The National League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the National League (NL), is the older of two leagues constituting Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada, and the world's oldest extant professional team sports league. Founded on February 2, 1876, to replace the National Association of Professional Base Ball Players (NAPBBP) of 1871–1875, the NL is sometimes called the Senior Circuit, in contrast to MLB's other league, the American League, which was founded 25 years later and is called the "Junior Circuit". Both leagues currently have 15 teams.
The following is a list of United States Major League Baseball teams that played in the National League during the 19th century. None of these teams, other than Athletic and Mutual, had actual names during this period; sportswriters however often applied creative monickers which are still, mistakenly, used today as "team names" following a convention established in 1951.
The American Association of Base Ball Clubs (AA) was a professional baseball league that existed for 10 seasons from 1882 to 1891. Together with the National League (NL), founded in 1876, the AA participated in an early version of the World Series seven times versus the champion of the NL in an interleague championship playoff tournament. At the end of its run, several AA franchises joined the NL. After 1891, the NL existed alone, with each season's champions being awarded the Temple Cup (1894–1897).
The Union Association was a league in Major League Baseball which lasted for just the 1884 season. St. Louis won the pennant and joined the National League the following season.
The Philadelphia Athletics were a professional baseball team, one of six charter members of the American Association, a 19th-century major league, which began play in 1882 as a rival to the National League. The other teams were the Baltimore Orioles, Cincinnati Red Stockings, Eclipse of Louisville, Pittsburgh Alleghenys, and St. Louis Brown Stockings. The team took its name from a previous team, which played in the National Association from 1871 through 1875 and in the National League in 1876.
Professional baseball is organized baseball in which players are selected for their talents and are paid to play for a specific team or club system. It is played in leagues and associated farm teams throughout the world.
Jefferson Street Grounds was a baseball field located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It was also known as Jefferson Park and Athletics Park. It was home to three different professional baseball teams, competing in three different leagues. Notably, it was the venue for the first game in National League history, played on April 22, 1876.
Recreation Park was a baseball park in Philadelphia.
James Alexander Devlin was an American Major League Baseball player who played mainly as a first baseman early in his career, then as a pitcher in the latter part. He played for three teams during his five-year career; the Philadelphia White Stockings and the Chicago White Stockings of the National Association, and the Louisville Grays of the National League. However, after admitting to throwing games and costing the Grays the pennant in the 1877 Louisville Grays scandal, he and three of his teammates were banished permanently from Major League Baseball.
The following are the baseball events of the year 1882 throughout the world.
George Washington Bradley, nicknamed "Grin", was an American professional baseball player who was a pitcher and infielder. He played for multiple teams in the early years of the National League, the oldest league still active in Major League Baseball (MLB). Bradley is noted for pitching the first no-hitter that is officially recognized by MLB, on July 15, 1876, for the St. Louis Brown Stockings against the Hartford Dark Blues. As a player, he was listed at 5 feet 10 inches (1.78 m) and 175 pounds (79 kg); he threw and batted right-handed.
The following are the baseball events of the year 1883 throughout the world.
Dennis Joseph Mack was a professional baseball player who was a first baseman and shortstop in Major League Baseball for eight seasons from 1871 to 1883. He played for seven different teams, including as a player-manager for the Louisville Eclipse in 1882.
John Francis Coleman was an American professional baseball outfielder and pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Philadelphia Quakers, Philadelphia Athletics, and Pittsburgh Alleghenys from 1883 to 1890. Coleman holds the MLB single-season record for pitching losses, with 48.
The 1883 Cincinnati Red Stockings season was a season in American baseball. The team finished third in the American Association with a record of 61–37, 5 games behind the Philadelphia Athletics.
James Harding "Hardie" Henderson was an American Major League Baseball pitcher from 1883 to 1888. He played for the Philadelphia Quakers, Baltimore Orioles, Brooklyn Grays, and Pittsburgh Alleghenys, and he had a win–loss record of 81–121.
The 1883 season was the first in the history of the Philadelphia Phillies. The team was founded earlier in the year as a replacement for the Worcester franchise. It was the first year Philadelphia was represented in the National League since the original Athletics were disbanded in 1876 after refusing to finish the season. The American Association's Philadelphia Athletics had been founded a year earlier.
Michael Moynahan was an American professional baseball player from 1879 to 1886. He appeared in 169 games across four seasons in Major League Baseball, principally as a shortstop, for the Buffalo Bisons (1880), Detroit Wolverines (1881), Cleveland Blues, and Philadelphia Athletics (1883-1884). He was the starting shortstop, and with a .310 batting average the leading hitter, for the 1883 Athletics team that won the American Association pennant with a 66-32 record.
Daniel Albion "Jumping Jack" Jones, Jr. was an American professional baseball pitcher, dentist and voice trainer. He played in Major League Baseball in 1883, splitting the season between the Detroit Wolverines and Philadelphia Athletics. With a strong showing in September 1883, he helped the Athletics win the American Association pennant by one game over the St. Louis Browns. Jones also led the Yale Bulldogs baseball team to two intercollegiate championships in the early 1880s.
