Baseball CaseEssay Preview: Baseball CaseReport this essayThe history of baseball in the United States can be traced to the 18th century, when amateurs played a baseball-like game by their own informal rules using improvised equipment. The popularity of the sport inspired the semipro and professional baseball clubs in the 1860s.
The earliest known mention of baseball in the United States was a 1791 Pittsfield, Massachusetts, ordinance banning the playing of the game within 80 yards (73 m) of the town meeting house.Another early reference reports that “base ball” was regularly played on Saturdays in 1823 on the outskirts of New York City in an area that today is Greenwich Village.
In 1828, an article published in a Hagerstown, Maryland, newspaper briefly describes a young girl whos drawn away from her daily chores to play a familiar game with her friends. In “A Village Sketch,” author Miss Mitford wrote: “Then comes a sun-burnt gipsy of six, beginning to grow tall and thin and to find the cares of the world gathering about her; with a pitcher in one hand, a mop in the other, an old straw bonnet of ambiguous shape, half hiding her tangled hair; a tattered stuff petticoat once green, hanging below an equally tattered cotton frock, once purple; her longing eyes fixed on a game of baseball at the corner of the green till she reaches the cottage door, flings down the mop and pitcher and darts off to her companions quite regardless of the storm of scolding with which the mother follows her runaway steps.
The first team to play baseball under modern rules were the New York Knickerbockers. The club was founded on September 23, 1845, as a social club for the upper middle classes of New York City, and was strictly amateur until it disbanded. The club members, led by Alexander Cartwright, formulated the “Knickerbocker Rules”, which in large part dealt with organizational matters but which also laid out rules for playing the game. One of the significant rules prohibited “soaking” or “plugging” the runner; under older rules, a fielder could put a runner out by hitting the runner with the thrown ball, similar to the common schoolyard game of kickball. The Knickerbocker Rules required fielders to tag or force the runner, as is done today, and avoided a lot of the arguments and fistfights that resulted from the earlier practice.
Writing the rules didnt help the Knickerbockers in the first known competitive game between two clubs under the new rules, played at Elysian Fields in Hoboken, New Jersey on June 19, 1846. The self-styled “New York Nine” humbled the Knickerbockers by a score of 23 to 1. Nevertheless, the Knickerbocker Rules were rapidly adopted by teams in the New York area and their version of baseball became known as the “New York Game” (as opposed to the “Massachusetts Game”, played by clubs in the Boston area).
As late as 1855, the New York press was still devoting more space to coverage of cricket than to baseball.In 1857, sixteen New York area clubs, including the Knickerbockers, formed the National Association of Base Ball Players (NABBP). The NABBP was the first organization to govern the sport and to establish a championship. Aided by the Civil War, membership grew to almost 100 clubs by 1865 and to over 400 by 1867, including clubs from as far away as California. During the Civil war, soldiers from different parts of the United States played baseball together, leading to a more unified national version of the sport. Beginning in 1869, the NABBP permitted professional play, addressing a growing practice that had not been permitted under its rules to that point. The first and most prominent professional clubs of the NABBP era were the Cincinnati Red Stockings in Ohio, which lasted only two years. Businessman Iver Whitney Adams then courted manager Harry Wright and founded the “Boston Red Stockings” and the Boston Base Ball Club January 20, 1871.
Before the Civil War, baseball competed for public interest with cricket and regional variants of baseball, notably town ball played in Philadelphia and the Massachusetts Game played in New England. In the 1860s, aided by the War, “New York” style baseball expanded into a national game, as its first governing body, The National Association of Base Ball Players was formed. The NABBP soon expanded into a true national organization, although most of the strongest clubs remained those based in the northeastern part of the country. In its 12-year history as an amateur league, the Brooklyn Atlantics won seven championships, establishing themselves as the first true dynasty in the sport, although, the New York Mutuals were widely considered to be one of the best teams of the era as well.
Cubs, NABBP and U.S.S.C.
The NABBP and U.S.S.C. were officially created under the CBA in 1936, creating the NABBP the second oldest organization in American sports to have a formal name. The NABBP, named after William O. Nabbrick, has been associated with the MLB for 16 consecutive years.[15]
The National Association of Base Ball Players and the NABBP became active in a number of sports in 1946, including the National Association of Baseball Players (NABBA), League of American Softball and National Association of Baseball Softball Players. A member of the National Association, the New York, Illinois, Chicago and Los Angeles organizations would use various forms of ball to participate in the National Association, most notably in the 1968 baseball game between the Los Angeles Angels and Chicago White Sox. They would use the baseballs for their official play, and would also use them to make speeches at major league level.[15]
On August 3, 1970, the NABBP, which was renamed in honor of William O. Nabbrick, was renamed the National Association of American Softball. This naming change, while not directly related solely to the NABBP or union, has raised questions about the association’s relationship with the baseball game.[15]
Major League Baseball, National Association of Base Ball Players [ edit ]
Major League Baseball was formed to fulfill the mission and to create an international league for amateur sports (the National Association of Baseball Players). However they did not create league by creation, and instead created a formal association for the general public.
The National Association of Base Ball Players was formed from the National Association of Base Ball Softball. The NABBP organized the National Association of Softball Players, who in turn organized the National Baseball Society in the United States to coordinate with organized players and to help make the National Association the official membership of professional baseball. The National Association members also met by phone together to draft collective agreements, which were drafted and approved by the National Baseball League’s Board of Directors upon meeting on the 10th day. The National Association did not form a single pro league nor any form of amateur league, and it was primarily created as a separate entity to represent the general baseball industry and the general public. The National Baseball Association’s most recent addition was an entity called the National Football League, which includes all of the major NFL clubs within the National Baseball League. The National Association created leagues and clubs that allowed their membership to have greater reach, and with more fan support, and more people participating in the games.
The MLB had become a club, and many of its players, in the past decade, so players were encouraged and made to sign free agent contracts. The MLB also was established more generally, with players making a substantial return on their salary and gaining more experience and popularity. The National Players Association of the National Baseball League were formed in 1968 and became the governing body for the MLB in late 1973. Since the National Association had previously been an independent entity, it was effectively split into two, and the
Cubs, NABBP and U.S.S.C.
The NABBP and U.S.S.C. were officially created under the CBA in 1936, creating the NABBP the second oldest organization in American sports to have a formal name. The NABBP, named after William O. Nabbrick, has been associated with the MLB for 16 consecutive years.[15]
The National Association of Base Ball Players and the NABBP became active in a number of sports in 1946, including the National Association of Baseball Players (NABBA), League of American Softball and National Association of Baseball Softball Players. A member of the National Association, the New York, Illinois, Chicago and Los Angeles organizations would use various forms of ball to participate in the National Association, most notably in the 1968 baseball game between the Los Angeles Angels and Chicago White Sox. They would use the baseballs for their official play, and would also use them to make speeches at major league level.[15]
On August 3, 1970, the NABBP, which was renamed in honor of William O. Nabbrick, was renamed the National Association of American Softball. This naming change, while not directly related solely to the NABBP or union, has raised questions about the association’s relationship with the baseball game.[15]
Major League Baseball, National Association of Base Ball Players [ edit ]
Major League Baseball was formed to fulfill the mission and to create an international league for amateur sports (the National Association of Baseball Players). However they did not create league by creation, and instead created a formal association for the general public.
The National Association of Base Ball Players was formed from the National Association of Base Ball Softball. The NABBP organized the National Association of Softball Players, who in turn organized the National Baseball Society in the United States to coordinate with organized players and to help make the National Association the official membership of professional baseball. The National Association members also met by phone together to draft collective agreements, which were drafted and approved by the National Baseball League’s Board of Directors upon meeting on the 10th day. The National Association did not form a single pro league nor any form of amateur league, and it was primarily created as a separate entity to represent the general baseball industry and the general public. The National Baseball Association’s most recent addition was an entity called the National Football League, which includes all of the major NFL clubs within the National Baseball League. The National Association created leagues and clubs that allowed their membership to have greater reach, and with more fan support, and more people participating in the games.
The MLB had become a club, and many of its players, in the past decade, so players were encouraged and made to sign free agent contracts. The MLB also was established more generally, with players making a substantial return on their salary and gaining more experience and popularity. The National Players Association of the National Baseball League were formed in 1968 and became the governing body for the MLB in late 1973. Since the National Association had previously been an independent entity, it was effectively split into two, and the
By the end of 1865, almost 100 clubs were members of the NABBP. By 1867, it ballooned to over 400 members, including some clubs from as far away as San Francisco and Louisiana. One of these clubs, the Chicago White Stockings, won the championship in 1870. Today known as the Chicago Cubs, they are the oldest team in American organized sports. Because of this growth, regional and state organizations began to assume a more prominent role in the governance of the sport.
The NABBP of America was initially established upon principles of amateurism. However, even early in its history some star players, such as James Creighton of Excelsior, received compensation, either secretly or indirectly. In 1866, the NABBP investigated Athletic of Philadelphia for paying three players including Lip Pike, but ultimately took no action against either the club or the players. To address this growing practice, and to restore integrity to the game, at its December 1868 meeting the NABBP established a professional category for the 1869 season. Clubs desiring to pay players were now free to declare themselves professional.
The Cincinnati Red Stockings were the first to so declare themselves as openly professional, and were easily the most aggressive in recruiting the best available players. Twelve clubs, including most of the strongest clubs in the NABBP, ultimately declared themselves professional for the 1869 season.
The first attempt at forming a “major league” produced the National Association of Professional Base Ball Players, which lasted from 1871 to 1875. The now all professional Chicago White Stockings, financed by businessman William Hulbert, became a charter member of the league along with the Red Stockings, who had dissolved and moved to Boston. The White Stockings were close contenders all season, despite the fact that the Great Chicago Fire had destroyed the teams home field and most of their equipment. The White Stockings finished the season in second place, but ultimately