Photograph, Baseball (George Emma), March 28, 1957. Photo courtesy of the Villanova University Digital Library.

With All-Star Week quickly approaching, the first half of the Major League Baseball season is almost finished. This week’s Throwback Thursday (TBT) features a photo from the 1957 Villanova University varsity baseball season. Did you know that Villanova first began playing varsity baseball in 1866? The program is one of the oldest collegiate programs in the country! “In a history that spans more than 150 years, Villanova has played more than 3,500 games and has had more than 1,500 student-athletes wear the uniform.”

Check out additional baseball photos in the Villanova University Digital Library. Looking for more information on the history of Villanova athletics? The exhibit, “Wildcats Past & Present: Moments from the History of Sports at Villanova,” features assorted and unique items representative of the varied sports played at Villanova. Prefer a podcast? Both episodes of the History of Athletics at Villanova can be played here.

For more baseball, explore the resources below! Catch a game this weekend: The Philadelphia Phillies begin a home series with the Washington Nationals tomorrow at 6:05 p.m. Congratulations to LSU men’s baseball! The team defeated Florida 18-4 in a winner-take-all Game 3 of the Men’s College World Series finals Monday, June 26, in Omaha, NE.

• Baseball: A History of America’s Game (Rader, 2018)
• Baseball (Burns, 2010) *Academic Video Online
• Baseball (Seymour, 1960)
• Baseball: The National Pastime in the National Archives
• Baseball: An Illustrated History (Ward, 1994)
• Baseball in America and America in Baseball (Kyle, 2008) *eBook
• Baseball and Philosophy: Thinking Outside the Batter’s Box (Bronson & Irwin, 2004)
• ESPN Feature: E60 “Risking It All” [Matthew Szczur] *Video

Kallie Stahl ’17 MA is Communication and Marketing Specialist at Falvey Library. Her favorite baseball team is the Cleveland Guardians. 

Photo courtesy of Kallie Stahl.

Joanne Quinn, her daughter Tracey, and golden retriever Duffy, supporting Chase Utley.

Annie Stockmal and her Dad at the Phillies game.

Shawn Proctor, Kallie Stahl, Gina Duffy, and Annie Stockmal supporting the Phillies!

Ethan Shea repping the 2022 World Series hat.

We have some Phanatics at Falvey Library! Good luck to the Philadelphia Phillies as they open the 2022 World Series tonight against the Houston Astros.

Kallie Stahl ’17 MA is Communication and Marketing Specialist at Falvey Memorial Library. Stahl is a Cleveland baseball fan, but she will be rooting for the Phillies in 2022 World Series.

By Jenna Renaud

Word of the Week: Cwtch (pronounced “kutch”) 

(n) cuddle or hug; cubbyhole or cupboard, small place to store things safely 

The Welsh word has no literal English definition; however, when you combine the two definitions above you end up with a better sense of what the word actually means: wrapping your arms around someone to make them feel safe in the world. 

Cwtch goes beyond just a hug you give out but is reserved for special people and times where the action represents more than a hug. Think when your friend just went through a rough break-up. Think when you’re finally at home and seeing your family after a rough semester. Think seeing someone you care so much about after a long time apart.  

Be intentional this week with the Easter break and cwtch someone you care about this week.  

Shoutout to my other amazing GA Ethan Shea for the “Word of the Week” this week! If you have a word recommendation, drop a comment on this post.  

Learn more about cwtch and why it was named Wales’ best-loved word in 2007 here. 

This Week at Falvey  

NOW–Wednesday, Jun. 15th  

“That Fairyland of Ice”: Polar Exploration in Mind and Memory Exhibit | Falvey First Floor & Virtual | Free & Open to the Public 

Monday, April 11th  

Mindfulness Mondays | 1–1:30 p.m. | Virtual | https://villanova.zoom.us/j/98337578849 

This Week in History 

April 15th, 1947 – Jackie Robinson breaks color barrier 

On April 15th, 1947 Jackie Robinson stepped onto the Ebbets Field in Brooklyn as part of the Brooklyn Dodgers team, becoming the first Black person to play in Major League Baseball. Prior to Robinson playing, baseball had been segregated for more than 50 years.  

His first year in the League, Robinson was named Rookie of the Year and two years later, in 1949, was named the National League’s Most Valuable Player and league batting champ. Throughout his baseball career he led the Dodgers to six National League pennants and one World Series, in 1955. 

Despite breaking the racial barrier in this way, Robinson still experience significant racial discrimination throughout his career, not being allowed to stay in the same hotels or eat in the same restaurants as his teammates as they traveled throughout the country.  

In 1957 Robinson retired from baseball and became a businessman and civil rights activist. 50 years later to the day, the MLB retired Robinsons number, 42. This was the first time a number was retired by all teams in the league. 

Read more from History.com. 

Jenna Renaud is a graduate assistant in Falvey Memorial Library and a graduate student in the Communication Department.

By Jenna Renaud

Happy Friday, Wildcats! Falvey Memorial Library is delivering you another semester of Weekend Recs, a blog dedicated to filling you in on what to read, listen to, and watch over the weekend. Jenna, a graduate assistant from the Communication department, scours the internet, peruses the news, and digs through book stacks to find new, relevant, and thought-provoking content that will challenge you and prepare you for the upcoming week. 

The MLB season is finally upon us, despite delays that pushed opening day from Thursday, March 31, to Thursday, April 7. The 2021-22 MLB lockout was the first since 1994; however, negotiations have now been settled, and the season can begin!

So let’s root, root, root for the home team (Go, Phillies!) and learn a little more about what’s happening currently in baseball with this week’s weekend recs, whether you have two minutes or an entire afternoon. 

If you have 2 minutes… read about MLB Opening Day and the decline in ticket sales. 

If you have 7 minutes and 39 seconds… watch this video from December breaking down the MLB lockout, what both sides want, and what the consequences are. 

Bonus: Watch this 8-minute-and-37-second video updating people on the MLB lockout. 

If you have 1 hour and 48 minutes… watch “Bull Durham,” arguably the best baseball movie of all time. 

If you have 8 hours and 20 minutes… read Moneyball: The Art of Winning an Unfair Game, the story about the Oakland Athletics baseball team and its general manager Billy Beane. 

If you have the afternoon… buy tickets to support Philadelphia’s very own Phillies in their opening weekend games against the Oakland Athletics.  

Jenna Renaud is a graduate assistant in Falvey Memorial Library and a graduate student in the Communication Department.

On this day in 1922, the Supreme Court ruled that organized baseball is not a business, but a sport. Celebrating America’s pastime, the Curious ‘Cat asked Falvey Library staff,

“If you were a professional baseball player, what position would you play?”

Jeannine Ahern, Finance and Administration Specialist

Jesse Flavin, Acquisitions and Electronic Resources Coordinator

Jackie Smith, Finance and Administration Specialist

Brian Warren, Library Technology Developer

Lorraine Holt, Finance and Administration Specialist

Interested in learning more about the game? Check out the resources below and view more on our website:

• Baseball: An Illustrated History
• Baseball: The Early Years
• Baseball: A History of America’s Game (Sport and Society)
• Baseball and Philosophy: Thinking Outside the Batter’s Box
• Baseball Without Borders: The International Pastime