Anyone who’s attended a baseball game and stood up for the ubiquitous 7th inning stretch has probably sung along to one of the most popular baseball songs of all time. “Take Me Out to the Ball Game” has been part of baseball history for decades and a stamp celebrating the 100th anniversary of the tuneful ditty will be issued as part of the USPS 2008 commemorative series.
 
The 2008 commemorative stamp series “celebrates our greatest creative minds, our groundbreaking heroes, and the places, institutions and values that have made us who we are,” says Postmaster General John Potter in a USPS press release. “We’re proud to be able to highlight noteworthy parts of our shared American history on stamps that people will use every day to connect with family and friends.
 
According to baseball lore, “Take Me Out to the Ball Game” was created on a New York City train in the summer of 1908. Passenger Jack Norworth, an actor, singer and songwriter who had never attended a major-league ball game, is credited with writing the words after seeing a sign about an upcoming game at the Polo Grounds.
 
The graphic of the 2008 baseball stamp is based on a circa-1880 trading card. The rare card is in the personal collection of art director Richard Sheaff of Scottsdale, AZ. The original artwork is a baseball scene and contains advertising copy for a product made by a Michigan company. The USPS issue features the same scene, but replaces the ad copy with “Take Me Out to the Ball Game,” the stamp denomination, notes from the music, and the words “United States of America.

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