In June 1846, the first recognized game of baseball in the United States was played in Hoboken, New Jersey. The Cincinnati Red Stockings were America's first professional baseball team in 1869. They played in St. Louis for three seasons before moving back to Cincinnati where they remain today.
The game that started it all was a pre-season match played between the Red Stockings and the Brooklyn Association. It was not considered official league play but rather a practice session for the upcoming season. However, this game established many rules still in use today, such as having a nine-player roster, two outfields, and five minutes per inning of play.
After their first season back in Cincinnati, the Red Stockings joined the National League. This is when modern baseball was born and the old American Association championship no longer mattered. Instead, these two teams competed against each other for the honor of being named national champions.
In 1870, the Red Stockings won their first league title. In 1872, they lost to the Washington Nationals in the best-of-three series which ended in two games. Game one finished in a 1-1 tie while game two went into extra innings before the Nats defeated the Red Stockings by a score of 3-2.
The American League (AL) was founded in 1901, and the first World Series was held in 1903. The National Association of Base Ball Players was established in 1871, and its members included such famous players as John McGraw, Joe Kelley, and Orval Grove. In 1876, the NABBP merged with the National League.
The AL began as two separate leagues: the American League East and West Divisions. These divisions remained in place until 1914, when they were replaced by four new divisions. The old divisions continued to use their names until 1917, when they were replaced by five new divisions. These divisions have remained unchanged since then.
There are three types of teams in Major League Baseball (MLB): National League (NL), American League (AL), and Minor League Baseball (MiLB). A team in MLB cannot be solely responsible for creating a new league because major league clubs can only be from one country. However, several independent minor league clubs have come into existence over the years, many of which still play at least part of their seasons today.
On June 4, 1838, the world's first known baseball game took place in Beachville, Ontario. Baseball has existed in Canada since its inception, despite being more closely linked with the United States. The original rules of baseball were written up by New York City newspaper editors who wanted to know how to better organize their city's ball fields.
The first official game was between Brooklyn and Manhattan clubs of the New York Base Ball Club. It was held on Public Park Field in Beachville. According to an article in The New York Times, the two teams had been "engaged in a friendly match on Long Island" when the news of the arrival of the first Canadian-born player came through. The Montreal Gazette reports that Edward Moran, a student at McGill University, played first base for the team. He was said to have "displayed great skill in batting and fielding".
Canada's capital city was next visited by baseball players. A group of Toronto players traveled to Beechwood Park in Petawawa to take on a team from the Royal Military College. The game ended in a tie. No score is reported but it is assumed that the Toronto team won as they returned home that night.
In 1845, a team from the New York Mutuals played a series of games in Canada against local clubs.
Philadelphia In 1926, the inaugural American Legion Baseball World Series was held in Philadelphia. Post 321 defeated a team from Pocatello, Idaho, in Yonkers, New York, completing up what seemed to be a successful inaugural season.
But attendance at ball games wasn't very popular back then, and the American Legion decided it needed more than just success on the field to keep fans coming back. So in 1927, it brought baseball back home, opening the season with five games between Philadelphia's Eastern Sports Club and Pittsburgh's Johnny Egan Memorial Athletic Club. The Americans won four of those matches, including three in a row, to take control of the league. They went on to win their first championship that year.
After two more seasons outside the city, American Legion baseball took root once again in 1930 when the Brooklyn Dodgers joined the league. That same year, the circuit expanded into Canada for the first time when the Montreal Royals joined the league. The next year, 1931, saw eight teams compete for the title.
1932 was the most successful season yet, as nine teams competed for the crown. The Yankees, who had recently moved to Bronx, New York, were considered one of the best teams in baseball that year. They finished first in the regular season and beat the Cardinals in the playoffs before losing to the Giants in the World Series.
While there are rumors that the New York Knickerbockers played games in 1845, the first officially recorded baseball game in the United States took place on June 19, 1846, in Hoboken, New Jersey, when the "New York Nine" defeated the Knickerbockers, 23-1, in four innings. The game was played for a match between two clubs of wealthy gentlemen - the New York Nine and the Knickerbocker Club.
In 1847, William Hulbert organized the first professional baseball league in America, which included both American and Canadian teams. The league lasted only one season before it collapsed due to issues with ownership and lack of interest from fans and players.
In 1849, Alexander Cartwright introduced several rules changes to the sport of baseball to make it more appealing to spectators, including allowing runners to stay on base until removed by their teammates (rather than having them immediately advance to next station) and reducing the size of the ball from 10 inches to 9 inches. These changes made it easier for batters to hit well-hit balls over fences or down streets, as well as helping pitchers control the speed at which they threw balls so as not to hurt their arms. In addition, the use of gloves by fielders became common practice after this time.
In 1851, Abner Doubleday invented a new type of bat used today called the doubloon.
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