The History of Professional Baseball
When someone says "America," a few things jump to mind. Apple Pie, the Statue of Liberty, the Fourth of July, and of course, Baseball.
Professional Baseball has been a staple of American entertainment from April to October for over a hundred years and holds a rich history that continues to grow.
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19th Century
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An Illustration of a Baseball game during the Civil War
Alexander Cartwright created what we know as Baseball today in the 1840s. Amateur teams played mostly in the Northeast until the Civil War when the game spread across the country.
Professional Baseball began in 1869 when the Cincinnati Red Stockings paid players to play other teams. Two years later, the National Association, the first "Major" League of Baseball, was founded.
By 1875, the National Association was gone, but a year later the National League replaced it as America's dominant Baseball league. Several leagues later challenged the National League's dominance, but by the 1890s the National League stood alone.
The Dead Ball Era
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Fenway Park, one of the last remaining stadiums from the Dead Ball Era
In 1901, the American League was founded to challenge the National League's role as the sole Major League. The champions of both leagues met in 1903 in the first modern World Series of Baseball and the American League won, cementing their legitimacy as a second Major League, a system remaining to this day.
The period from the founding of the American League to the notorious Black Sox scandal in 1919 was known as "The Dead Ball Era," for its low-scoring games.
Between the Wars
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Babe Ruth during the 1921 season
A new era began in 1920 when Babe Ruth was traded to the New York Yankees. Before and after the trade, Ruth would often hit more home runs than entire opposing teams, but he was also one of the game's best pitchers, limiting his playing time. He was moved full time to the outfield, and he set records that lasted for decades, leading other teams in both leagues to groom long-ball hitters.
For decades, the game largely remained the same, but with the end of the war, changes would come to America's pastime.
Expansion Era
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The Oakland Coliseum, now McAfee Coliseum, one of the Stadiums emblematic of the Expansion Era
Baseball changed along with the country around World War II. Most teams began to play night games, Jackie Robinson became the first modern African American Major League player, breaking a decades-long color barrier, and the Boston Braves moved to Milwaukee, marking the first location change for any team since the beginning of the two-league system.
Several teams followed suit, and both leagues added teams in the 60s, continuing to add teams until 1998.
Modern Era
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Mark McGuire, one of the players most identified with the offense of the 1990s
There is no clear date marking the division between expansion and the modern game, but the change was marked by a return to the dominance of offense over defense found earlier with numerous rule changes in the 60s and 70s. The trend reached its peak from the mid 1990s to the early 2000s with players putting up unprecedented offensive efforts.
The period in the late 60s also marked the end of Baseball's reign as the king of American sports, with the sport almost collapsing after the cancellation of the 1994 World Series due to a work stoppage.
The game has not recovered all of its status, but it remains one of America's most popular sports.
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