Years and years ago, baseball in the United States was not about the money. It was about the love of the game. Players played the game because they loved it, not because they could make millions of dollars during the course of a season. Tickets to a ballgame were relatively cheap, and people went to see their favorite players.

In this day and age, the game is all about money. The players union has voted to strike again, which will mean a stoppage of play again. I wish I could make millions of dollars a year playing baseball. Here's an example of what a star player makes during the year:

A player making 3,000,000.00 per year / 162 games = 18518.52 per game
18518 per game / 3 hours per game (average length) = 6172.84 per hour

I don't know about you, but that's roughly 312 times what I'm making per hour, and I work 350+ days a year, for at least 8 hours a day. I'm not bitter about that, but I am bitter that they feel they aren't making enough money. If you have seen the movie The Replacements, there is a scene where one of the regular players is asked why they need more money. His response was, "Insurance for the Ferrari isn't cheap". It was a funny line, but it may apply here. What do players do with all of that money?

My remedy is simple. Players should be paid based on their performance during the season. In golf, the golfers are paid in the order that they place, which means they have to earn their money. Granted, the players that sit the bench or are backups wouldn't get as much money, but perhaps it would drive them to push themselves to become better, thus improving the game as a whole.

Until that time, I will not be watching Major League Baseball. I'll stick to the Little League World Series. At least those kids play with their hearts.

Major League Baseball

Pre-1900

American "Major League Baseball" -- high-quality professional baseball in the US and Canada -- has existed since 1876, when the National Association was renamed the National League. The League contained 8 teams at the time, all of which represented towns and cities in the Northeast and Midwest regions of the country. Teams were added and eliminated yearly until 1900, the year which approximately defines the beginning of the modern Major Leagues.

Pre-1900 National League franchises

Note: When franchises are listed, those with multiple names / host cities will be pipelinked to the most recent city and name. For example, the Boston Red Caps franchise in the preceding list has metamorphosed into the modern Atlanta Braves in the past 125+ years, so clicking on Boston Red Caps will send you to the Atlanta Braves node.

The Birth of the Modern Major Leagues

In 1900, the National League was pared down to 8 franchises, each of which is still in existence today.

1900 National League franchises

However, a new league was forming. Taking its name from the defunct American Association, the American League officially came into existence on January 28, 1901. In its inaugural season it contained eight franchises, each of which is still in existence:

1901 American League franchises

At first, the two leagues competed directly with each other for fan attendance and recognition. However, by 1903 an agreement had been reached, leading to a World Series and the eventual merging of the two leagues into modern Major League Baseball.

Modern Major League Baseball

Modern MLB is basically an evolution of the league system of about 1906, with little of the major organizational changes that took place nearly yearly in the late 1800's. Some teams have been added and moved in order to reach the largest potential markets -- an uncommon but not unusual procedure. Also, the merging of the American and National Leagues continues to this day, with changes such as the consolidation of the League Commissioner positions and the introduction of interleague play. Major League players have joined together to form the Major League Baseball Players' Association, one of the strongest unions in the world. But the play on the field is still the same basic game: pitch, hit, catch, throw.

Modern Major League franchises

Lists

Other Major Leagues

Active Players (as of 07/25/2005)

Former Players

Personalities

Mascots

Fields and Stadia Or beer, phones, and politics

Rules and Statistics

History and Lore

Art

Other teams

Other stuff

Credit

  • Baseball Almanac: http://baseball-almanac.com
  • The Baseball Page: http://www.thebaseballpage.com/
  • Major League Baseball: http://www.mlb.com
  • Major League Baseball History: http://www.geocities.com/Colosseum/Track/4222/
  • kthejoker, for giving me a long list of nodes to add

Please /msg me with any additions to this node -- especially links to other baseball nodes that exist on E2!

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