Baseball and the Drop Third Strike Rule

The earliest detailed description of baseball comes from a 1796 book called games for the exercise and recreation. A truly inept batter who could not hit the ball brought the game to a halt with three chances if on the third try he still missed the ball it was in play as if he had hit it. The pitcher moved toward the center of the infield adding a horizontal component to the delivery this led to another player being placed behind the batter to receive the pitch should it not be hit the three chances rule remained in place but now if the catcher caught the third try the batter was out just asif he had hit a fly ball that was caught If the catcher failed to catch that third Try the batter took