Major League Baseball (MLB)
For its founding year, Major League Baseball (the current official organization) uses 1869 — the year in which the first professional team, the Cincinnati Red Stockings, was established — and held official celebrations for its 100th anniversary in 1969 and its 125th anniversary in 1994, both of which were commemorated with league-wide shoulder patches. The present-day Chicago Cubs and Atlanta Braves franchises trace their histories back to the National Association of Professional Base Ball Players in the early 1870s. Many believe that the formation of the National League in 1876 is the beginning of Major League Baseball. Others believe the signing of the National Agreement in 1903 (two seasons after the American League's formation in 1901) is the true beginning of Major League Baseball.
The first attempt at a national major league was the shortlived National Association, which existed from 1871 to 1875. Two present-day Major League franchises— the Atlanta Braves and the Chicago Cubs— can trace their origins to the National Association.
Currently, there are two major leagues: the National League (founded in 1876) and the American League (founded in 1901.) Several other defunct leagues are officially considered to be major, and their statistics and records are included with those of the two current Major Leagues. These include the Union Association (1884), the American Association (19th century) (1882-1891, not to be confused with later minor leagues of the same name), the Players League (1890) and the Federal League (1914-1915). In the late 1950s, a serious attempt was made to establish a third major league, the Continental League, but that league never began play.
The top players in the Negro Leagues of the first half of the 20th century were as good or even better than their counterparts in the segregated Major Leagues (which was virtually all-white, with a very few Hispanic and Native American players.) Several Negro league players have been enshrined in the Baseball Hall of Fame. However, the Negro Leagues are not officially considered major, primarily because the statistical record is incomplete.
By the late 1960s, the balance between pitching and hitting had swung in favor of the pitchers. In 1968—later nicknamed "the year of the pitcher"—Boston Red Sox player Carl Yastrzemski won the American League batting title with an average of just .301, the lowest in history. Detroit Tigers pitcher Denny McLain won 31 games, making him the first pitcher to win 30 games in a season since Dizzy Dean. St. Louis Cardinals starting pitcher Bob Gibson achieved an equally remarkable feat by allowing an ERA of just 1.12.
Routinely in the late 1990s and early 2000s, baseball players hit 40 and 50 home runs in a season, a feat that was considered rare even in the 1980s. Many modern baseball theorists believe that the need of pitchers to combat the rise in power could lead to a pitching revolution at some point in the future. New pitches, such as the mysterious gyroball, could swing the balance of power back to the defensive side. A pitching revolution would not be unprecedented; several pitches have changed the game of baseball in the past, including the slider in the 50s and 60s and the split-fingered fastball in the 70s to 90s. Since the 1990s, the changeup has made a resurgence.
This is a brief history of the MLB. With such great traditions and a lifelong presence in American culture, its easy to see the MLB is here to stay. With that said, scroll down, choose your favorite team and take a seat, home today.
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