Take Me Out to the Ball Game

Written By: The Good and the Beautiful Published On:

“Take Me Out to the Ball Game” is one of America’s favorite songs! All who love baseball are familiar with the lyrics and tune. Keep reading to learn about the story behind the song sung by baseball enthusiasts young and old!

“Take Me Out to the Ball Game” Lyrics

Take me out to the ball game,
Take me out with the crowd.
Buy me some peanuts and Cracker Jack,
I don’t care if I never get back.
Let me root, root, root for the home team,
If they don’t win, it’s a shame.
For it’s one, two, three strikes, you’re out,
At the old ball game.

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Sing along with this illustrated video of the well-loved baseball song!

Story of “Take Me Out to the Ball Game”

In the summer of 1908, entertainer and songwriter Jack Norworth was riding a New York subway when he saw a sign advertising the New York Giants game. He quickly scratched out a verse and the now-popular chorus to “Take Me Out to the Ball Game.” 

He took his scribbled wording to well-known composer Albert Von Tilzer, and together the two collaborated on a song that first became popular as sheet music and recordings on the Edison wax cylinder. Today, the original hand-written lyrics are on display at the Baseball Hall of Fame.

Interesting Facts About the Song

  • Neither the writer nor the composer were baseball fans, and neither had ever attended a game before writing the song. 
  • The song was originally played at movie houses—not baseball games—during reel changes. 
  • The song didn’t make its big league debut until the 1934 World Series between the St. Louis Cardinals and the Detroit Tigers.

  • Cracker Jack was well received when it was first introduced at the 1893 Chicago World’s Fair. The mention of the caramel popcorn and peanut snack in the song lyrics drove sales through the roof, and it became a beloved snack at games nationwide.
  • The tradition of the “seventh-inning stretch” began in 1910 when President William Howard Taft needed to stand up and stretch and the crowd followed his lead.
  • “Take Me Out to the Ball Game” had become the unofficial “seventh-inning stretch” song by the 1950s.

The next time you are enjoying a game of baseball with your friends and family, don’t forget the “seventh-inning stretch” with a good round of “Take Me Out to the Ball Game” on our Kids YouTube channel.

  • Click the image to download a printable PDF of the “Take Me Out to the Ball Game” lyrics!

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