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".
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.
Charles Roscoe Barnes was one of the stars of baseball's National Association (1871–75) and the early National League (1876–81), playing second base and shortstop. He played for the dominant Boston Red Stockings teams of the early 1870s, along with Albert Spalding, Cal McVey, George Wright, Harry Wright, Jim O'Rourke, and Deacon White. Despite playing for these star-studded teams, many claim that Ross was the most valuable to his teams.
The National Association of Professional Base Ball Players (NAPBBP), or known simply as the National Association (NA), was founded in 1871 and continued through the 1875 season. It succeeded and incorporated several professional clubs from the previous National Association of Base Ball Players (NABBP) of 1857–1870, sometimes called "the amateur association"; in turn several of its clubs created the succeeding National League of Professional Baseball Clubs in 1876. Later shortened to the National League, it joined with the American League of Professional Base Ball Clubs in 1901 to form Major League Baseball (MLB).
The Players' National League of Professional Base Ball Clubs, popularly known as the Players' League (PL), was a short-lived but star-studded professional American baseball league of the 19th century. The PL was formed by the Brotherhood of Professional Base Ball Players in November 1889, after a dispute over pay with the National League (NL) and American Association (AA). The NL had implemented a reserve clause in 1879, which limited the ability of players to negotiate across teams for their salaries; both the AA and NL had passed a salary cap of US$2,000 per player in 1885, equivalent to $50,156 in 2019; the owners of the NL had agreed to remove the salary cap in 1887 but failed to do so. Major League Baseball (MLB) considers the PL a "major" league for official statistical purposes.
The Cincinnati Red Stockings of 1869 were baseball's first openly all-professional team, with ten salaried players. The Cincinnati Base Ball Club formed in 1866 and fielded competitive teams in the National Association of Base Ball Players (NABBP) 1867–1870, a time of a transition that ambitious Cincinnati, Ohio businessmen and English-born ballplayer Harry Wright shaped as much as anyone. Major League Baseball recognized those events officially by sponsoring a centennial of professional baseball in 1969.
The Worcester Worcesters were a 19th-century Major League Baseball team from 1880 to 1882 in the National League. The team is referred to, at times, as the Brown Stockings or the Ruby Legs; however, no contemporary sources from the time exist that support the use of either name. The Ruby Legs played their home games at the Worcester Driving Park Grounds in the Worcester Agricultural Fairgrounds, located south of Highland Street between Sever Street and Russell Street in Worcester, Massachusetts.
George Wright was an American shortstop in professional baseball. He played for the 1869 Cincinnati Red Stockings, the first fully professional team, when he was the game's best player. He then played for the Boston Red Stockings, helping the team win six league championships from 1871 to 1878. His older brother Harry Wright managed both Red Stockings teams and made George his cornerstone. George was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1937. After arriving in Boston, he also entered the sporting goods business. There he continued in the industry, assisting in the development of golf.
William Henry "Harry" Wright was an English-born American professional baseball player, manager, and developer. He assembled, managed, and played center field for baseball's first fully professional team, the 1869 Cincinnati Red Stockings. He is credited with introducing innovations such as backing up infield plays from the outfield and shifting defensive alignments based on hitters' tendencies. For his contributions as a manager and developer of the game, he was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1953 by the Veterans Committee. Wright was also the first to make baseball into a business by paying his players up to seven times the pay of the average working man.
William Ambrose Hulbert was one of the founders of the National League, recognized as baseball's first major league, and was also the president of the Chicago White Stockings franchise.
Calvin Alexander McVey was an American professional baseball player during the 1860s and 1870s. McVey's importance to the game stems from his play on two of the earliest professional baseball teams, the original Cincinnati Red Stockings and the National Association Boston Red Stockings. He also played on the inaugural National League pennant-winning team, the 1876 Chicago White Stockings.
The Athletic Base Ball Club of Philadelphia was a prominent National Association, and later National League, professional baseball team that played in the second half of the 19th century.
George William Hall was a professional baseball player who played in the National Association and later the National League. Born in Stepney, England, Hall later immigrated to the U.S. He made his professional debut on May 5, 1871.
William Henry "Whoop-La" White was an American baseball pitcher and manager from 1875 to 1889. He played all or parts of 10 seasons in Major League Baseball, primarily for the Cincinnati Reds in the National League (1878–1879) and the Cincinnati Red Stockings in the American Association (1882–1886). He had three 40-win, and one 40-loss, seasons in Cincinnati. During the 1882 and 1883 seasons, he led the American Association in wins, compiling an 83–34 win–loss record and a 1.84 earned run average (ERA).
The following are the baseball events of the year 1881 throughout the world.
The following are the baseball events of the year 1875 throughout the world.
Andrew Jackson Leonard was a professional baseball player of the 19th century, who played outfield and was also a utility infielder. He played left field for the original Cincinnati Red Stockings, the first fully professional baseball team. He was one of five men to play regularly for both the Cincinnati and the Boston Red Stockings, the latter winning six championships during his seven seasons. He played several infield positions on lesser teams in his early twenties but left field was his regular professional position.
The Cincinnati Reds, also known as the Cincinnati Red Stockings, were a professional baseball team based in Cincinnati, Ohio that played from 1875–1879. The club predated the National League of which it became a charter member.
James H. Hallinan was an American baseball player born in Ireland. In the first professional league season, he played shortstop in five games for the 1871 Fort Wayne Kekiongas. He returned to professional play four years later and worked as a regular player for five teams in four major league seasons, including two as the regular shortstop of the New York Mutuals.
Ohio is home to many professional and college sports teams. The metropolitan areas of Cleveland, Cincinnati, and Columbus are home to major league professional sports teams in baseball, basketball, football, hockey, and soccer.
