Antique equipment guys, help ID age of cartoon?

[Butch7999]

Ran across this undated cartoon and would like to put a "no older than" date to it, based on uniforms and equipment.
We're not expert on -- well, on anything, of course -- but particularly on the evolution of catchers' and umpires'
facemasks and chest protectors and so on, so if some of you guys who are knowledgeable about it could chime in,
it would be much appreciated.
The scene looks 1910-ish to us, considering also the apparel worn by the crowd in the background, although we're
disturbed by the square home plate (possibly just an anachronistic error by an artist inexpert in his subject).
Still, the newest, most modern element would establish it as "no older than..." ??

[jcmtiger]

1940’s , 50’s. Joe

[Mark17]

Originally Posted by jcmtiger

1940’s , 50’s. Joe

Has to be older than that. Every catcher was wearing shin guards way before that. I'd say more like 1910-1915.

[khkco4bls]

Reeded chest protector. Circa 1910

[1880nonsports]

I would suggest late teens based on the totality of the image presentation with the caveat that I have no specific expertise in dating equipment but a good deal of history with old baseball ephemera and paper. Of course my experience likely dwarfed by the well seasoned members here.

[perezfan]

I'd go mid-to-late teens as well.

[dabroiler]

About that square plate...

Prior to 1898 there were no rules and it could be any size...any shape...even a dish.

In the 1899/1900 season , a rule was established where all fields had to have a square home plate, with one corner facing the catcher, and the other facing the pitcher.

Just one year later in the 1900/1901 season, the current shape was established.

That would put the subject matter at the 1899/1900 season.

When it was actually illustrated is another question...


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[Butch7999]

Thank you, gentlemen, all the responses so far are much appreciated.
We're quite sure now that the illustration was executed by an artist not fully conversant with baseball
and who failed to use much reference material. Someone in the art department should've caught
the anachronistic details.

While doing more of our own research in the interim since we first posted, we do have a "no older than" date.
Some deep sleuthing of an obscure reference made in passing in the text on the backside establishes the thing
as having been published no earlier than 1908 and possibly/probably some few years later.

What intrigued us was the vendor's guess that the piece dated to 1900 or earlier, which to our inexpert eyes
didn't jibe with the chest protectors and birdcage masks on the catcher and ump, nor with the general look of
the batter's uni. We'd still be interested in learning more details about the advent of the protective gear shown,
like whether any of it would have been in use as early as 1908.

[Mark17]

Originally Posted by Butch7999

Thank you, gentlemen, all the responses so far are much appreciated.
We're quite sure now that the illustration was executed by an artist not fully conversant with baseball
and who failed to use much reference material. Someone in the art department should've caught
the anachronistic details.

While doing more of our own research in the interim since we first posted, we do have a "no older than" date.
Some deep sleuthing of an obscure reference made in passing in the text on the backside establishes the thing
as having been published no earlier than 1908 and possibly/probably some few years later.

What intrigued us was the vendor's guess that the piece dated to 1900 or earlier, which to our inexpert eyes
didn't jibe with the chest protectors and birdcage masks on the catcher and ump, nor with the general look of
the batter's uni. We'd still be interested in learning more details about the advent of the protective gear shown,
like whether any of it would have been in use as early as 1908.

This all makes sense. Square home plates were used in illustrations well past 1900. Mike Mitchell broke in with the Reds in 1907 and is depicted on his T3 card with such a home plate.