The Story of Baseball

             When the notion of baseball comes to mind, a feeling of nostalgia and tradition come to me. Many of my feelings and memories originate from my childhood, and me playing the game of baseball. I always loved to play as well as watch the game. Even thinking of it now, I can smell the scent of freshly cut grass in the morning sun. I can also feel going to the ballpark, and smelling the sweet aroma of freshly cooked hot dogs and roasted peanuts, and the sound of the ball smacking against the mitt, and the crack of the bat, and the crowd cheering. All these things make the game so great and so unique, but how did the game evolve to what it is today and why it is America's favorite pastime?
             While the exact origins of baseball are unknown, most historians agree that it is based on the English game of rounders. Throughout the early part of the 19th century, small towns formed teams, and baseball clubs were formed in larger cities. In 1845, Alexander Cartwright wanted to formalize a list of rules by which all teams could play. Much of that original code is still in place today. Although popular legend says that the game was invented by Abner Doubleday, baseball's true father was Cartwright. The first recorded baseball contest took place a year later, in 1846 in which the New York Knickerbocker Club won. The early 1860s, however were a time of great turmoil in the United States. In those years of the Civil War, the number of baseball clubs dropped dramatically but interest in baseball was carried to other parts of the country by Union soldiers. Although the league was supposed to be comprised of amateurs, many players were secretly paid. Some were given jobs by sponsors, and some were secretly paid a salary just for playing. The National Association fielded nine teams in 1871, and grew to 13 teams by 1875, but it short-lived. The presence of gamblers undermined the public confidence in the games, and their presence at the games ...

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The Story of Baseball. (1969, December 31). In MegaEssays.com. Retrieved 10:28, March 29, 2024, from https://www.megaessays.com/viewpaper/20859.html