You remember baseball, right? Sunshine. Plush green turf runs.

The Harvard baseball team brought the national pastime back to Cambridge yesterday for its home opener, and engaged in a contest that bore little resemblance to traditional definitions of the game. This cold, ugly afternoon--and Boston College--made the Crimson losers, 1-0, before a dedicated and minute crowd at Soldiers Field.

The Eagles' sophomore pitching star, John Cooper, didn't keep Harvard off the basepaths, but somehow prevented the team from scoring a run. The Crimson left 12--count 'em, 12--men on base, and frustrated freshman pitcher Bill Larson's (2-2) bid to become the squad's first three-game winner. Harvard falls to 6-4 overall, though the more important Eastern League mark remains at 3-0.

Larson yielded the game's lone run in the third, when B.C.'s Joe Caffrey led off with a double. Two strikeouts later, Ed Folen singled up the middle, scoring Caffrey from second.

Not Quite There

Harvard put runners on base in all but two innings, but that's where they stayed. Crimson captain Charlie Santos-Buch said after the game, "It's the back of the lineup that has been carrying us." And it did so today, as well, as the Crimson's top four batters went 2-for-15.

Harvard's best opportunity came in the fourth. With two outs, Ed Farrell walked and Don Allard singled him to third, going to second on the throw. Cooper, obviously unaware of who on the Crimson is hot and who isn't, put Vince Martelli on first to pitch to third baseman Rick Pearce.

Pearce has vaulted to a blazing start, hitting .360 over the first nine games and performing almost flawlessly with the glove. In the second, he had singled down the third-base line and was thrown out trying to stretch it for two.

This time, with the bases loaded, he uncorked a high shot to left which Eagle leftfielder Craft circled uneasily but thrust out a glove and found to kill the threat.

Coach Alex Nahigian said afterwards, "Right now, we're just not hitting in key situations," and despite the undefeated Eastern League mark, the coach has a point. Not every team is an MIT, which allowed 12 runs on eight hits. True, the Crimson fell victim to some superb fielding by Eagle shortstop Brian Landry, but for continued success, the hits have to start coming with men on the bases.

The first genuinely important games of the season are on tap for this weekend. Eastern League rival Dartmouth will visit Soldiers Field for a twin-bill Saturday (1 p.m. start).

Ace Ron Stewart (1-1), a loser despite a strong performance his last time out against Providence (in the opener), and Bill Doyle (2-1) (in the nightcap), will attempt to keep the League mark perfect. THE NOTEBOOK: Sophomore Jim Curtin came on to relieve Larson in the sixth, giving up just one hit and no runs the rest of the way. Look for Curtin to share relief duty with John Sorich in games to come. Baseball Box Scores At Soldiers Field BOSTON COLLEGE  AB  R  H  BI Ed Folen cf  4  0  1  1 Steve Craft If  3  0  0  0 Brian Landcy ss  3  0  0  0 Joe Casey c  3  0  1  0 Mike Mayock 1b  2  0  0  0 Charlle Ferro dh  4  0  0  0 Joe Caffrey 3b  4  1  1  0 Leo Smith rf  3  0  1  0 Chuck Mitchell 2b  2  0  1  0

Baseball Box Scores At Soldiers Field HARVARD  AB  R  H  BI Bobby Kelley 2b  5  0  2  0 Brad Bauer ss  3  0  0  0 Charlle Santos-Buch cf  4  0  0  0 Mark Bingham 1b  3  0  0  0 Ed Farrell dh  3  0  1  0 Don Allard cf  3  0  1  0 Vince Martelli rf  3  0  0  0 Rick Pearce 3b  3  0  1  0 Joe Wark c  3  0  1  0

Totals Boston College (away)  0  0  1  0  0  0  0  0  0--1 Harvard(home)  0  0  0  0  0  0  0  0  0--0

  IP  H  R  ER  BB  SO BC--Cooper(2-0)  9  6  0  0  5  5 Harvard--Larson(2-2)  5  4  1  1  0  5 Curtin  4  1  0  0  3  1 WP--Curtin(1). A--28.