 - Protoball }}</ref> and it continues to be played by several teams including in the [[Irish Baseball League]]. [[Baseball Ireland]] is the [[sport governing body|governing body]] of [[baseball]] on the island of [[Ireland]], covering both [[Northern Ireland]] and the [[Republic of Ireland]].<ref name="about">{{cite web |url=https://baseballireland.ie/about-us/ |website=Baseball Ireland|title=About Us – Baseball Ireland }}</ref>

==History==
[[File:1958 Tramore Sea Lions Team Photo.jpg|thumb|Tramore Sea Lions, 1958]]
[[File:Baseball in Ireland (1) - 25 of 50.jpg|thumb|upright|Baseball program from an exhibition baseball game in Waterford, Ireland, September 1962]]
The first baseball game in Ireland was played in 1874, when the Boston Red Stockings played the Philadelphia Athletics in Dublin.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://protoball.org/Philadelphia_Athletics_v_Boston_Red_Stockings_on_24_August_1874 |website=Protoball|title=Philadelphia Athletics v Boston Red Stockings on 24 August 1874 - Protoball }}</ref>

In 1942 and 1943, several games were played in Belfast among teams of US servicemen.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://wartimeni.com/article/baseball-northern-ireland/ |website=Wartime NI|title=Baseball in Northern Ireland }}</ref>

The first organised baseball team in Ireland was the Tramore Sea Lions.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://irishbaseball.org/the-history-of-baseball-in-ireland-1958-1965/ |title=The history of baseball in Ireland 1958-1965 |website=Irish American Baseball Society |access-date=2020-05-30 |archive-date=2020-10-01 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201001163537/https://irishbaseball.org/the-history-of-baseball-in-ireland-1958-1965/ |url-status=dead }}</ref> The Sea Lions were a youth team in Tramore, County Waterford. The team was organised and coached by local businessman Clive Butterworth.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://irishbaseball.org/the-clive-butterworth-award/ |website=Irish American Baseball Society|title=The Clive Butterworth Award - Irish American Baseball Society |date=17 May 2020 }}</ref>

The success of the Tramore Sea Lions in the local community led to the creation of the Waterford Walruses, a team based in nearby Waterford City. In 1962, Clive Butterworth brought two United States Air Force baseball teams to Waterford for an exhibition game. The game was played on Waterford GAA grounds. Butterworth also brought baseball to Dublin in the early 1960s, bringing the total number of Irish baseball teams to three. Within a few years, Butterworth's declining health led to the end of organised baseball in Ireland for nearly three decades.{{fact|date=August 2023}}

In 2019, the Irish American Baseball Society and Irish American Baseball Hall of Fame announced the creation of the Clive Butterworth Award.<ref name="iabhof">{{cite web |url=https://www.rockawave.com/articles/iabhof-announces-2019-inductees/ |website=The Rockaway Wave|title=IABHOF announces 2019 inductees - the Wave |date=24 May 2019 }}</ref> The award recognises "outstanding volunteer service" among youth baseball coaches in Ireland.<ref name="iabhof"/>

== Ireland's National Baseball Team ==
{{main|Irish National Baseball Team}}
The [[Irish National Baseball Team]] has been in existence since 1996 and has taken part in several major baseball tournaments and tours.

Ireland played its first game in international competition in 1996 against the [[Czech Republic]], losing by a score of 23-2.<ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=USi7PA151vIC&q=Irish+Baseball+League&pg=PA209|title=Baseball in Europe: A Country by Country History|first=Josh|last=Chetwynd|date=16 July 2008|publisher=McFarland|isbn=9780786451753|via=Google Books}}</ref> Ireland's national team has won at least one game in every tournament it has entered including 1996, in [[Kingston upon Hull]].

''[[The Emerald Diamond]]'', a documentary film released in 2006, chronicled the history of baseball in Ireland and the Irish National Baseball Team.

===Competition===
The Irish National Baseball Team won its first bronze medal at the 2004 [[European Baseball Championship|European Championships]] in [[Germany]].  In August 2006, the team won the silver medal at the European Championships held in [[Antwerp|Antwerp, Belgium]]. They also competed in the European championships held in [[Vienna]] in [[Austria]], Stockholm, Karlovac, Abranches, Antwerp, Barcelona and Ljubljana.

In 2018, the team won the gold medal at the European Baseball Championship tournament held at the [[International Baseball Centre]] in [[Ashbourne, County Meath]]. By winning, the team advanced to the next round of Olympic qualifying in 2019.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.irishexaminer.com/breakingnews/sport/irish-baseball-stars-now-target-olympic-qualification-858928.html|title=Irish baseball stars now target Olympic qualification|date=2018-07-31|website=www.irishexaminer.com|access-date=2018-12-30}}</ref> 

== Irish Baseball League ==
{{main|Irish Baseball League}}
Although the existence of baseball in Ireland is not widely known, the game has been played there since the early 1990s. What began with a few friends playing pickup games on [[association football|football]] and [[Rugby football|rugby]] fields in [[Dublin]] and [[Greystones]], soon grew into a small league.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.the42.ie/take-me-out-ot-the-ballpark-how-to-follow-baseball-in-ireland-111872-Mar2011/|title=Take me out to the ballpark: how to follow baseball in Ireland|first=Andrew|last=McGeady}}</ref>

In the years since, baseball has spread elsewhere Ireland, being played in [[Ashbourne, County Meath|Ashbourne]], [[Clones, County Monaghan|Clones]], [[County Cork]], [[Shankill, Dublin|Shankhill]], Greystones, [[Dublin]] and [[Belfast]].{{citation needed|date=April 2020}}

The Irish Baseball League was founded in 1997.  Participating teams come from Dublin, Ashbourne, Belfast, Clones, Cork, [[Greystones]] and Portmarnock. Baseball Ireland is the [[sport governing body|governing body]] of baseball on the [[island of Ireland]], covering both [[Northern Ireland]] and the [[Republic of Ireland]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.irishcentral.com/sports/ireland/baseball-a-growing-favorite-sport-in-ireland|title=Baseball a growing favorite sport in Ireland|date=17 January 2014}}</ref>

=== Competing Teams ===
{{HistBaseball nav}}
{| class="wikitable"
|+
!Team Name
!Location
!Home Field
!Divisions
|-
|[[Ashbourne Baseball Club|Ashbourne Giants]]
|Ashbourne, County Meath
|International Baseball Centre
|A, B
|-
|[[Ashbourne Baseball Club|Ashbourne Stags]]
|Ashbourne, County Meath
|International Baseball Centre
|B
|-
|[[Ashbourne Baseball Club|Ashbourne Titans]]
|Ashbourne, County Meath
|International Baseball Centre
|B
|-
|Ulster Buccaneers
|Belfast, Northern Ireland
|Hydebank Playing Fields
|B
|-
|Belfast Northstars
|Belfast, Northern Ireland
|Hydebank Playing Fields
|B
|-
|Cork Renegades
|Cork, County Cork
|[[Brian Dillons GAA]]
|B. C
|-
|Dublin Spartans
|Clondalkin, County Dublin
|O'Malley Fields
|A, B
|-
|Dublin City Hurricanes
|Clondalkin, County Dublin
|O'Malley Fields
|A, B
|-
|Greystones Mariners
|Shankill, County Dublin
|Shanganagh Park
|A, B
|-
|Greystones Vikings
|Shankill, County Dublin
|Shanganagh Park
|B
|-
|Portmarnock Red Rox
|Portmarnock, County Dublin
|Beechwood Sports Field
|B.C
|}

== Youth baseball ==
The Irish cadet team (13–18) played in a Dutch tournament held in [[Alphen aan den Rijn]] [[Netherlands]].{{when?|date=August 2023}} The Irish team came home with a bronze medal, with [[Amsterdam]] Pirates receiving the runners-up prize.{{fact|date=August 2023}}

==See also==
*{{section link|Baseball awards|Ireland}}

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20191109154212/http://www.baseballireland.com/ Baseball Ireland Official website] (archived 2019)
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20070819192009/http://www.belfastbaseball.com/ Belfast Baseball Association] (archived 2007)
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20190101021350/http://irishbaseballmovie.com/ ''The Emerald Diamond''] (archived 2019)
*[http://irishbaseballseason.blogspot.com Irish National Team pitcher Cormac Eklof's blog]
*[https://www.baseball-reference.com/bio/Ireland_born.shtml Register of Irish-born Major League Baseball players]

{{Baseball in Ireland}}
{{Sports governing bodies in Ireland}}
{{WBSC Europe associations}}

[[Category:Baseball in Ireland| ]]
[[Category:All-island sports governing bodies in Ireland|Baseball]]