The U.S. Naval War College (NWC) in Newport, Rhode Island, hosted its seventh annual “Cardines Classic” Army-Navy baseball game on Friday, October 4, 2024.
The game, played at Cardines Field in downtown Newport, is an experiential learning opportunity for NWC students to explore the role of baseball in shaping American diplomatic policy and global maritime strategy.
The annual event features NWC students competing against each other in World War I period uniforms. This year’s game drew more than 300 members of the local community, including former Boston Red Sox player Sam Horn, who participated in the opening ceremonies.
Dr. David Kohnen, professor with NWC’s John B. Hattendorf Center for Maritime Historical Research and organizer of the event, highlighted the historical significance of the game.
“Among the oldest baseball fields in the Americas, the rich historical connections between the Naval War College and Cardines Field remain vivid when Army faces Navy in First World War era baseball uniforms for our annual Cardines Classic,” said Kohnen. “However, NWC also has strong institutional connections to the game as it was used to foster global collaboration among maritime powers during the formative periods of the twentieth century world wars and beyond to the twenty-first century.”
The Cardines Classic is organized with support from the Naval War College Foundation, Naval History and Heritage Command, and Newport Gulls. This year’s game honored Joel Sevy, son of an NWC student playing for team Army, who died earlier this year. The game is inspired by a July 4, 1918, Army-Navy baseball game organized by Rear Adm. William S. Sims, former president of NWC and then commander of U.S. Naval Forces in Europe.
Read more about the game from the USNWC here – U.S. Naval War College Celebrates History, Heritage, Teamwork During Annual Army-Navy Baseball Game.
Generative artificial intelligence (AI) assisted a What’sUpNewp journalist with the reporting included in this story.
