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| Take Me Out To The Ball Game - South Bend Cubs |
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| Take Me Out To The Ball Game was the 1908 team effort of two friends, Jack Norworth and Albert Von Tilzer. Both men had musical backgrounds; Norworth’s Dad was the Choir Director at St. Mark’s Episcopal Church in Philadelphia. Von Tilzer was a Jewish man from Indianapolis who composed popular songs.
Norworth, riding the subway to work, saw a sign, Baseball today - Polo Grounds. He imagined a story about Katie Casey. Katie was asked out on a date. She agreed, but only if she could go to the Ball Game. She wanted to root, root, root for the home team. She wanted to eat some peanuts and Cracker Jack. She didn’t care if she ever came back. And if they didn’t win, it would be a shame because it was one, two, three strikes you’re out at the old Ball Game. Katie was enthusiastic and knowledgeable about Baseball. She wanted to sit in the stands. She did not want to be left behind, only to mind the home. Norworth had thrown a societal curveball way ahead of its time.
Norworth asked Von Tilzer to put the lyrics to music. They promoted the song to nationally popular singers like Nora Bayes, vaudeville theaters, and Silent Movie Houses. Audiences sang along. It quickly became a national hit.
Baseball’s song has been featured in over 1,200 movies, television shows, and commercials. It’s been recorded by more than 400 artists in every musical genre.
Take Me Out to the Ball Game was first sung at a major league game during the 1934 World Series, the St. Louis Cardinals vs. Detroit. Cardinal outfielder Pepper Martin sang it to the thrill of the crowd. The Cardinals went on to win the series.
The 7th inning stretch has been part of Baseball tradition since at least 1869. Bill Veeck owned the Chicago White Sox in 1976. He observed beloved Sox sportscaster Harry Caray silently singing the song during the stretch. His mike was off. Veeck secretly rigged Caray’s booth. The next time Carey sang during the “Stretch,” his far-from-professional voice boomed across the stadium. The fans loved it.
Singing Take Me Out to the Ball game during the 7th inning stretch has become a national tradition.
"There is no room in baseball for discrimination. It is our national pastime and a game for all." Lou Gehrig, Baseball Hall of Fame
Erected 2025 by Jewish American Society for Historic Preservation, South Bend Cubs, Four Winds Field, Indiana Jewish Historical Society.
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