Seventh-inning stretch

The seventh-inning stretch is a tradition in baseball that takes place in the middle of the seventh inning of any game. Fans generally stand up and stretch out their legs and other muscles and sometimes walk around; it is a popular time to get a late-inning snack as well. The stretch also serves as a short break for the players. If a game goes into a fifth extra inning, a similar "fourteenth-inning stretch" is celebrated. In amateur games scheduled for only seven innings, a "fifth-inning stretch" may be substituted.

Related Topics:
Baseball - Inning

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There are many apocryphal stories about the origins of the seventh-inning stretch. One popular yarn claims that it began on account of President William Howard Taft. He had been in attendance at a Washington Senators versus Philadelphia Athletics game on April 14, 1910 and had been uncomfortable in his chair. By the middle of the seventh, he could no longer take it, and stood up. The crowd mistook his action, and believed he had decided to leave, and out of respect, stood up as well. However, minutes later, after stretching out his legs, Taft sat back down as did the crowd. This tale is almost definitely false—evidence exists of the practice as early as 1869, when unruly students were called to stand up and stretch to help settle them down. However, the seventh-inning stretch was not a formal practice in professional baseball games until the 1920s.

Related Topics:
William Howard Taft - Washington Senators - Philadelphia Athletics - April 14 - 1910

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Another possibility of the origin of the seventh inning stretch is the story of Brother Jasper of Mary, F.S.C., the man credited with bringing baseball to Manhattan College in the late 1800s. Being the Prefect of Discipline as well as the coach of the team, it fell to Brother Jasper to supervise the student fans at every home game. On one particularly hot and muggy day in 1882, during the seventh inning against a semi-pro team called the Metropolitans, the Prefect noticed his charges becoming restless. To break the tension, he called a time-out in the game and instructed everyone in the bleachers to stand up and unwind. It worked so well he began calling for a seventh-inning rest period at every game. The Manhattan College custom spread to the major leagues after the New York Giants were charmed by it at an exhibition game, and the rest is history.

Related Topics:
1882 - New York Giants

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In modern baseball, the seventh-inning stretch is a strong tradition. Major League Baseball games always involve it, often by playing music and having video clips on the scoreboards. During the "stretch", fans sing the chorus of "Take Me Out to the Ball Game" in fondness of the game. Harry Caray may have gotten the most mileage out of the song: he was known for leading the crowd in song wherever he broadcast, and when he came to the Cubs he continued the practice, sparking what has become a Chicago Cubs tradition by regularly leading the crowd in singing "Take Me Out to the Ball Game" in every seventh-inning stretch. Since his death, the Cubs have invited various famous people to lead the crowd during the stretch.

Related Topics:
Major League Baseball - Take Me Out to the Ball Game - Harry Caray - Chicago Cubs

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In certain stadiums, there are variations on what song is played during the stretch. Since the 1970s, the Baltimore Orioles have often played the raucous John Denver song "Thank God I'm a Country Boy," and at Shea Stadium, the Lou Monte tune "Lazy Mary" has been traditionally played after "Take Me Out to the Ball Game." The Toronto Blue Jays, however, sing a different song, as well as "Take Me Out to the Ball Game." Since the death of team founder Gene Autry in 1998, the Anaheim/Los Angeles Angels have played Autry's signature song "Back in the Saddle Again" as well as "Take Me Out to the Ball Game." Before then, the Angels played an instrumental version of the Christian worship song "Lord, I Lift Your Name on High."

Related Topics:
Baltimore Orioles - John Denver - Shea Stadium - Lou Monte - Gene Autry - 1998 - Anaheim/Los Angeles Angels

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Los Angeles Dodgers fans have often been mocked by fans in other cities as using the stretch as their cue to actually leave the game early to avoid massive freeway gridlock.

Related Topics:
Los Angeles Dodgers - Freeway gridlock

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Following the September 11, 2001 attacks, the song "God Bless America" became common during the seventh-inning stretch, sometimes in addition to "Take Me Out to the Ball Game" and sometimes replacing it entirely. Some stadiums play "God Bless America" only on Sundays. At Yankee Stadium the song is now played at every game. During the 2004 World Series, "God Bless America" was performed during the stretch of Game 1.

Related Topics:
September 11, 2001 attacks - God Bless America - Yankee Stadium - 2004 World Series

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