“Fuller caught Lange on the old hidden-ball trick yesterday. Lange had got second base on a hit and throw-in in the ninth inning, and was much surprised to have Shorty put the ball on him.” The World [New York], June 17, 1893, p6
Previous earliest use (Dickson Baseball Dictionary, 3rd edition, 2009):
1ST USE. 1896. “Masterly work in the field resulted in team work for the Senators that made the Orioles appear as a lot of the veriest amateurs, the hidden ball trick…being among the clever points gained” (The Washington Post, Apr. 29; Barry Popik).
