Baseball in Kings County dates back as early as 1891. In those days, times were tough and equipment was hard to obtain. The first ball was strictly a homemade, hard-core sphere carved out of leather. The first bat was turned on a wood lathe by the fine craftsmanship of John T. Gill of Elliotvale. The bases were bits and pieces of boards and the distance between them varied with those who positioned them. There were no backstops or homerun fences, therefore the teams with the best catchers and the fastest runners were dominant. During this early period, baseball was introduced to rural areas by each community teaching the other community how to play. The best players were then selected to play against other communities. The games were played on a pasture field, usually during a picnic, and because the players were coming from morning mass, they played in their stiff collars, dress pants, and Sunday shoes. Some of the organized teams were Pisquid Club, Peakes Station, Tracadie, Stanhope, Baldwins Rd. and Roseneath.
In 1935, the first Kings County Baseball League (KCBL) under the leadership of Father Michael Rooney, John A. MacDonald of Cardigan (as President) and Jab McConnell, was formed. This league grew and prospered until the late 1960's. Some of the teams competing were Peakes, Cardigan, Montague, Murray River, Georgetown, Souris. The registration was $.25 per player as compared to today's $1000 per team. Some of the players involved were Frank Kelly, A.J. MacAdam, Father Maurice Coffin, George Coffin, Bill Aylward, Father Frank Aylward, and Somerled Kelly.
In the 1940's, John A. MacDonald was league head and teams such as West St. Peters, Sinnotts Road, and St. Peter's joined the already existing league. Baseball was not only becoming a past time on Sunday afternoons, but a very competitive sport that attracted fans from all over the province.
During the 1950 era, Father Eric Robin, then the parish priest in Morell, took over the league (The Father Eric Robin Memorial Trophy is presented annually to the most sportsman like of the season.) These are the years Morell made its mark in the KCBL. The league was split into a west end and an east end. The playoffs would attract up to 2000 fans a game! Though Peakes seemed to be the dominant senior team, Morell gave them a run for their money. Some of the early players during 1950-1959 consisted of Bob Connolly, Pat Hughes, Junior O'Brien, Donald MacDonald, Louis McGuire Jr., John Weir, Jack Coffin, Joe Coffin, Owen Connolly, Bob Rossiter, Pius McInnis, Joe Thomas, Emmett Eldershaw, Arlie Keefe, Cliff Keefe, Keith Eldershaw, and John Sneezes (an RCMP officer stationed in Souris.) The coach was Wally Coffin and the manager was Ben Keefe. Some of the teams were Morell, Souris, Peakes, Cardigan, Georgetown, St. Peters, Mt. Stewart, and St. Theresa. Joe Walsh acted as an umpire. The Morell Meteors made history, winning titles such as The Island Intermediate "B" Championship in the years 1954, 55, 57, 61, 62, 63, and 65. They also captured Maritime "B" titles in 1963, 64, 65, and 67. A good portion of the credit goes to the combined talents of Louis "Iron Arm" Murphy, Mike Kelly, Danny "Boone' Larkin, the McGuire brothers, and later, Walter Bradley.
In May 1959, the administrators held meeting after meeting to discuss the future of the KCBL. Because the teams and players were losing interest, the KCBL was down to five teams and talk about a softball league was in the making. After much deliberation, the final decision was definitely not to let baseball die, no matter how poor the interest seemed to be. A three-team softball league was started in Morell as well. To the die-hard players' dismay, all Island sports seemed to lose their attractiveness this year. For some unknown reason, nobody had any real enthusiasm for baseball as compared to previous years.
The most talked about game for Morell was in 1961, where an estimated crowd of 3000 people witnessed the final battle against Peakes. The score was tied 13-13 in the ninth forcing an extra inning. Garry McGuire hit a single to right field, which sent the winning run home. Morell took what they felt was rightfully theirs, the KCBL title. This victory allowed them to compete against the Tignish Royal Aces in the Island Finals.
As the league got under way in 1966, six team representatives met in Mt. Stewart to arrange the schedule. The president was Charles Campbell and the agreed registration fee was $1.00 per player. The teams competing that year were Morell, Peakes, Cardigan, Fanningbrook, Mt. Stewart and Vernon River. Morell was considered one of the strongest teams despite the loss of a few strong players including Mike Kelly who left July 20 for the Florida Rookie League. The pitching fell on Louis Murphy. Though Vernon River joined the league for the second time, they dropped out in June and were replaced by Souris.
In 1967, the KCBL as we know it ended and the Island Baseball League was formed. It was comprised of several sub-divisions throughout PEI. The thousands of spectators who flocked to the baseball parks of Morell, Peakes, and Mt. Stewart during the previous decade sorely missed the excellent brand of baseball that was played prior to the leagues downfall. Though Morell played in the new league, the fans felt it wasn't the same and attendance began to decline.
The fans of the Morell area, and of Nova Scotia, held their breath as the Legionnaires literally got their feet wet in the Nova Scotia Senior Baseball League. Prior to 1979, Morell was a perennial force in Island baseball and had embarked on a new challenge that year. The Morell team had a new sponsor so the famed Legionnaires name faded and the renowned Chevies dawned.
During the 1980's, the interest in baseball became more dismissed and the players found new interests in softball and lob ball. Minor ball was still strong, but at the senior level, there were only a few committed teams that continued to play.
In 1991, the KCBL was renamed with the help of Kenny (Trixie) Dunn and Aquinas Ryan. Some of the league rules changed including: the maximum number of players is 20, registration was set at $1000 per team, and each team had to play the full schedule or could not compete in the playoffs. The players themselves had a lot of hard work to do to help the league. Each team was responsible for obtaining two sponsors to donate two trophies to the league. The teams signing up the first year were: Morell Chevies (Ken Dunn), Cardigan Clippers (Ivan Hughes), Georgetown Mariners (Mark Dunphy), Mt. Stewart Huskies (Bill Rose), PEI Die Hard Old Timers (Ed Smith). In 1992, the Peakes Bombers returned to do battle along with the Souris Braves.
Also in 1991, the PEI Old Timers league was started with players from Morell such as, Louie Murphy, Dan Larkin, Larry McGuire, and Blair MacDonald. The team has been competing in yearly tournaments which has taken them to Hamilton, ON; Yarmouth, NS; Kindersley, Sask; Belle Dune, NB; Oakville, ON; Truro, NS; Regina, Sask. The team hosted the National Old Timers Tournament in 2000 right here in Morell PEI. Out of thirty-two teams, the "Die Hards" placed third.
Through the years, no baseball game would have been complete or color perfect if it weren't for the men in blue, the umpires. It is the toughest, dirtiest and the most ungrateful job on the field. They are fair, without a doubt, and the way they stood up to the most rugged players in the KCBL, was inspiring. The likes of Floyd Jay from Pisquid; George Smith from Peakes; Jack Coffin from Morell; Charlie Ryan from Charlottetown; Lyman McInnis from Morell; Stan Porter from Tignish; Donnie "The Funnel" MacLean from Charlottetown; George Morrison from Morell; Frank Connolly from Morell; and Aquinas Ryan from Morell should be honored for their dedication to the game.
The main reason to bring baseball back to Kings County was not only because of the renewed interest by players, but for the die hard fans who can recall the spectacular pitching of Mike Kelly and Louis Murphy, the dynamic infield and outfield skills of Walter Bradley, Bill Connolly and the McGuire brothers, and the flawless coaching of Wally Coffin and Cliff Keefe. What better way to respect and remember them than to play ball?