The start of this year's baseball season sent us up to the bleachers to investigate that name for a usually uncovered stand of tiered planks providing seating for spectators. Although many folks believe bleachers comes from bleaching boards, a now-obsolete synonym alluding to fans bleaching or losing color when they sit under the hot sun atop those peeling boards, some historians believe bleachers owes a linguistic debt to William Shakespeare.
In fact, participants in a new field known as Baseball Scholarship claim to have established a number of links between baseball and the Bard. These scholars believe allusions to the game's design are discernible in Hamlet, where the prince of Denmark muses, "To what base uses we may return." They consider the courtier Osric baseball's original color commentator because of his observation, "a hit, a palpable hit"; they recognize Petruchio's servant Grumio as the very first baseball vendor because of his query to the shrewish Kate: "What say you to a piece of beef and mustard?"

As for the origin of bleacher, they credit the character Autolycus. Remember that rogue from The Winter's Tale sings of the approaching spring with the line, "The white sheet bleaching on the hedge." Back in those days, baseball was played on the green and bleachers were made of linen, but every scamp still knew that spring meant baseball.

Love it gillyharold, I love it!

Perhaps Lady MacBeth was the first umpire with her line "Out! d***** spot! Out I say!"

There is no mention of Shakespeare himself playing the game though.

Perhaps he was Bard? (groan)