A Bisbee ballpark that once hosted 17 Hall of Fame players will come alive again this weekend when eight teams gather to play baseball by the rules of the 1860s.

The historic Warren Ballpark is hosting the 15th annual Copper City Classic on Saturday, April 11 and Sunday, April 12.

Eight teams from Arizona, California and Colorado will play 14 games across the two days — 10 on Saturday and four on Sunday — with play beginning at 10 a.m. both days.

For Friends of Warren Ballpark President Patrick Murphy, the ballfield is hallowed ground for those who participate.

"It's our 'Field of Dreams,'" Murphy said.

Warren Ballpark was built in 1909 and is one of the oldest continuously used professional baseball stadiums in the United States. It has hosted mining league teams, minor league clubs like the Bisbee Bees and Yanks, and legends like Jim Thorpe. The ballpark also served as a holding site for 1,200 strikers during the 1917 Bisbee Deportation.

The event is not a traditional tournament but a celebration of vintage baseball.

"It's more for fun," Murphy said. "We really draw the teams in because of the historic aspect of the field."

Murphy isn't just an organizer. He also participates as a player and captain for the Higley Haymakers, which play out of Phoenix but compete around the U.S.

"We play once a month, just a bunch of (us) guys playing," Murphy said. "My team, we go across the United States (to) compete in different groups (of) tournaments, (including) the World Vintage Baseball tournament at the Henry Ford Museum in Michigan."

Murphy's roots at the ballpark date back to his childhood, making his involvement since 2015 a full-circle moment.

"The park is just something I've always loved," Murphy said. "My house was just over the right field wall, I would sit on my porch and watch baseball games (and) hear the crack of the bat, so I have deep memories with this ballpark."

One of the main reasons the event has been running for so long is the players who consistently return each year.

"I think the big thing is, people have been doing this for 15 years plus," Murphy said. "To be able to play on that field and to step on places that, at one point, there was as many as 17 Hall of Fame players that have played there."

Scott Shaw, commissioner of the Arizona Vintage Baseball League, has seen the highs and lows of vintage baseball in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, taking over the league three years ago.

Before Shaw stepped into a leadership role, he started out as a player.

"Then I started my own team," said Shaw, who plays for the Mesa Miners.

After the league's previous board and leadership stepped down, Shaw stepped in to help.

"The board disappeared down to one person who then moved away," Shaw said. "Somebody (had) to take over and I was pretty good with organizing stuff, so I volunteered to do that."

The league also had to navigate the pandemic before Shaw stepped in as commissioner and was one of the last sporting activities to return to normal.

"This (league) was a late bloomer to come back to it because a lot of the people in the league are older, so they were a little fearful to get out and hesitant," Shaw said.

Despite these hurdles, the league has regained stability and is now enjoying the magic and nostalgia that is vintage baseball.

Of all the events he's helped organize, Shaw said his favorite is the Copper City Classic.

"There's a lot of history there, (which makes it) a great field to play on," he said.

Games for this year's Copper City Classic start at 10 a.m. both days. Tickets start at $10 for a single day, with both days costing $15. Children 12 and under are free with an adult. Military members can also get in free with their ID.

Patrick Moore is a journalism major at the University of Arizona and an intern with Tucson Spotlight. Contact him at patrickcmoore@arizona.edu.

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