Major League Baseball
Current season or competition: 2008 Major League Baseball season
Sport	Baseball
Founded	1876
Commissioner	Bud Selig
No. The 2008 Major League Baseball season began on March 25 2008 in Tokyo Japan with the 2007 World Series champion Boston Red Sox defeating Baseball is a Bat-and-ball Sport played between two teams of nine players each Baseball February 2 - The National League of Professional Base Ball Clubs (NL is founded at the Grand Central Hotel in New York City the first pro sports Allan Huber "Bud" Selig Jr (born July 30, 1934 in Milwaukee Wisconsin) is the Commissioner of Major League Baseball and has of teams	30
Country(ies)	United States  Canada
Most recent champion(s)	Boston Red Sox
TV partner(s)	FOX, ESPN, and TBS
Official website	MLB.com

Major League Baseball (MLB) is the highest level of play in North American professional baseball. The United States of America —commonly referred to as the Country to "Dominion of Canada" or "Canadian Federation" or anything else please read the Talk Page The Boston Red Sox are a Professional baseball team based in Boston Massachusetts, and are the reigning (2007 World Series Champions. Major League Baseball on FOX or MLB on FOX is a weekly presentation of Major League Baseball games on the Fox television network ESPN Major League Baseball is a promotion of Major League Baseball on ESPN and ESPN2, with simulcasts on ESPNHD or ESPN2HD Major League Baseball on TBS is a broadcasting agreement between Major League Baseball and Turner Sports to broadcast baseball via Cable television Baseball is a Bat-and-ball Sport played between two teams of nine players each More specifically, Major League Baseball refers to the organization that operates North American baseball's two major leagues, the National League and the American League, by means of a joint organizational structure that has existed between them since 1903. The National League of Professional Baseball Clubs, or simply the National League ( NL) is the older of two leagues constituting Major League Baseball The American League of Professional Baseball Clubs, or simply the American League ( AL) is one of two leagues that make up Major League Baseball in Major League Baseball teams play a 162-game season, which generally begins on the first Sunday in April and ends on the first Sunday in October, with playoffs played in October and early November. The two leagues follow the same rules, with one exception: the American League operates under the Designated Hitter Rule, while the National League does not. In Baseball, the designated hitter rule is the common name for Major League Baseball Rule 6 Utilization of the DH Rule in Interleague, All-Star and World Series games is determined by the home team's league rules. Interleague play is the term used to describe regular season Major League Baseball games played between teams in different leagues introduced in. The Major League Baseball All-Star Game, also popularly known as the "Midsummer Classic" is an annual Baseball game between players from the National League For other events named "World Series" see World Series (disambiguation. In 2000, the American and National Leagues were officially disbanded as separate legal entities with all rights and functions consolidated in the commissioner's office. MLB effectively operates as a single league and as such it constitutes one of the major professional sports leagues of North America.

MLB is controlled by an agreement that has undergone several incarnations since 1876, then called the NL Constitution, with the most recent revisions being made in 2005. The Major League Baseball Constitution is a document under which the day-to-day operation of Major League Baseball are conducted Major League Baseball, under the direction of its Commissioner (currently Bud Selig), hires and maintains the sport's umpiring crews, and negotiates marketing, labor, and television contracts. The Commissioner of Baseball is the chief executive of Major League Baseball. Allan Huber "Bud" Selig Jr (born July 30, 1934 in Milwaukee Wisconsin) is the Commissioner of Major League Baseball and has In Baseball, the umpire is the person charged with officiating the game including beginning and ending the game enforcing the rules of the game and the grounds making In popular usage "marketing" is the promotion of products especially Advertising and Branding However in professional usage the term has a wider meaning of The following is a detailed description of the various Television networks (both broadcast and cable) rights fees and announcers who have called Major League As is the case for most North American sports leagues, the "closed shop" aspect of MLB effectively prevents the yearly promotion and relegation of teams into and out of the Major League by virtue of their performance. In many Sports leagues around the world (with North American and Australian professional leagues being the most notable exceptions promotion and relegation Major League Baseball is mostly funded by private enterprises, but also partially funded directly by public taxes. MLB maintains a unique, controlling relationship over the sport, including most aspects of minor league baseball. Part of the History of baseball series Minor league baseball is a hierarchy of Professional baseball leagues in North This is due in large part to a 1922 U.S. Supreme Court ruling in Federal Baseball Club v. National League, which held that baseball is not interstate commerce and therefore not subject to federal antitrust law. The Supreme Court of the United States is the highest judicial body in the United States and leads the federal judiciary. Federal Baseball Club v National League,, is a case in which the U Article 1 Section 8 Clause 3 of the United States Constitution, known as the Commerce Clause, states that Congress has the power to regulate commerce with foreign This ruling has been weakened only slightly in subsequent years. ^[1][2]

The production/multimedia wing of MLB is New York-based MLB Advanced Media, which oversees MLB.com and all 30 of the individual teams' websites. Major League Baseball Advanced Media LP, is a subsidiary of Major League Baseball, and is the internet and interactive branch of the league MLBcom is the official site of Major League Baseball. MLBcom is a source of baseball-related information including baseball news statistics and sports columns Its charter states that MLB Advanced Media holds editorial independence from the League itself, but it is indeed under the same ownership group and revenue-sharing plan. Editorial independence is the freedom of editors to make decisions without interference from the owners of a publication MLB Productions is a similarly-structured wing of the league, focusing on video and traditional broadcast media.

Current Major League franchises

¹ To be replaced in 2009 by a new stadium also named "Yankee Stadium"

² To be replaced in 2012 by a new stadium currently named "Rays Ballpark if controversial proposal is approved"

³ To be replaced in 2010 by a new stadium currently named "Twins Ballpark"

⁴ To be replaced in 2010-2012 by a new stadium named "Cisco Field"

⁵ Hosting 2008 All-Star Game. The American League of Professional Baseball Clubs, or simply the American League ( AL) is one of two leagues that make up Major League Baseball in The American League East Division is one of Major League Baseball's six divisions The Baltimore Orioles are a professional baseball team based in Baltimore, Maryland. Oriole Park at Camden Yards is a ballpark located in Baltimore Maryland, which was completed in 1992 to replace the aging Memorial Stadium. The Boston Red Sox are a Professional baseball team based in Boston Massachusetts, and are the reigning (2007 World Series Champions. The Commonwealth of Massachusetts ( is a state located in the New England region of the northeastern United States. The New York Yankees are a professional baseball team based in the borough of The Bronx, in New York City, New York. The City of New York New York ( is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States and is the nation's third most populous The original Yankee Stadium is a Stadium located in The Bronx in New York City. The Tampa Bay Rays are a Major League Baseball franchise based in St St Petersburg (often shortened to St Pete) is a city in Pinellas County Florida, United States. Florida ( is a state located in the southeastern region of the United States, bordering Alabama to the northwest and Georgia to the Tropicana Field is a Domed stadium in St Petersburg Florida, which has been the home of Major League Baseball 's Tampa Bay Rays since The Toronto Blue Jays are a professional baseball team based in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Toronto (təˈrɒntoʊ colloquially pronounced or) is the largest city in Canada and is the provincial capital of Ontario Ontario (ɒnˈtɛrioʊ is a province located in the central part of Canada, the largest by population and second largest after Quebec Country to "Dominion of Canada" or "Canadian Federation" or anything else please read the Talk Page SkyDome redirects here for other uses see SkyDome (disambiguation The American League Central is one of three divisions in Major League Baseball 's American League. The Chicago White Sox are a professional Baseball team based in Chicago, Illinois. Chicago (ʃɪˈkɑːgoʊ is the largest City by population in the state of Illinois and the American Midwest of the United States. The State of Illinois ( roughly ill-i-NOY is a state of the United States of America, the 21st to be admitted to the Union. US Cellular Field (formerly Comiskey Park is a Baseball Stadium in Chicago Illinois. The Cleveland Indians are a professional baseball team based in Cleveland, Ohio, United States. Cleveland is a City in the US state of Ohio and the County seat of Cuyahoga County, the most populous county in the state Ohio ( is a Midwestern state of the United States. As part of the Great Lakes region, Ohio has long been a cultural and geographical crossroads Progressive Field is a ballpark located in downtown Cleveland, Ohio, and is the home of the Cleveland Indians of the American The Detroit Tigers are a professional baseball team based in Detroit, Michigan, USA Michigan ( is a Midwestern state of the United States of America. Comerica Park is an open air ballpark located in downtown Detroit Michigan. The Kansas City Royals are a Major League Baseball team based in Kansas City, Missouri. Kansas City Missouri only Items for the metro area Kansas City Kansas or North Kansas City MO should go on their respective pages Missouri ( or) is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States bordered by Iowa, Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee Ewing M Kauffman Stadium (ˈkɔfmən formerly Royals Stadium) is a Major League Baseball Stadium located in Kansas City Missouri, and The Minnesota Twins are a professional baseball team based in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Minnesota ( Native Americans demonstrated the name to early settlers The Hubert H Humphrey Metrodome, often simply called The Metrodome, is a domed sports Stadium in downtown Minneapolis Minnesota. The American League West is one of three divisions in Major League Baseball 's American League. The Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim are a professional baseball team based in Anaheim, California. California ( is a US state on the West Coast of the United States, along the Pacific Ocean. Angel Stadium of Anaheim (originally Anaheim Stadium and later Edison International Field of Anaheim) is a modern-style ballpark located The Oakland Athletics are a professional baseball team based in Oakland, California. Oakland (ˈoʊklənd founded in 1852 is the eighth-largest city in the U California ( is a US state on the West Coast of the United States, along the Pacific Ocean. The Seattle Mariners are an American professional baseball team based in Seattle, Washington, United States. Washington ( is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. Safeco Field, sometimes referred to as Safeco or The Safe, is a Retractable roof Baseball stadium located in Seattle Washington The Texas Rangers are an American professional baseball team based in Arlington Texas, United States, representing the Dallas-Ft Arlington is a Suburb of Fort Worth in Tarrant County, Texas ( USA) within the Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington metropolitan area Texas ( is a state geographically located in the South Central United States and is also known as the Lone Star State. The Dallas – Fort Worth – Arlington metropolitan area, a title designated by the U Rangers Ballpark in Arlington is a ballpark in Arlington Texas, located between Dallas and Fort Worth Texas. The new Yankee Stadium is a Stadium currently under construction that will serve as the home Baseball park for the New York Yankees. Rays Ballpark is the current name used in project documents for a proposed ballpark that the Tampa Bay Rays have proposed building to replace Tropicana Field Cisco Field is a proposed ballpark in Fremont, California. It would be the new home of the Oakland Athletics and may open as early as 2012

⁶ Milwaukee Brewers 1901; St. Louis Browns 1902-1953

⁷ Baltimore Orioles 1901-1902

⁸ Washington Senators 1901-1960

⁹ located in Philadelphia 1901-1954, Kansas City 1955-1967

¹⁰ Washington Senators 1961-1971

¹¹ Hosting 2010 All-Star Game.

¹ To be replaced in 2011 by a new stadium currently named "New Marlins Stadium"

² To be replaced in 2009 by a new stadium named "Citi Field"

³ Hosting 2009 All-Star Game

⁴ located in Boston 1876-1952; Milwaukee 1953-1965

⁵ Montreal Expos 1969-2004

⁶ Seattle Pilots 1969

⁷ located in Brooklyn 1890-1957

⁸ located in New York 1883-1957

^* When the Marlins move out of Dolphin Stadium the team will be renamed the "Miami Marlins"

A graph showing the historical performance of the 30 Major League Baseball franchises

Organizational Alignment

The Commissioner of baseball, Bud Selig, has often floated the idea of international expansion and realignment of the major leagues. The National League of Professional Baseball Clubs, or simply the National League ( NL) is the older of two leagues constituting Major League Baseball The National League East Division is one of Major League Baseball 's six divisions The State of Georgia ( is a state in the United States and was one of the original Thirteen Colonies that revolted against British rule Turner Field is a ballpark in Atlanta Georgia, home to Major League Baseball 's Atlanta Braves since 1997 The Florida Marlins are a professional baseball team based in Miami Gardens Florida. This article is about the city in Miami-Dade County Florida. For the census-designated place in Broward County Florida, please see Miami Gardens Broward Florida ( is a state located in the southeastern region of the United States, bordering Alabama to the northwest and Georgia to the Dolphin Stadium (previously known as Joe Robbie Stadium, Pro Player Park, Pro Player Stadium, and Dolphins Stadium) is a football "Mets" redirects here For the medical term see Metastasis. The City of New York New York ( is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States and is the nation's third most populous William A Shea Municipal Stadium, usually shortened to Shea Stadium or just Shea (ʃeɪ̪ is a Stadium located in the New York City borough The Philadelphia Phillies are a Major League Baseball team based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in the United States. Philadelphia (ˌfɪləˈdɛlfiə The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania ( often colloquially referred to as PA (its abbreviation by natives and Northeasterners is a state located in the Northeastern Citizens Bank Park is a 43647-seat Baseball -only Stadium in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania that opened on April 3, 2004 The Washington Nationals is an American professional baseball team based in Washington D Washington DC ( formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, the District, or simply D Nationals Park is the current ballpark for the Washington Nationals of Major League Baseball. The National League Central Division is one of Major League Baseball 's six divisions The Chicago Cubs are a Professional Baseball franchise based in Chicago, Illinois. Chicago (ʃɪˈkɑːgoʊ is the largest City by population in the state of Illinois and the American Midwest of the United States. The State of Illinois ( roughly ill-i-NOY is a state of the United States of America, the 21st to be admitted to the Union. Wrigley Field is a Baseball Stadium in Chicago, Illinois, United States that has served as the home ballpark of the Chicago The Cincinnati Reds are a Major League Baseball team based in Cincinnati Ohio, USA Ohio ( is a Midwestern state of the United States. As part of the Great Lakes region, Ohio has long been a cultural and geographical crossroads Great American Ball Park is the home of Major League Baseball's Cincinnati Reds. The Houston Astros are a Professional baseball team based in Houston Texas. Texas ( is a state geographically located in the South Central United States and is also known as the Lone Star State. Minute Maid Park (formerly The Ballpark at Union Station, Enron Field, and Astros Field) is a ballpark in Houston, Texas The Milwaukee Brewers are a Major League Baseball team based in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, which plays in the Central Division of the National League Wisconsin ( or wɪˈskɑnsɨn (French Ouisconsin) is one of the fifty United States of America, located in the north central part of the United States Miller Park is a ballpark located in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. It is home to the Milwaukee Brewers and was built as a replacement for Milwaukee The Pittsburgh Pirates are a Major League Baseball club based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania ( often colloquially referred to as PA (its abbreviation by natives and Northeasterners is a state located in the Northeastern PNC Park is a Baseball park located in Pittsburgh Pennsylvania. The St Louis Cardinals (also referred to as "the Cards " or "the Redbirds " are a professional Baseball team based in St Missouri ( or) is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States bordered by Iowa, Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee Busch Stadium (also referred to informally as " New Busch Stadium " or " Busch Stadium III " is the home of the St The National League Western Division, or NL West, is one of the three divisions of Major League Baseball 's National League. The Arizona Diamondbacks (also referred to as the D-backs) are a professional baseball team based in Phoenix Arizona. Phoenix (ˈfiːˌnɪks O'odham Skikik, Yavapai Wasinka, Western Apache Fiinigis, Navajo Hoozdo, The State of Arizona ( is a state located in the southwestern region of the United States. Chase Field is a Baseball Stadium located in downtown Phoenix Arizona, and is the home of the Arizona Diamondbacks of the The Colorado Rockies are a Major League Baseball team based in Denver, Colorado. The City and County of Denver (pronounced /ˈdɛnvɚ/ is the Capital and the most populous city of Colorado, in the United States The State of Colorado ( or chiefly by nonresidents) is a state located in the Rocky Mountain region of the United States of America. Coors Field, located in Denver Colorado, is the home field of the National League 's Colorado Rockies. The Los Angeles Dodgers are a Major League Baseball team based in Los Angeles California, USA Los Angeles (lɑˈsændʒələs los ˈaŋxeles in Spanish) is the largest City in the state of California and the American West California ( is a US state on the West Coast of the United States, along the Pacific Ocean. Dodger Stadium is a large outdoor ballpark in Los Angeles California at Chávez Ravine. The San Diego Padres are a Major League Baseball team based in San Diego California since their founding in 1969 California ( is a US state on the West Coast of the United States, along the Pacific Ocean. PETCO Park is an open-air Stadium in downtown San Diego, California. The San Francisco Giants are a Major League Baseball team based in, that currently play in the National League West Division. The City and County of San Francisco is the fourth most populous city California ( is a US state on the West Coast of the United States, along the Pacific Ocean. AT&T Park is an open-air ballpark, home to the San Francisco Giants of Major League Baseball. Citi Field is the new Baseball park for the New York Mets that is being built in Willets Point in the New York City borough of The Florida Marlins are a professional baseball team based in Miami Gardens Florida. "Mets" redirects here For the medical term see Metastasis. The Philadelphia Phillies are a Major League Baseball team based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in the United States. The Washington Nationals is an American professional baseball team based in Washington D The Chicago Cubs are a Professional Baseball franchise based in Chicago, Illinois. The Cincinnati Reds are a Major League Baseball team based in Cincinnati Ohio, USA The Houston Astros are a Professional baseball team based in Houston Texas. The Milwaukee Brewers are a Major League Baseball team based in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, which plays in the Central Division of the National League The Pittsburgh Pirates are a Major League Baseball club based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The St Louis Cardinals (also referred to as "the Cards " or "the Redbirds " are a professional Baseball team based in St The Arizona Diamondbacks (also referred to as the D-backs) are a professional baseball team based in Phoenix Arizona. The Colorado Rockies are a Major League Baseball team based in Denver, Colorado. The Los Angeles Dodgers are a Major League Baseball team based in Los Angeles California, USA The San Diego Padres are a Major League Baseball team based in San Diego California since their founding in 1969 The San Francisco Giants are a Major League Baseball team based in, that currently play in the National League West Division. The Baltimore Orioles are a professional baseball team based in Baltimore, Maryland. The Boston Red Sox are a Professional baseball team based in Boston Massachusetts, and are the reigning (2007 World Series Champions. The New York Yankees are a professional baseball team based in the borough of The Bronx, in New York City, New York. The Tampa Bay Rays are a Major League Baseball franchise based in St The Toronto Blue Jays are a professional baseball team based in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The Chicago White Sox are a professional Baseball team based in Chicago, Illinois. The Cleveland Indians are a professional baseball team based in Cleveland, Ohio, United States. The Detroit Tigers are a professional baseball team based in Detroit, Michigan, USA The Kansas City Royals are a Major League Baseball team based in Kansas City, Missouri. The Minnesota Twins are a professional baseball team based in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim are a professional baseball team based in Anaheim, California. The Oakland Athletics are a professional baseball team based in Oakland, California. The Seattle Mariners are an American professional baseball team based in Seattle, Washington, United States. The Texas Rangers are an American professional baseball team based in Arlington Texas, United States, representing the Dallas-Ft Allan Huber "Bud" Selig Jr (born July 30, 1934 in Milwaukee Wisconsin) is the Commissioner of Major League Baseball and has At the moment, however, the two major leagues are each split into three divisions and structured as listed in the tables above.

In all, there are 30 teams in the two leagues: 16 in the older National League ("NL") and 14 in the American League ("AL"). The National League of Professional Baseball Clubs, or simply the National League ( NL) is the older of two leagues constituting Major League Baseball The American League of Professional Baseball Clubs, or simply the American League ( AL) is one of two leagues that make up Major League Baseball in The leagues do not have the same number of teams because an odd number of teams would force at least one team to be off every day, or play a team from the opposite league. Each has its teams split into three divisions grouped generally by geography. They are (number of teams in each division in parenthesis): NL East (5), NL Central (6), NL West (5), AL East (5), AL Central (5), and AL West (4). The National League East Division is one of Major League Baseball 's six divisions The National League Central Division is one of Major League Baseball 's six divisions The National League Western Division, or NL West, is one of the three divisions of Major League Baseball 's National League. The American League East Division is one of Major League Baseball's six divisions The American League Central is one of three divisions in Major League Baseball 's American League. The American League West is one of three divisions in Major League Baseball 's American League. The teams are hosted by 17 United States, 1 Canadian province (Ontario), and the District of Columbia.

Each team's regular season consists of 162 games, a duration established in 1961 in the American League and 1962 in the National League. From 1904 into the early 1960s, except for 1919, a 154-game schedule was played in both leagues (in which each team played its seven opponents 22 times apiece). Expansion from eight to ten teams in each league in the early 1960s resulted in a revised schedule of 162 games (in which each team played its nine opponents 18 times) in their expansion years, for the American League in 1961 and the National League in 1962. Although the schedule remains at 162 games to this day, the layout of games played was changed when Divisional play began in 1969, so that teams played more games against opponents within their own division than against the other divisions or (beginning in 1997) the other league.

View of a night game at Yankee Stadium, between the New York Yankees and the Minnesota Twins

Unplanned shortened seasons were played in 1918 due to the United States entering World War I, and in 1972, 1981, 1994 and 1995 due to player strikes and lockouts. The original Yankee Stadium is a Stadium located in The Bronx in New York City. The New York Yankees are a professional baseball team based in the borough of The Bronx, in New York City, New York. The Minnesota Twins are a professional baseball team based in Minneapolis, Minnesota. World War I (abbreviated WWI; also known as the First World War, the Great War, and the War to End All A 140-game schedule (with each team playing its seven opponents 20 times) was used in 1919, due to the influenza outbreak, and the schedule before 1904 varied from year to year. The 1918 flu pandemic (commonly referred to as the Spanish flu) was an Influenza Pandemic that spread to nearly every part of the world

Scheduling

The Major League regular season generally runs from the first Sunday in April to the first Sunday in October. Each team is scheduled to play 162 games during the season. Games are scheduled every day (except as noted in the next paragraph), although not all teams play every day; by rule, each team has a scheduled day off at least once every two weeks. Players and teams prepare for the season in spring training, in Florida or Arizona, during February and March. In Major League Baseball, spring training is a series of practices and exhibition games preceding the start of the Regular season. Florida ( is a state located in the southeastern region of the United States, bordering Alabama to the northwest and Georgia to the The State of Arizona ( is a state located in the southwestern region of the United States. Three rounds of playoffs follow the regular season, culminating in the World Series in late October. For other events named "World Series" see World Series (disambiguation. Playoffs consist of multiple game series that are split between the two teams' home fields; predetermined sites are not used as they are in some other professional sports championships.

An annual "All-Star Game" is conducted halfway through the season, at a pre-determined site, with all teams enjoying a three-day break. National League players make up one team, while American League players form the other. Eight players from each league (one for each field position other than pitcher) are selected by fan vote, while the remainder are selected by the selected managers of the two League teams (which are the managers of the previous year's World Series teams).

Games are played predominantly against teams within each league through an unbalanced schedule that heavily favors intra-divisional play. In 1997, Major League Baseball introduced interleague play, in which American and National League teams play against one another. Interleague play is the term used to describe regular season Major League Baseball games played between teams in different leagues introduced in. This break from tradition (previously, the two leagues played completely separate schedules except for the All-Star Game and World Series) was criticized by the sport's purists but has since proven very lucrative to the franchises. The interleague games are currently confined to the months of May and June. Typically many intra-division games are scheduled toward the end of the season, anticipating the possibility of close divisional races and heightened fan interest.

Generally, when two teams meet, they play two to four games against one another, normally scheduled as one game per day on consecutive days. In the unbalanced schedule currently in use, most teams will travel to visit each other team in their division three times per season, each team in their league's other divisions once per season, and make three visits to teams from the opposite league, totalling 81 games. The remaining 81 games are conducted at home, with other teams visiting on a similar schedule. When games must be rescheduled due to weather or other concerns, it is common for the game to be rescheduled as part of a "double-header", in which two games featuring the same two teams are played back-to-back on the same day.

Most games begin at either 1:05 pm or 7:05 pm local time, although some teams prefer other times, and individual games may be scheduled at other times for a variety of reasons (often relating to being featured on nationwide television). When not over-ridden due to broadcast contracts, the game time is ultimately set by the home team. Most teams choose to play primarily at night for attendance purposes, though they will often play in the afternoon on Sundays and "Get-Away Days" (days where one or both teams must travel to another city following the game). However, the Chicago Cubs, by agreement with the City of Chicago, are required to play almost two-thirds of their home games during the day. The Chicago Cubs are a Professional Baseball franchise based in Chicago, Illinois. (The Cubs' stadium, Wrigley Field, was also the last stadium to operate without lights, which were installed in 1988. Prior to the 1988 season, all Cubs home games were played in daylight. )

Draft and Minor Leagues

Each year in June, Major League Baseball conducts a draft for first-year players who have never signed a Major or Minor League contract. The First-Year Player Draft, also known as the Rule 4 Draft, is Major League Baseball 's primary mechanism for assigning amateur baseball players from high schools These players are generally American and Canadian high school graduates or university students, although players from a limited number of foreign countries may also be drafted. Notably, players from Japan may not be drafted, it being regarded as the exclusive right of the Japanese leagues to do so.

The Major League Baseball Draft is among the least followed of the professional sports drafts in the United States, possibly because other professional sports drafts feature players who will immediately start to play for the team they are drafted by that next year, whereas the MLB has an extensive minor league system to help players mature and hone their skills to be able to compete with those in the major leagues. The First-Year Player Draft, also known as the Rule 4 Draft, is Major League Baseball 's primary mechanism for assigning amateur baseball players from high schools The United States of America —commonly referred to as the

After being drafted, players are assigned to minor league teams who are affiliated with the major league team. The minor leagues are organized into several levels, and players normally work their way up over a period of three or more seasons (based on skill and performance) before appearing in the Major Leagues.

For a detailed history of the length of the regular season, see Major League Baseball season. The Major League Baseball season has been 162 games long for each team since 1961 in the American League and 1962 in the National League.

Team names and colors

In American professional sports (and usually amateur sports as well), a generally standardized and marketing-oriented structure has evolved for the names and colors, and thus the identities of individual clubs. The structure involves three elements: a geographical designator, traditionally the name of the team's city, although in recent decades the team's state or region has sometimes been used; a nickname, usually connected with either a mascot, the team's colors, or a feature unique to the region or to the club; and team colors, a carryover from heraldry. Heraldry in its most general sense encompasses all matters relating to the duties and responsibilities of officers of arms. This approach contrasts with some non-American sports, such as European soccer, in which team names need not necessarily follow a particular pattern, or Asian professional baseball, which generally follows a "corporate sponsor" name followed by a "nickname". The pattern began with early organized baseball clubs and has been extended from there to almost all U. S. professional clubs.

Originally, gentlemen's athletic clubs were key movers in the development of organized baseball, so early prominent teams were simply named after the clubs that formed them: Athletic Club, Mutual Club, Olympic Club, Forest City Club, Kekionga Club, Atlantic Club, Western Club. By 1871, with the formation of the National Association, clubs no longer just competed with local rivals, but with the best clubs from other cities around the northeast. The National Association of Professional Base Ball Players (NAPBBP or simply the National Association (NA was founded in 1871 and lasted through the 1875 season Thus, geographic designators were sometimes added, establishing the now familiar pattern (only reversed): Athletic of Philadelphia, Mutual of New York, Olympic of Washington, Forest City of Cleveland, Kekionga of Fort Wayne, Atlantic of Brooklyn, Western of Keokuk.

By 1876, when the National League entered play, baseball clubs were no longer primarily associated with gentlemen's athletic clubs, and most of the original teams were named after the one uniform feature that served to distinguish them on the field - the color of their stockings. Thus: Boston Red Stockings, Chicago White Stockings, Cincinnati Red Stockings, Hartford Dark Blues, Louisville Grays, St. Louis Brown Stockings. The 1876 New York and Philadelphia clubs still held over the traditional "Mutual" and "Athletic" names, and were usually so referenced in the standings. The plural usage seen sometimes, "Mutuals" or "Athletics", was equivalent to the "Chicagos" or the "Bostons". Modern historians have often retrofitted these names in the modern style, such as "New York Mutuals", which is technically incorrect. "Mutual" was the actual name of the team, and the club had separate "nicknames" that referred to the team colors in a given year, such as "Green Stockings". The Athletics name did persist, however, and the Philadelphia American League team would retain this name even through two relocations. The Oakland Athletics are a professional baseball team based in Oakland, California.

Throughout this period, club nicknames were ad hoc, bestowed and used at will by sportswriters and fans. Nicknames became associated with particular cities, and fans tended to refer to the local team by this name, even if it was not associated in a corporate fashion with its predecessor. Thus, multiple, unassociated teams used names such as Boston Red Stockings, Chicago White Stockings, Cincinnati Red Stockings, St. Louis Brown Stockings, Louisville Grays, Baltimore Orioles, Milwaukee Brewers, and the like.

Early in the 20th century, the club nickname began to acquire a more important status, eventually an official status, being designated by the club ownership and ultimately used as part of the club's marketing efforts. Sometimes a club would change its nickname or adopt an official name that superseded one or more unofficial names in the past. An example would be the Boston Braves, who were tagged with various nicknames prior to officially adopting "Braves" as their name and mascot. Sometimes such a name change did not catch on with the press and public, which is why there is no longer a "Philadelphia Blue Jays" nor a "Boston Bees". The Philadelphia Phillies are a Major League Baseball team based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in the United States. The original Washington Senators were officially the "Washington Nationals" for many decades, but the alternate nickname "Senators" persisted, "Nationals" faded, and the team finally, officially became the "Senators" in the late 1950s. The Minnesota Twins are a professional baseball team based in Minneapolis, Minnesota. (With modern marketing strategies, such a fate is less likely to befall the current Washington Nationals. The Washington Nationals is an American professional baseball team based in Washington D )

In contrast, the Brooklyn Dodgers began by adopting the old "Atlantic" designation, then were dubbed the "Bridegrooms" for a while, then the "Trolley Dodgers", then the "Superbas", then the "Robins" (for their manager, Wilbert Robinson), although the alternate nickname "Dodgers" persisted from the moment the team acquired that tag. The Los Angeles Dodgers are a Major League Baseball team based in Los Angeles California, USA The Dodgers did not actually put that name on their uniforms until the 1930s. Sometimes teams have changed their nicknames for marketing or other reasons. For example, the Houston Colt 45s became the Houston Astros (short for originally Astronauts) in 1965. The Houston Astros are a Professional baseball team based in Houston Texas.

Team colors are sometimes tied in with a team's name, and occasionally they are changed for marketing reasons. One of the most striking examples of the latter was in 1963, when flamboyant owner Charles O. Finley changed the Kansas City Athletics' uniforms from a traditional white/gray with blue and red trim to bright yellow with green trim, a move that sparked controversy, but also one that fit in with the new medium of color television. Charles Oscar Finley ( February 22 1918 - February 19 1996) nicknamed Charlie O or Charley O, was an American The Oakland Athletics are a professional baseball team based in Oakland, California. The Television Technology can be divided along two lines those developments that depended upon both mechanical and electronic Principles and Before this, home uniforms in MLB were uniformly white with colored trim, while road uniforms were uniformly gray; afterwards many teams displayed a variety of color schemes, notably the Houston Astros and San Diego Padres. The Houston Astros are a Professional baseball team based in Houston Texas. The San Diego Padres are a Major League Baseball team based in San Diego California since their founding in 1969

The Chicago Cubs have occasionally worn a bright blue top on the road since 1982, whereas the Chicago White Sox have changed colors many times during that interval, at one or another time wearing navy blue, red, royal blue, and white stockings. The Chicago Cubs are a Professional Baseball franchise based in Chicago, Illinois. The Chicago White Sox are a professional Baseball team based in Chicago, Illinois. In recent years the team has sometimes worn black hosiery.

Interestingly, the St. Louis Cardinals (baseball) once played in the same city as the St. The St Louis Cardinals (also referred to as "the Cards " or "the Redbirds " are a professional Baseball team based in St Louis Cardinals (football, now the Arizona Cardinals), but the teams were not named for each other. The Arizona Cardinals are a professional American football team based in Glendale Arizona, just outside of Phoenix. The St. Louis Cardinals baseball club always played in St. Louis and were originally the St. Louis Brown Stockings (not to be confused with the St. Louis Browns in the American League), while the former St. The Baltimore Orioles are a professional baseball team based in Baltimore, Maryland. The American League of Professional Baseball Clubs, or simply the American League ( AL) is one of two leagues that make up Major League Baseball in Louis Cardinals football club (now the Arizona Cardinals), the oldest American football team still in existence, were first known as the Racine Normals, then Racine Cardinals, then the Chicago Cardinals. During their time in St. Louis, the football team was usually referred to by fans as "Big Red" or the "Gridbirds" in order to avoid confusion between the teams.

Major League Baseball uniforms

Official playing ball of the MLB

The official rules of Major League Baseball require that all players on a team wear matching uniforms, although this rule was not in force in the early days. Originally, teams were primarily distinguished by the colors of their stockings and the success of the Cincinnati Red Stockings popularized the adoption of sock color as the explicit identity of the club. The 1876 Chicago White Stockings actually wore caps of different colors. The Chicago Cubs are a Professional Baseball franchise based in Chicago, Illinois. In 1882, the National League assigned stocking colors to the member clubs: red for Boston, white for Chicago, grey for Buffalo, blue for Worcester, gold for Detroit, green for Troy, and so on. That year, the league also assigned jersey and cap colors, but by player position rather than by club.

Traditionally, when playing at home, teams wore uniforms that were mostly white with trim in team colors and when playing away, they wore uniforms that were mostly gray with trim in team colors. Aside from the obvious need to distinguish one team from the other, conventional wisdom held that it was more difficult to properly launder uniforms while on a road trip, thus the "road grays" helped to hide accumulated soil. This convention continued well after its original premise was nullified by the issuance of multiple uniforms and the growth of the laundromat industry. A self-service laundry is a facility where Clothes are washed and dried Starting in the 1970s, with the advent of synthetic fabrics, teams began using more color in their uniforms, notably the Kansas City Athletics in 1963, the San Diego Padres unusual brown and yellow scheme beginning in 1969, and the Houston Astros' rainbow stripes in the mid-1970s. The Oakland Athletics are a professional baseball team based in Oakland, California. The San Diego Padres are a Major League Baseball team based in San Diego California since their founding in 1969 The Rainbow Guts uniform (sometimes called the Creamsicle uniform or Tequila Sunrise uniform is a nickname for a series of uniform styles worn by the In the late 1970s, the Pittsburgh Pirates began a trend of multiple combinations of differently colored jerseys and trousers and caps (with the options of black, yellow, and white with pin stripes). The Pittsburgh Pirates are a Major League Baseball club based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. At one point in the 1970s, the Cleveland Indians had an all-red uniform. The Cleveland Indians are a professional baseball team based in Cleveland, Ohio, United States.

Starting in the 1990s, MLB clubs began heavily marketing licensed goods, such as caps and uniform jerseys to the public and this has resulted in a wide array of uniforms for each team. The New Era Cap Company (or just New Era) located in Buffalo, New York, is a Headwear manufacturer Now, some teams have not only a basic home uniform and away uniform, but also special "Sunday game" uniforms and uniforms that are worn only during batting practice and uniforms worn on singular events. From time to time, individual MLB teams have held "Turn Back the Clock Day", regularly-scheduled games in which teams donned uniforms in styles their predecessors wore generations earlier (sometimes called "throwback" uniforms), or other antique-style uniforms such as those of Negro League clubs. In addition, in 1999, MLB staged "Turn Ahead the Clock Day," in which teams wore futuristic, somewhat strange-looking uniforms, including futuristic or science fiction references, such as the New York Mets being referred to as the "Mercury Mets. "Mets" redirects here For the medical term see Metastasis. "

The result is that it is now often difficult to say which uniform is a team's "official" one. For example, the Cincinnati Reds used to wear a variety of caps: all red, red crown and black bill, black crown and red bill, and all black, until 2007, when only the all-red and red crown/black bill was brought back. The Cincinnati Reds are a Major League Baseball team based in Cincinnati Ohio, USA In contrast from the pre-1990s era, in which there usually was just one home uniform and one road uniform (with certain exceptions, such as Oakland and Pittsburgh's complex combinations), today choices of what combination of uniform elements are worn are now sometimes left up to players. In some cases, aspects of the uniform that are considered official are now rarely worn, such as the New York Mets' all-blue home cap, which is rarely seen on the field today in favor of an "alternate" black-and-blue cap. "Mets" redirects here For the medical term see Metastasis. Through 2007, The New York Yankees, Detroit Tigers, St. Louis Cardinals, San Francisco Giants, Los Angeles Dodgers, and Chicago Cubs were the only teams that did't wear alternate uniforms. The Cubs, Dodgers and Giants had worn alternate uniforms in the past, but as of 2007 did not have one. In 2008, the Chicago Cubs reintroduced their alternate, all Blue uniform.

The official rules state that:

• All players on a team must wear identical uniforms during a single game.
• Numbers: All players must wear their uniform numbers on the back of the uniform.
• Undershirt: If the undershirt is exposed then all the players on the team must wear matching ones. Numbers or other devices may be worn on the sleeve of the undershirt (for example, if it is worn with a sleeveless jersey), except that pitchers may not have such devices on their undershirt sleeves.
• The league office might require that each team have a single uniform for all games or requires that each team have a single, white home uniform and a single, non-white away uniform. With the elimination of the separate American League and National League administrations, it is unknown what the effectiveness of this rule now is.
• Sleeve length: The rules allow for minor variation in sleeve length, but they must be "approximately the same length" and the sleeves may not be "ragged, frayed or slit. "
• No attachments: Tape or other attachments of non-matching color may not be used on uniforms. Pants may not be attached to the bottom of the shoe in any manner.
• No images of baseballs: No "pattern that imitates or suggests the shape of a baseball" may be used on uniforms. Notably, in apparent violation of this rule, the Toronto Blue Jays, Milwaukee Brewers, Anaheim Angels, Florida Marlins and Philadelphia Phillies for many years had logos that incorporated the image of a baseball. The Toronto Blue Jays are a professional baseball team based in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The Milwaukee Brewers are a Major League Baseball team based in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, which plays in the Central Division of the National League The Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim are a professional baseball team based in Anaheim, California. The Florida Marlins are a professional baseball team based in Miami Gardens Florida. The Philadelphia Phillies are a Major League Baseball team based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in the United States. However, while the Philadelphia cap logo clearly depicted the baseball, the logo worn on the uniform jersey did not feature the image of the stylized stitching indicating the image of a baseball. The Marlins logo, while depicting a baseball, can not easily be mistaken for one, as the team's namesake fish is displayed in front of the ball design. The Toronto Blue Jays had a similar design with a Blue Jay head on the front of the ball, and this logo was even used on the center (and later left-center)of the uniform itself. The Toronto Blue Jays are a professional baseball team based in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The classic Brewers "ball and glove" logo (with the team's initials, MB, stylized into the shape of a blue baseball glove surrounding a ball) made a comeback in 2006 on the hats of the Brewers' Sunday home uniforms and is now the Brewers' Friday home uniform. Also, many teams such as the Giants, Nationals, Rangers and the Mariners use uniform logos that clearly depict a baseball, the New York Mets have featured uniforms with a sleeve logo that imitates the appearance of a baseball since the team's inception in 1962, so it may be that the rule is not enforced, at least for caps. "Mets" redirects here For the medical term see Metastasis. (The purpose of this rule is to prevent one team from deceiving the other. The National Football League has a similar rule, which states that no pattern that imitates or suggests the shape of a football). The National Football League ( NFL) is the largest professional American football league.
• No glass buttons or polished metal.
• No commercial advertisements on uniforms. This rule is in variance with other professional sports, such as the Arena Football League in the United States, but especially outside the US (notably soccer), in which it is customary for uniforms to prominently display the logo of a sponsoring company. The Arena Football League (AFL was founded in 1987 as an American football indoor league. Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a Team sport played between two teams of eleven players and is widely considered However, when the New York Yankees and Tampa Bay Devil Rays opened the season in Japan in 2004, an ad for Ricoh was clearly visible on the batters' helmets. The New York Yankees are a professional baseball team based in the borough of The Bronx, in New York City, New York. The Tampa Bay Rays are a Major League Baseball franchise based in St ( or Ricoh, is a Japanese company that was established on 6 February 1936 as Riken Kankoshi Co When the Oakland Athletics and Boston Red Sox opened the 2008 season in Tokyo, not only did both teams wear batting helmets featuring the Ricoh ad; but also, the Red Sox featured a commercial advertisement for a New England-based business on their jerseys. The Oakland Athletics are a professional baseball team based in Oakland, California. The Boston Red Sox are a Professional baseball team based in Boston Massachusetts, and are the reigning (2007 World Series Champions. Exceptions are made for the manufacturers of the pieces of uniform or equipment upon which they are placed (i. e. the hat manufacturer's emblem may be on the hat).
• Names: "A league may provide that the uniforms of its member teams include the names of its players on their backs. Any name other than the last name of the player must be approved by the League President. If adopted, all uniforms for a team must have the names of its players. " Again, with the elimination of separate administrations for the American and National leagues, it is unknown what the provenance of this rule is. (Currently, Ichiro Suzuki of the Seattle Mariners is the only player to have his given name rather than his family name displayed on the back his uniform, having applied for this permission in order to continue being identified as he had been in the Japanese leagues. often known simply as, (born October 22 1973 in Toyoyama, Nishikasugai, Aichi Prefecture, Japan) is an Outfielder for the Seattle Mariners The Seattle Mariners are an American professional baseball team based in Seattle, Washington, United States. Vida Blue also used his first name on the back of his uniform when he played for the San Francisco Giants in the mid-1980s). This article is about Vida Blue the baseball pitcher For information on the Jam band of the same name see Vida Blue (band. The San Francisco Giants are a Major League Baseball team based in, that currently play in the National League West Division. As of 2007, the New York Yankees, Boston Red Sox and San Francisco Giants do not display their players' names on their home uniforms; the Yankees also do not display them on their road uniforms. The New York Yankees are a professional baseball team based in the borough of The Bronx, in New York City, New York. The Boston Red Sox are a Professional baseball team based in Boston Massachusetts, and are the reigning (2007 World Series Champions. The San Francisco Giants are a Major League Baseball team based in, that currently play in the National League West Division. The New York Mets used alternate home uniforms without last names for the 1999 season. "Mets" redirects here For the medical term see Metastasis. The names were returned the next season. The Chicago Cubs did not have names on their home or alternate jerseys for the 2005 and 2006 seasons. The Chicago Cubs are a Professional Baseball franchise based in Chicago, Illinois. The names are now back on both jerseys. The Los Angeles Dodgers did not have names on the back of their home and road jerseys for the 2005 and 2006 seasons. Names returned on both jerseys in 2007.

Another apparent violation of the concept of a "uniform" is that some players on a team will wear the traditional knee-breeches or "knickers" while other teammates are wearing the more-recent ankle-length, closely-cut trousers. Many clubs do this at both major and minor league level, with no apparent objections.

On game days that do not require a special uniform (either by team or MLB request) it is generally (but not always) the starting pitcher for a team that chooses the uniform to be worn for that day's game.

In his comedy routine "Baseball & Football," George Carlin observes that in baseball, as compared to football, the manager is required to wear the same uniform the players do. George Denis Patrick Carlin (May 12 1937 – June 22 2008 was an American stand-up comedian, often considered one of the best of all time Observational comedy is a style of Humor based on making remarks about various facets of Everyday life. In Baseball, the head coach of a team is called the manager (or more formally the field manager) this individual controls matters However, this was actually not true in the early years of the game. Player-managers were common, but non-playing managers whose realm was strictly the dugout often wore business suits, a common occurrence at the time. Retired players who became managers were more likely to continue to wear a baseball uniform (John McGraw, for example), especially if they were also active on the coaching lines; managers often doubled as third-base coach. By the late 1940s, nearly all managers were wearing baseball uniforms. Connie Mack was the last major league manager to wear a suit in the dugout until his retirement in the early 1950s; however, in contrast to the uniform-wearing managers, Mack rarely if ever stepped onto the field during a game; instead he sent uniformed coaches onto the field when a managerial presence outside the dugout was required. Cornelius Alexander Mack ( December 22, 1862  – February 8, 1956) born Cornelius Alexander McGillicuddy, was an American

All-Star Game

Early July marks the midway point of the season, during which a three day break is taken when the Major League Baseball All-Star Game is staged. The Major League Baseball All-Star Game, also popularly known as the "Midsummer Classic" is an annual Baseball game between players from the National League The All-Star game pits players from the NL, headed up by the manager of the previous NL World Series team, against players from the AL, similarly managed, in an exhibition game. For other events named "World Series" see World Series (disambiguation. Since 1989, the designated hitter rule is used when the game is played in an AL ballpark; formerly no designated hitters played in the All-Star game. The 2002 contest ended in an 11-inning tie because both teams were out of pitchers, a result which proved highly unpopular with the fans. As a result, for a two-year trial in 2003 and 2004, the league which won the game received the benefit of home-field advantage in the World Series (four of the seven games taking place at their home park). That practice has since been extended indefinitely, since it has become popular with fans. The practice has upset purists over the previous format of the two leagues alternating home-field advantage for the World Series (especially considering that the NL has not won since 1996, thus they have not have home-field advantage in the World Series since 2001). The Boston Red Sox and Chicago White Sox took some advantage of the rule in 2004 and 2005 respectively, as each team started the Series with two home victories, giving them good momentum for a sweep (the Red Sox doing it again in 2007). However, the rule did not help the Yankees in 2003, as they lost the Series to Florida in 6 games, or the Detroit Tigers in 2006, as they lost to the St. Louis Cardinals in 5 games.

Since 1970, the eight position players for each team who take the field initially have been voted into the game by fans; MLB and Gillette entered into an agreement wherein fans would vote on pre-printed punch cards for their choices, with a spot reserved for write-in votes (indeed, that first year, Atlanta outfielder Rico Carty, who led the National League in batting average, was voted into the starting lineup as a write-in candidate). The fan voting had been cancelled since 1957 as a result of the Cincinnati ballot-box-stuffing scandal (a local newspaper had printed pre-voted ballots for fans to send in, resulting in seven of the eight positions going to Cincinnati players). The league overruled the vote, adding St. Louis' Stan Musial and Milwaukee's Henry Aaron to the team, and fan voting was eliminated until the 1970 season. In more recent years, internet voting has been allowed.

The remaining position players and all of the pitchers on each league's roster were, for a large number of years, solely at the discretion of that team's manager. In 2004, however, MLB instituted a system where some reserves and pitchers were selected by a vote of MLB players, and some were selected by the manager after consulting with the Commissioner's Office. Each person is allowed to vote 25 times. By MLB regulation, every team in the majors must have at least one designated all-star player, regardless of voting. This rule exists so that fans of every team have a player to watch for in the All-Star Game.

Post-season

When the regular season ends after the first Sunday in October (or the last Sunday in September), eight teams enter the post-season playoffs. The New York Yankees are a professional baseball team based in the borough of The Bronx, in New York City, New York. The St Louis Cardinals (also referred to as "the Cards " or "the Redbirds " are a professional Baseball team based in St The Oakland Athletics are a professional baseball team based in Oakland, California. The Boston Red Sox are a Professional baseball team based in Boston Massachusetts, and are the reigning (2007 World Series Champions. The Los Angeles Dodgers are a Major League Baseball team based in Los Angeles California, USA The Cincinnati Reds are a Major League Baseball team based in Cincinnati Ohio, USA The Pittsburgh Pirates are a Major League Baseball club based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The San Francisco Giants are a Major League Baseball team based in, that currently play in the National League West Division. The Detroit Tigers are a professional baseball team based in Detroit, Michigan, USA The Baltimore Orioles are a professional baseball team based in Baltimore, Maryland. The Chicago White Sox are a professional Baseball team based in Chicago, Illinois. The Minnesota Twins are a professional baseball team based in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The Toronto Blue Jays are a professional baseball team based in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. "Mets" redirects here For the medical term see Metastasis. The Cleveland Indians are a professional baseball team based in Cleveland, Ohio, United States. The Florida Marlins are a professional baseball team based in Miami Gardens Florida. The Chicago Cubs are a Professional Baseball franchise based in Chicago, Illinois. The Arizona Diamondbacks (also referred to as the D-backs) are a professional baseball team based in Phoenix Arizona. The Kansas City Royals are a Major League Baseball team based in Kansas City, Missouri. The Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim are a professional baseball team based in Anaheim, California. The Philadelphia Phillies are a Major League Baseball team based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in the United States. For other events named "World Series" see World Series (disambiguation. Six teams are division champions; the remaining two "wild-card" spots are filled by the team in each league that has the best record but is not a division champion (best second-place team). Three rounds of series of games are played to determine the champion:

1. American League Division Series and National League Division Series, each a best-of-five game series;
2. American League Championship Series and National League Championship Series, each a best-of-seven game series played between the surviving teams from the ALDS and NLDS; and
3. World Series, a best-of-seven game series played between the champions of each league. In Major League Baseball, the American League Division Series ( ALDS) determines which two teams from the American League will advance to the American In Major League Baseball, the National League Division Series ( NLDS) determine which two teams from the National League will advance to the National For other events named "World Series" see World Series (disambiguation.

The division winners are seeded 1-3 based on record. The wild-card team is the 4 seed, regardless of its record. The matchup for the first round of the playoffs is usually 1 seed vs. 4 seed and 2 seed vs. 3 seed, unless the wild-card team is from the same division as the 1 seed, in which case the matchup is 1 seed vs. 3 seed and 2 seed vs. 4 seed, as teams from the same division cannot meet in the 1st round. In the first and second round of the playoffs, the better seeded team has home-field advantage, regardless of record.

In the event of a tie in the standings at the close of the regular season, league rules provide for a one-game playoff (with the home field determined by head-to-head record) to determine which of two teams participate in the Division Series. If three teams are involved in a tie, a two-game playoff may be played. If two teams are tied, but a tiebreaker would result in both participating in the Division Series anyway (due to one being division champion and the other being wild card), then no playoff is played and seedings are determined by head-to-head record.

The team belonging to the league that won the mid-season All-Star Game receives home-field advantage in the World Series.

As all playoff series are split between the two teams' home fields, "home field advantage" does not play a significant role unless the series goes to its maximum number of games, in which case the final game takes place at the field of the team holding the advantage.

Stadiums

Main article: List of Major League Baseball stadiums

Unlike some other sports, the exact dimensions of a baseball stadium, other than the configuration of the infield, is not strictly uniform. The following is a list of current and former Major League Baseball stadiums. Baseball parks, therefore, affect both the general ambience as well as the play of the game itself to a greater degree than with any other major sport. Certain parks, such as Wrigley Field, Fenway Park and the newer Oriole Park at Camden Yards are known for their nostalgic aura. Wrigley Field is a Baseball Stadium in Chicago, Illinois, United States that has served as the home ballpark of the Chicago Oriole Park at Camden Yards is a ballpark located in Baltimore Maryland, which was completed in 1992 to replace the aging Memorial Stadium. Certain parks with deeper dimensions and prevailing wind patterns blowing toward home plate favor pitchers, while smaller parks or parks with prevailing winds blowing towards the outfield favor batters. Asymmetrical dimensions in some parks may affect fielding, batting and strategy. Some parks are known for short home runs near the foul poles, others for allowing long-hit balls to center field to be caught for outs. Some, the most extreme example being the old Polo Grounds in upper Manhattan, were known for both. The Polo Grounds was the name given to four different Stadiums in Upper Manhattan, New York City used by Baseball 's New York Giants Manhattan Island, in New York Harbor, is much the largest part of the Borough of Manhattan, one of the Five Boroughs which form the City of New York

Professional baseball in the United States began in the mid-19th century when entrepreneurs and baseball enthusiasts found that people will pay to watch the game played at a high level, requiring the construction of stadiums with grandstands to control attendance. For most of the 19th century, baseball stadiums were generally wooden grandstands constructed quickly over the course of a single offseason. Parks were generally fully owned by the club or the club's owner and investors. As such, they were built not directly within the central business district of a city, but generally a few miles outside of it where land was cheaper and more plentiful. Being an era before strict building codes, stringent liability and emphasis on safety, fires and disasters associated with these stadiums happened frequently.

Philadelphia's Baker Bowl was rebuilt after such a fire in 1895 as the first baseball park constructed primarily of steel and concrete rather than wood, spurring a construction boom within MLB. Baker Bowl is the best-known popular name of a Baseball park that formerly stood in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. By 1915, the 16 teams then existing all played in steel and concrete stadiums known today as the Jewel Box stadiums, and, with few exceptions, would remain in them until the last half of the 20th century. Jewel Box is a term sometimes used in reference to the group of Major League Baseball ballparks built (or re-built after the wooden ballpark era and before the modern Two Jewel Boxes, Fenway Park and Wrigley Field, are still in use today substantially as they were originally built. The last Jewel Box to be built, 1923's Yankee Stadium, was completely reconstructed in the mid-1970s but remains classified as a Jewel Box by most students of baseball history as its general appearance was not substantially changed other than that necessary for modernization. The original Yankee Stadium is a Stadium located in The Bronx in New York City. Jewel Boxes were without exception asymmetrical parks, usually built within the confines of a city block or two in a residential neighborhood a few miles from the city center. Since Jewel Boxes (except for Yankee Stadium) were built during the dead-ball era, most originally featured deep fences and emphasized speed rather than power. The dead-ball era is a Baseball term used to describe the period between 1900 (though some date it to the beginning of baseball) and the emergence of Babe Ruth As the home run became more central to strategy after 1920, most teams pulled fences in to accommodate the power game and its growing popularity with fans over the next several decades.

Governments began to fund the building and maintenance of stadiums throughout the 20th century ostensibly because of the value to the local economy such a stadium provides. Most research, however, shows the impact of stadiums has been widely overstated and does not alone justify the high costs to taxpayers. ^[3] The first such stadium was the massive Cleveland Stadium which began MLB use in 1932. Cleveland Stadium (also known as Lakefront Stadium and Cleveland Municipal Stadium) was a Baseball and American football stadium located in It was also the first park built within the central business district of its home city. More importantly, Cleveland Stadium was the first multi-purpose stadium, built with American football as well as baseball in mind.

In the 1960s and 1970s, virtually all new parks built were multipurpose stadiums whose design was a compromise between the needs of baseball and those of football, with the result of not being ideal for either. The first indoor MLB stadium, the Astrodome, was opened in Houston in 1965 with a semitransparent roof and a grass field. For the aeronautical use see Astrodome (aviation Reliant Astrodome, also known as the Houston Astrodome or simply the Astrodome The glare off of the roof made fielding fly balls nearly impossible and the roof was quickly painted and a new synthetic surface, Astroturf, was installed to replace the grass, which wilted without sunlight. AstroTurf is a brand of Artificial turf. Though the term is a Registered trademark, it is sometimes used as a generic description of any kind Stadium officials nationwide, both at domed and open-air facilities, enjoyed the maintenance benefits of synthetic turf, even as athletes complained about its unnatural, play-affecting and injury-causing properties. As the once-upscale neighborhoods around the old Jewel Box stadiums began to decay, their replacements were generally multipurpose stadiums built in either suburban locations or the central business district. Most of the '60s and '70s multipurpose stadiums shared similar looks and features and are referred to pejoratively as cookie cutter stadiums. Multi-purpose stadiums are a type of Stadium designed for use by multiple teams playing Baseball, American football, soccer, and in some Few baseball-specific stadiums were built in this era, but those that were have outlived their multipurpose brethren (e. g. Kauffman Stadium in Kansas City).

The Sky Dome (now Rogers Centre) opened in Toronto for the 1989 season and featured the first working retractable roof, allowing play no matter what weather conditions existed as in a dome but also allowing for open-air baseball in fair weather. SkyDome redirects here for other uses see SkyDome (disambiguation Toronto (təˈrɒntoʊ colloquially pronounced or) is the largest city in Canada and is the provincial capital of Ontario A retractable roof has since become preferred over pure domed stadiums for those locations where weather cancellations are common, since most players, fans and officials prefer the game to be played outdoors.

Most of the multipurpose-era parks, despite their modern conveniences, were almost universally criticized for being "sterile. " The perception of new parks lacking charm changed radically with the 1992 opening and resounding success of the retro-styled Oriole Park at Camden Yards in Baltimore. Soon, almost all new parks were designed similarly as baseball-specific parks built in similar appearance and function to Jewel Box parks but with modern revenue-enhancing features such as additional luxury boxes and improved concessions and facilities. Most of these new parks are built in a central business district, reversing the suburban trend begun in the 1960s. Unlike many of the Jewel Boxes, most modern MLB parks feature shorter fences near the corners, allowing for more home runs and decreasing the importance of offensive speed.

The building of new stadiums can be controversial, with factors such as cost, tax breaks, and public subsidies playing roles in the debate. Some owners (most recently, the Florida Marlins owners) have also been accused of threatening to move to other cities if their demands for a more modern stadium at government expense are not met. The Florida Marlins are a professional baseball team based in Miami Gardens Florida.

MLB steroid policy

Over most of the course of Major League Baseball, steroid testing was never a major issue. However, after the BALCO steroid scandal, which involved allegations that top baseball players had used illegal performance-enhancing drugs, Major League Baseball finally decided to issue harsher penalties for steroid users. The Bay Area Laboratory Co-Operative also known as BALCO was an American company led by founder and owner Victor Conte. Anabolic steroids, or anabolic-androgenic steroids ( AAS) are a class of Steroid hormones related to the hormone Testosterone. The policy, which was accepted by Major League Baseball players and owners, was issued at the start of the 2005 season and went as follows:

A first positive test resulted in a suspension of 10 games, a second positive test resulted in a suspension of 30 games, the third positive test resulted in a suspension of 60 games, the fourth positive test resulted in a suspension of one full year, and a fifth positive test resulted in a penalty at the commissioner’s discretion. Players were tested at least once per year, with the chance that several players could be tested many times per year.

See: List of Major League Baseball players suspended for steroids

This program replaced the previous steroid testing program under which, for example, no player was even suspended in 2004. In January 2004, Major League Baseball announced a new steroid policy which included random offseason testing and 10-day suspensions for first-time offenders 30-days Under the old policy, which was established in 2002, a first-time offense would only result in treatment for the player, and the player would not even be named. The 2005 agreement changed this rule so that first-time offenders were named and suspended.

In November 2005, MLB owners and players approved even tougher penalties for positive tests than the ones in place during the 2005 season. Under the new rules, a first positive test would result in a 50-game suspension, a second positive test would result in a 100-game suspension, and a third positive test would result in a lifetime suspension from MLB.

These new penalties are much harsher than the previous ones. The new steroid policy finally brings MLB closer in line with international rules, as well as with the NFL, which has long taken a tough stance on those caught using steroids. The National Football League ( NFL) is the largest professional American football league.

MLB's previous reluctance to take a hard line on drugs (as many other sports featured far stricter testing and penalties) was widely seen as one of the main reasons why baseball has been dropped from the Olympics, effective in 2012. The Olympic Games is an international Multi-sport event established for both summer and winter games

On March 30, 2006, Bud Selig launched an investigation on the alleged steroid use by players such as Barry Bonds, Jason Giambi, Mark McGwire and Gary Sheffield as the weight of books like Game of Shadows emerged. Events 240 BC - 1st recorded Perihelion passage of Halley's Comet. Year 2006 ( MMVI) was a Common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. Allan Huber "Bud" Selig Jr (born July 30, 1934 in Milwaukee Wisconsin) is the Commissioner of Major League Baseball and has Barry Lamar Bonds (born July 24 1964 is a Major League Baseball Outfielder who is currently a Free agent. Mark David McGwire (born October 1 1963 in Pomona California) is a former professional baseball player who played the majority of his Major League career with the Gary Antonian Sheffield (born November 18, 1968 in Tampa Florida) is a Major League Baseball Designated hitter and Outfielder Game of Shadows is a bestselling non-fiction book published on March 23, 2006 and written by Mark Fainaru-Wada and Lance Williams, reporters The inquiry into steroids' use in baseball is expected to go back no further than 2002, when MLB started testing players for performance-enhancing drugs. On December 13, 2007, former Sen. Events 1294 - Saint Celestine V abdicates the papacy after only five months Celestine hoped to return to his previous life Year 2007 ( MMVII) was a Common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar in the 21st century. George Mitchell, who investigated this issue, released his report that has names of MLB Players that could, or have taken, performance-enhancing drugs such as steroids. George Mitchell may refer to George J Mitchell (born 1933 former Senate majority leader (D-Maine and former chairman of Disney George Mitchell The Report to the Commissioner of Baseball of an Independent Investigation into the Illegal Use of Steroids and Other Performance Enhancing Substances by Players in Major League Baseball

References

• MLB Owners, Players Reach Deal on Steroid Testing
• Baseball Officials Announce Tougher Steroids Policy
• MLB Steroid Policy Outlined

Major League Baseball ethnic demographics

At the start of the 2007 season, there were 750 players on opening day rosters, of which were:

• 565 (75%) U. S. -born (including Puerto Rico):
  • 464 (62%) Caucasian
  • 68 (9%) African-American
  • 33 (4. 5%) Hispanic

• 185 (25%) foreign-born:
  • 149 (20%) Latin American (75 from Dominican Republic; 47 from Venezuela; 10 from Mexico; 6 from Panama; 2 from Colombia; 2 from the Netherlands Antilles; 1 from Nicaragua)
  • 18 (2. 4%) Asian (14 from Japan; 3 from South Korea; 1 from Taiwan)
  • 18 (2. 6%) Other (15 from Canada; 3 from Germany)

At the start of the 2008 season, there were 750 players on opening day rosters, of which were:

• 584 (77. 8%) U. S. -born (including Puerto Rico):
  • 492 (65. 6%) Caucasian
  • 73 (9. 7%) African-American
  • 19 (2. 5%) Hispanic
• 166 (22. 1%) foreign-born:
  • 147 (19. 6%) Latin American (76 from Dominican Republic; 44 from Venezuela; 9 from Mexico; 6 from Panama; 3 from Cuba; 4 from Colombia; 2 from the Netherlands Antilles; 3 from Nicaragua)
  • 19 (2. 5%) Asian (14 from Japan; 3 from South Korea; 2 from Taiwan)

The first Latin American-born man to play in the big leagues was Luis Castro from Colombia, who played for the Philadelphia Athletics in 1902. Moses Fleetwood Walker was the first African-American to play MLB in 1884. In 1947, Jackie Robinson became the first African-American to play in the Major Leagues since 1889, breaking the “color-barrier” as a member of the Brooklyn Dodgers. Masanori Murakami was the first Asian professional baseball player in North America, debuting in 1964 from Japan.

MLB blackout policy

MLB Blackout map

Major League Baseball has several blackout rules. In Broadcasting, a blackout is when certain programming usually Sports, cannot be televised in a certain Media market. Games are blacked out based on two criteria:

• A local broadcaster has priority to televise games of the team in their market over national broadcasters. For example, at one time TBS showed many Atlanta Braves games nationally and internationally in Canada. TBS is an American Cable television network that shows sports and a variety of programming with a focus on comedy Fox Sports Net (FSN) also shows many games in other areas. The Fox Sports Regional Networks, or simply Fox Sports Net (FSN are a collection of cable TV Regional sports networks owned and operated by News If the Braves played a team that FSN or another local broadcaster showed, the local station will have the broadcast rights for its own local market, while TBS would have been blacked out in the same market for the duration of the game. A market that has a local team playing in a weekday ESPN or ESPN2 game and is shown on a local station will see ESPNEWS, or, in the past, another game scheduled on ESPN or ESPN2 at the same time (if ESPN or ESPN2 operates a regional coverage broadcasting and operates a game choice), or will be subject to an alternative programming feed. ESPN, originally an acronym for Entertainment and Sports Programming Network, is an American Cable television network dedicated to ESPN2 debuted on October 1, 1993, as a sister station of ESPN. ESPNews (word origin grammatical blend of ESPN and News, spoken as "ESPN news" and trademarked as "ESPNEWS" MLB's streaming Internet video service is also subject to the same blackout rules.
• FOX has certain rights for afternoon MLB games on Saturdays, and ESPN has the same rights for night games on Sundays. Major League Baseball on FOX or MLB on FOX is a weekly presentation of Major League Baseball games on the Fox television network ESPN, originally an acronym for Entertainment and Sports Programming Network, is an American Cable television network dedicated to Sunday Night Baseball is the Major League Baseball game of the week that is televised Sunday nights at 8 p Broadcasters cannot show games of in-market teams, regardless of whether the game is home or away, if the game of the local team has a certain start time (usually there are no other games scheduled at these times). This, at least theoretically, is to make people watch the out-of-market game on ESPN or FOX. The reasoning is that since people will not be able to watch their favorite team, they may be willing to settle for some baseball, even if it involves teams they are not as excited about. This results in higher ratings for the national broadcaster by pulling baseball fans away from watching their own team. Many baseball fans feel this practice is unfair.

All of the Continental United States, except for some small, remote, isolated patches, are within at least one team's blackout territory. The term continental United States refers to the 48 contiguous states located on the North American continent south of the border with Canada plus the District Some areas may lie within the territories of two or more. As the accompanying map shows, teams generally have exclusive territorial rights only over their home cities' immediate area, but even then there are exceptions. For example, all of Texas, including the Houston metropolitan area as well as the Dallas/Fort Worth Metroplex, as well as the entire state of Louisiana, is within both the Astros' and Rangers' blackout areas. Texas ( is a state geographically located in the South Central United States and is also known as the Lone Star State. The Dallas – Fort Worth – Arlington metropolitan area, a title designated by the U The State of Louisiana ( or, État de Louisiane, pronounced) is a state located in the southern region of the United States of America Outside of the immediate area, several teams may exercise blackout rights within the same territory. The entire state of Iowa, for example, is within the blackout areas of the Cubs, White Sox, Brewers, Twins, Cardinals, and Royals. The State of Iowa ( is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States of America. Southern Nevada likewise lies within six MLB teams' blackout territories (Athletics, Giants, Angels, Dodgers, Padres, Diamondbacks). Nevada ( is a state located in the western region of the United States of America. Areas of far western Kansas represent an anomaly; although being geographically closer to Denver than Kansas City, they are included in the blackout territory for the Royals and not the Rockies. The City and County of Denver (pronounced /ˈdɛnvɚ/ is the Capital and the most populous city of Colorado, in the United States Kansas City Missouri only Items for the metro area Kansas City Kansas or North Kansas City MO should go on their respective pages

Canadian MLB Blackout map

The Toronto Blue Jays' blackout territory includes all of Canada. Country to "Dominion of Canada" or "Canadian Federation" or anything else please read the Talk Page However, they must share British Columbia and Alberta with the Seattle Mariners, Saskatchewan and Manitoba with the Minnesota Twins, and the Maritimes (New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, and Prince Edward Island) with the Boston Red Sox. British Columbia (ˌbrɪtɨʃ kəˈlʌmbiə ( BC) ( (la Colombie-Britannique C Alberta (ælˈbɝtə is one of Canada's prairie provinces. It became a province on September 1 1905 Saskatchewan (səˈskætʃəwən) is a prairie province in Canada, which has an area of 588276 Manitoba (English ˌmænɨˈtoʊbə French /manitoba/ is a province of Canada, spanning 647797 square kilometres (250116  sq mi of North America The Maritime provinces, called the Maritimes in local English (or the Canadian Maritimes by non-Canadians is a region of Eastern Canada New Brunswick ( French: Nouveau-Brunswick /nuvobʁɔnzwik/ is one of Canada 's three Maritime provinces and is the only constitutionally Nova Scotia (ˌnəʊvəˈskəʊʃə ( Latin for New Scotland; Alba Nuadh Nouvelle-Écosse is a Canadian province located on Canada 's Prince Edward Island (ˌprɪns ˌɛdwɚd ˈaɪlɨnd ( PEI or P In the past, the province of Quebec was not included in Toronto's territory, as it belonged to the Montreal Expos exclusively. Quebec (kwɨˈbɛk Franchise history Creation of the franchise In 1960 Montreal lost its International League team the Montreal Royals (an affiliate of Toronto and Montreal shared all territory outside of Ontario and Quebec, along with the aforementioned exceptions. Ontario (ɒnˈtɛrioʊ is a province located in the central part of Canada, the largest by population and second largest after Quebec

Consumer devices that enable television subscribers to transmit their home television feed outside their host area to a remote location over the Internet, a practice called placeshifting, have drawn the ire of MLB. The Internet is a global system of interconnected Computer networks MLB's position is that subscribers who wish to watch MLB telecasts while traveling either settle for the local telecasts available or subscribe to MLB's own broadcasts for an additional fee. Consumer advocates insist the practice is legal, since the remoted content is already purchased and is merely placeshifted by the subscriber; they claim MLB is asking fans to pay twice for the same content. MLB counters that travelers utilizing placeshifting technology are undercutting the blackout rights MLB grants to local and national broadcasters, as well as MLB's own internet service. [2]

In 2009, MLB plans to launch a Baseball Channel on basic cable similar to the NFL Network. As part of the new network, MLB president Bob Dupuy has told owners to reduce their blackouts due to outrage amongst fans and letters pouring into MLB's offices.

Radio blackouts

In MLB there are no radio blackouts, although ESPN Radio has exclusive rights to the World Series and only the flagship stations of the two participating ballclubs can originate coverage, though their broadcasts are also available on XM Satellite Radio. In Broadcasting, a flagship station is the station which originates a Broadcast network, or a particular Radio show or TV show, primarily All other network affiliates of the two clubs must carry the ESPN Radio feed, and they may not even be able to do so if they compete with an ESPN Radio affiliate in the same market. The two flagships must broadcast ESPN Radio national commercials (though they can run live commercial reads during broadcasts and sell ads during typically extended pre/post-game shows).

Additionally, radio stations (including flagships) may not include MLB games in the live Internet streams of their station programming. The Internet is a global system of interconnected Computer networks Streaming multimedia is Multimedia that is constantly received by and normally presented to an end-user while it is being delivered by a streaming provider (the (MLB makes its own streams of the team networks available for a fee. ) Some stations will replace the game with a recorded message explaining why the game cannot be heard on their stream. Others will simply stream the station's regularly scheduled programming that is being preempted by the game.

National broadcasts

Main article: Major League Baseball television contracts

Major League Baseball is in the transition to a new set of television contracts. The following is a detailed description of the various Television networks (both broadcast and cable) rights fees and announcers who have called Major League The league has three current broadcast partners for the 2007 season and beyond.

It was announced on July 11, 2006 that FOX Sports will remain with MLB through 2013 and broadcast FOX Saturday Baseball throughout the entire season, rather than the previous May to September format. Events 911 - Signing of the Treaty of Saint-Clair-sur-Epte between Charles the Simple and Rollo of Normandy. Year 2006 ( MMVI) was a Common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. See also Fox Sports (Australia and Fox Sports Net. Fox Sports is a division of the Fox Broadcasting Company (part of Major League Baseball on FOX or MLB on FOX is a weekly presentation of Major League Baseball games on the Fox television network FOX will also hold rights to the All-Star Game each season. The Major League Baseball All-Star Game, also popularly known as the "Midsummer Classic" is an annual Baseball game between players from the National League FOX will also alternate League Championship Series broadcasts, broadcasting the American League Championship Series in odd-numbered years and the National League Championship Series in even-numbered years as part of the new contract. In Mathematics, the parity of an object states whether it is even or odd In Mathematics, the parity of an object states whether it is even or odd FOX will continue to broadcast all games of the World Series, which will begin on a Tuesday evening rather than the current Saturday evening format. For other events named "World Series" see World Series (disambiguation.

ESPN will continue to broadcast Major League Baseball through 2013 as well, beginning with national Opening Day coverage. ESPN, originally an acronym for Entertainment and Sports Programming Network, is an American Cable television network dedicated to ESPN will continue to broadcast Sunday Night Baseball, Monday Night Baseball, Wednesday Night Baseball, and Baseball Tonight. Sunday Night Baseball is the Major League Baseball game of the week that is televised Sunday nights at 8 p Monday Night Baseball is a live game telecast of Major League Baseball that airs most Monday nights during the regular season on ESPN and is also available Wednesday Night Baseball is a live game telecast of Major League Baseball that airs every Wednesday night during the regular season on ESPN and is Baseball Tonight is a Sports Emmy Award -winning program that airs on ESPN, and is the only nightly highlight show devoted to Major League Baseball ESPN also has rights to the Home Run Derby at the All-Star Game each July. The Home Run Derby is an event played prior to the Major League Baseball All-Star Game.

TBS will air Sunday afternoon regular season games (non-exclusive) nationally from 2008 to 2013. TBS is an American Cable television network that shows sports and a variety of programming with a focus on comedy Major League Baseball on TBS is a broadcasting agreement between Major League Baseball and Turner Sports to broadcast baseball via Cable television In 2007, TBS began its exclusive rights to any tiebreaker games that determine division or wild card champions at the end of each regular season in the event of a tie with one playoff spot remaining, as well as exclusive coverage of the Division Series round of the playoffs. In Baseball, the Division Series is the official name for the first round of the Major League Baseball playoffs TBS carries the League Championship Series that are not included under FOX's television agreement; TBS shows the National League Championship Series in odd-numbered years and the American League Championship Series in even-numbered years as part of the new contract through 2013. The League Championship Series ( LCS) is the official name for a round of playoffs in Major League Baseball which has been conducted since 1969. In Mathematics, the parity of an object states whether it is even or odd In Mathematics, the parity of an object states whether it is even or odd

In January 2009, MLB plans to launch the MLB Network which will air 16 live games that year. MLB Network is a television Specialty channel, primarily owned by Major League Baseball, set to launch on January 1, 2009 into over (See MLB Network for source. MLB Network is a television Specialty channel, primarily owned by Major League Baseball, set to launch on January 1, 2009 into over )

References

• Fox, TBS have seven-year, $3 billion TV deal with MLB
• MLB extends TV agreement with ESPN through 2013
• MLB websides by teams
• USA Today: TBS drops Braves games, joins Fox in rich TV deal
• MLB Standings: Regular Season
• MLB News: TBS signs on to air LCS games
• MLB Standings: Wild Card

International Broadcasting of Major League Baseball

• ESPN Deportes televises a large number of Major League Baseball games in Spanish, which air throughout Latin America. ESPN Deportes is a Cable television and radio network dedicated to broadcasting sports-related programming 24 hours a day in the Spanish language
• Five shows MLB on Sunday and Wednesday in the United Kingdom, (including the All-Star Game and the Post Season Games, but not including Spring Training) usually starting at 1 a. The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom, the UK or Britain,is a Sovereign state located The Major League Baseball All-Star Game, also popularly known as the "Midsummer Classic" is an annual Baseball game between players from the National League In Major League Baseball, spring training is a series of practices and exhibition games preceding the start of the Regular season. m. BST. It is currently presented by Johnny Gould and Josh Chetwynd as "MLB on Five"
• NASN broadcast Major League Baseball several times a week to the United Kingdom, Republic of Ireland, Scandinavia, and other parts of Western Europe on digital cable and digital satellite. For the radio/TV presenter and sponsorship practitioner see Jonny Gould. Joshua Stephen Chetwynd is the baseball analyst for Five a UK TV channel where he works with Jonny Gould on MLB on Five. MLB on Five is a sports television programme on the British Five Network featuring live coverage of Major League Baseball games NASN, the North American Sports Network, is an European sports network focusing on professional sports of the United States and Canada. The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom, the UK or Britain,is a Sovereign state located Ireland ( Irish: Éire, ˈeːrʲə is a country in north-western Europe. Terminology and usage As a cultural term "Scandinavia" has no official definition and is subject to usage by those who identify with the culture in question as well Western Europe at its most general meaning means 'all the countries in the West of Europe ' Satellite television is Television delivered by the means of Communications satellites as compared to conventional Terrestrial television and Cable
• TSN, Rogers Sportsnet, Manitoba South Sports and CBC televise Toronto Blue Jays games in Canada. The Sports Network (commonly known as TSN) is a Canadian English language Cable television Specialty channel and is Canada's leading Rogers Sportsnet (often referred to only as Sportsnet) is a Canadian English language Cable television Sports Specialty channel Sportsnet also carries ESPN Sunday Night Baseball, the All-Star Game, most playoff games, and the World Series. ESPN, originally an acronym for Entertainment and Sports Programming Network, is an American Cable television network dedicated to Sunday Night Baseball is the Major League Baseball game of the week that is televised Sunday nights at 8 p For other events named "World Series" see World Series (disambiguation. Sportsnet Pacific also carries a package of Seattle Mariners games simulcasted from FSN Northwest. FSN Northwest is a United States regional sports network available in Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Montana, Alaska,
• Major League Baseball produces its own in-house telecasts of the World Series, which are distributed to its international audience. There is a single video feed and broadcasts in several languages.
• Fuji Television, TBS, NTV(Only games at Tokyo Dome),NHK and Nippon Broadcasting System (All in Japan)
• FTV and ESPN Taiwan broadcast Major League games in Taiwan daily, mainly focusing on the Yankees games because of the success of native favorite Chien-Ming Wang. is a Japanese Television station based in Daiba, Minato Tokyo, Japan, also known as or CX. For other uses see TBS. ( or TBS, is a Television network in Tokyo, Japan. ( is a Television network in Shiodome area of Minato Tokyo, Japan owned by the Yomiuri Shimbun. Tokyo Dome (東京ドーム Tōkyō Dōmu,) is a 55000-seat Also the famous band X Japan held their three-day long reunion concerts there in the end of March 2008 or Japan Broadcasting Corporation, is Japan 's Public broadcaster. Nippon Hōsō redirects here For Nippon Hōsō Kyōkai see NHK. Chien-Ming Wang ( Pinyin: Wáng Jiànmín born March 31, 1980 in Tainan, Taiwan) is a Taiwanese Starting pitcher for

Historical major leagues

In 1969, the official centennial of professional baseball, the Special Baseball Records Committee appointed by Major League Baseball recognized six "major leagues" in history, four defunct and two still in operation.

• 1876 — : National League (National League of Professional Base Ball Clubs)
• 1882 — 1891: American Association
• 1884: Union Association
• 1890: Players League
• 1901 — : American League
• 1914 — 1915: Federal League

Some researchers contend that some other leagues deserve "major league" status, too. The National League of Professional Baseball Clubs, or simply the National League ( NL) is the older of two leagues constituting Major League Baseball This article refers to the former Baseball major league that existed from 1882 to 1891 The Union Association was a league in Major League Baseball which lasted for only one season in 1884. The Players' National League of Professional Base Ball Clubs, popularly known as the Players' League (sometimes rendered as Players League) was a short-lived but The American League of Professional Baseball Clubs, or simply the American League ( AL) is one of two leagues that make up Major League Baseball in The Federal League was the last major attempt to establish an independent major Professional baseball league in the United States

• 1871 — 1875: National Association of Professional Base Ball Players or National Association (NA)
• 1920 — 1948: significant Negro Leagues

Indeed, the Official Encyclopedia of Baseball published in 1951 and revised since then recognized the NA as a major league. The National Association of Professional Base Ball Players (NAPBBP or simply the National Association (NA was founded in 1871 and lasted through the 1875 season Part of the History of baseball in the United States series The Negro leagues were American professional Baseball leagues Whether to cover the National Association as a major league is a recurring and crucial matter of difference in historical work on American Baseball &mdashthat is But a new Baseball Encyclopedia project made possible by the digital computer promised publication of far more detailed playing records.

• 1900 Western League. Many of its players were former National League players and future American League players, so some historians have argued that the American league should be recongized from 1900 rather than 1901.

In general, the SBRC ruled that the other leagues kept playing records inconsistently or lacked significant direct impact on the major leagues.

Specifically, the following can be said of these leagues:

• The National Association was the direct precursor of the NL, six of whose eight charter members came from the NA of 1875, and it is generally considered the first professional league. The standard position is that it was a "transitional" organization not quite up to major league standards. The NL was a wholly new entity that took the best of the NA and imposed a discipline that was lacking in the failed NA.
• The AL of 1900 was located in only four of the eight cities it would occupy in the following year. It accepted minor status and did not conduct raids on major league rosters. That changed in 1901.
• The Negro Leagues are the toughest call. Some historians have labeled their time the era of "shadow ball," a segregated parallel to the (all-white) major leagues. The fact that many young players were able to enter MLB in the late 1940s and early 1950s, and have immediate impact, would seem to argue for major status. On the other hand, it may be argued that the Negro Leagues were closer in quality of play to the highest levels of minor league ball such as the Pacific Coast League. The Pacific Coast League (PCL is a Minor league baseball league operating in the West and Midwest of the United States. It is a debate that has no clear resolution, which is why most historians are content to simply regard them as a category unto themselves.

At the same time, some historians question whether the Union Association of 1884 should be considered "major," because it had only one major-league caliber team (St. The Union Association was a league in Major League Baseball which lasted for only one season in 1884. Louis) and several clubs failed during the season mid-season, others taking their places. Aside from the official MLB recognition which the Unions enjoy as a matter of fact, any argument for major status rests chiefly on the Union Association's direct impact on the other majors, due to roster-raiding. None of the "non-major" other leagues listed here could make that claim.

The Sporting News, a weekly established in 1886 and later an important publisher of books, did not recognize the Federal League of 1914-1915 for almost ninety years. Sporting News (previously The Sporting News, and known colloquially as TSN) is an American -based Sports The Federal League was the last major attempt to establish an independent major Professional baseball league in the United States

Other major baseball leagues

Numerous major professional baseball leagues exist throughout the world. The most prominent of these and the most directly comparable to Major League Baseball in real terms (number of teams, organization, funding and caliber of play) are the Central League and Pacific League of Nippon Professional Baseball. The or is one of Japan 's two major professional Baseball leagues the winner of which plays the Japan Series against the winner of the other league the The or is one of Japan 's two major professional Baseball leagues the other being the Central League. Nippon Professional Baseball or NPB is the highest level of Baseball in Japan. Many Japanese baseball teams have played and continue to play exhibition games against their American counterparts, and a number of players have career numbers in both the Japan Professional Baseball League and Major League Baseball. An exhibition game (also known as an exhibition match or simply exhibition, or a demonstration or demo event is a sporting event

See also

Further information: Category:Years in baseball

• 1972 Major League Baseball strike
• 1981 Major League Baseball strike
• 1994 Major League Baseball strike
• 19th century National League teams
• Continental League - proposed by William Shea as a "third major league"; folded before play began, but forced majors to expand. The baseball strike was the first players' strike in Major League Baseball history The 1981 Major League Baseball strike was the fifth work stoppage in Major League Baseball since the 1972 Major League Baseball strike The 1994 Major League baseball strike was the eighth work stoppage in Baseball history as well as the fourth in-season work stoppage The following is a list of United States Major League Baseball teams that played in the National League in the 19th century. The Continental League (or formally the Continental League of Professional Baseball Clubs) was a proposed third major league for Baseball, announced in 1959 and scheduled William Alfred "Bill" Shea ( June 21, 1907 — October 2, 1991) was a lawyer and a name partner of the prominent law firm of Shea
• Current Major League Baseball Players by Nationality
• History of baseball, for a detailed history of the Major Leagues. Aruba Sidney Ponson Australia Glenn Williams Trent Durrington The history of Baseball can be broken down into various aspects by era by locale by organizational-type game evolution as well as by political and cultural influence
• Index of Professional Sports teams in the United States and Canada
• List of current Major League Baseball announcers
• List of Major League Rivalries
• List of MLB seasons
• List of Major League Baseball free agents
• Major League Baseball television contracts
• Major League Baseball transactions
• Major League Baseball Draft
• MLB All-Century Team
• MLB All-Time Team
• Major League Baseball scandals
• Major North American professional sports leagues
• Minor League Baseball, for a list of Minor League teams. This is a complete listing of professional sports teams in both the United States and Canada. The following a list of current (through the 2008 season) Major League Baseball announcers for each individual team This is a List of Major League Baseball rivalries A rivalry in this sense is defined by two teams that are regularly scheduled to play each other and have been so for at This is a list of seasons of Major League Baseball. 1870s 1876 • 1877 • 1878 • 1879 1880s The following is a detailed description of the various Television networks (both broadcast and cable) rights fees and announcers who have called Major League Major League Baseball transactions are changes made to the roster of a major league team during or after the season The First-Year Player Draft, also known as the Rule 4 Draft, is Major League Baseball 's primary mechanism for assigning amateur baseball players from high schools In 1999 MasterCard sponsored the Major League Baseball All-Century Team. The Major League Baseball All-Time Team were chosen in 1997 to comprise the top manager and top player in each of thirteen positional categories across There have been many dramatic on-and-off-field moments in over 130 years of Major League Baseball. Part of the History of baseball series Minor league baseball is a hierarchy of Professional baseball leagues in North
• Negro League baseball
• Pesäpallo (Finnish baseball)

Players, ownership, ballparks and officials

• Baseball Commissioners
• List of highest paid baseball players
• List of major league players with articles
• List of Major League Baseball principal owners
• List of Major League Baseball stadiums
• List of Major League Baseball retired numbers
• List of Major League Baseball teams by payroll
• List of TV markets and major sports teams

Statistics, milestones and records

• 20-20-20 Club
• 300 win club
• 300 Wins-3000 K's club
• 3000 hit club
• 3000 strikeout club
• 300-300 club
• 30-30 club and 40-40 club
• 50 home run club
• 50 stolen bases and 50 doubles
• 500 home run club
• All time career wins by a manager
• Baseball Hall of Fame
• Baseball statistics: BA, ERA, etc. Part of the History of baseball in the United States series The Negro leagues were American professional Baseball leagues Pesäpallo (Boboll also referred to as " Finnish baseball " is a fast-moving Ball Sport that's quite often referred to as the national sport The Commissioner of Baseball is the chief executive of Major League Baseball. Career Earnings The following chart lists the Major League Baseball players who have earned the greatest total salary over their career (through the end of and not This list consists of players who have appeared in Major League Baseball. Current Major League Baseball team owners and the principal corporate entities that operate the clubs The following is a list of current and former Major League Baseball stadiums. Major League baseball has retired various Uniform numbers in its history ensuring that they will always be associated with one player of note This is a list of the 30 Major League Baseball teams from the 2008 season ranked by total team salary In Major League Baseball, the 300 win club is a term applied to the group of Pitchers who have won 300 or more games in their careers In Major League Baseball, the 300 Wins-3000 K's club is an informal term applied to the group of Pitchers who have won 300 or more games and struck In Major League Baseball, the 3000 Hit Club is an informal term applied to the group of players who have made 3000 or more career base hits. In Major League Baseball, the 3000 strikeout club is an informal term applied to the group of Pitchers who have struck out 3000 or more batters in their In Major League Baseball, the 300-300 club is a grouping of players who have hit at least 300 Home runs and collected at least 300 Stolen bases in their The 30-30 club is a grouping of Major League Baseball players who have reached the 30 Home run and 30 Stolen base plateaus in the same season The 40-40 club is a term coined by sportswriters to distinguish Major League Baseball players who accumulate a total of both 40 Home runs and 40 Stolen bases In Major League Baseball, the 50 home run club is an informal term applied to the group of players who have hit 50 or more Home runs in a single season The 50-50 Club in the context of Major League Baseball refers to the group of players who achieve 50 Stolen bases and 50 doubles in one season In Major League Baseball, the 500 Home Run Club is an informal term applied to the group of players who have hit 500 or more career Home runs The first member of the This is a list of the Top 15 MLB career wins by a manager. completed [[September 28] 2008 games 2008 record in parentheses] Due to their length of Statistics play an important role in summarizing Baseball performance and evaluating players in the Sport. Batting average is a Statistic in both Cricket and Baseball measuring the performance of cricket batsmen and baseball hitters, respectively In Baseball statistics, earned run average ( ERA) is the Mean of Earned runs given up by a Pitcher per nine Innings pitched
• Batting title
• Hitting for the cycle
• Hitting streak
• Home run in final at-bat
• Home run in first at-bat
• List of attendance figures at domestic professional sports leagues - Major League Baseball in a global context (31,000 per match)
• List of lifetime home run leaders through history
• List of Major League Baseball no-hitters
• List of major league players with 2,000 hits
• List of MLB individual streaks
• List of most common Major League Baseball post-season matchups
• List of most experienced baseball players never to play in a World Series
• Major League Baseball attendance records
• Major League Baseball franchise post-season droughts
• Major League Baseball home run milestones
• Major League Baseball titles leaders
• Major League Baseball titles streaks
• MLB Single Season Records
• Perfect game
• Triple crown
• Unassisted triple play

Post-season awards

• Comeback Player of the Year Award
• Cy Young Award
• Edgar Martinez Award
• Hank Aaron Award
• Manager of the Year Award
• Most Valuable Player Award
• Rawlings Gold Glove Award
• Rolaids Relief Man of the Year Award
• Rookie of the Year Award
• Silver Sluggers
• The Sporting News Reliever of the Year Award (prior to 2001, TSN Fireman of the Year)

In-season awards

• Player of the Month
• Player of the Week

Exhibition and playoffs

• AL Wildcard winners (since 1994)
• All-Star Game
• American League Championship Series (ALCS)
• American League Division Series (ALDS)
• American League pennant winners 1901-68
• MLB China Series
• MLB division winners (since 1969)
• MLB Japan Opening Day 2008
• National League Championship Series (NLCS)
• National League Division Series (NLDS)
• National League pennant winners 1876-1900
• National League pennant winners 1901-68
• NL Wildcard winners (since 1994)
• One Game Playoffs
• Spring training
• World Baseball Classic
• World Series

References

External links

• Major League Baseball
• Baseball Think Factory
• The Hardball Times
• Baseball Prospectus
• ArmchairGM MLB Portal
• HaveBalls.Net Baseball news
• Ballparks.com
• ESPN.com - Baseball Index
• Aerial and Satellite Photography of Amercian League Stadiums from SightseeBySpace. Batting average is a Statistic in both Cricket and Baseball measuring the performance of cricket batsmen and baseball hitters, respectively In Baseball, a player hits for the cycle when he hits a single, a double, a triple and a Home run in the same game though not necessarily In Baseball, a hitting streak refers to the consecutive number of official games in which a player gets at least one base hit. A Home run is a play in the sport of Baseball. Of the many thousands of Major league baseball players over 130 years a small number have accomplished this feat Home run in first at-bat Facts Twenty-five of these players hit their Home run on the first major league pitch they ever saw The table below lists domestic professional Sports leagues from around the world by total attendances for the last completed season for which data is available The following is a chronology of the top ten leaders in lifetime Home runs in Major League Baseball. This is a list of No-hitters in Major League Baseball history. Below is the list of 254 Major League Baseball players who have reached the 2000 hit milestone during their career in MLB The following is a list of notable individual streaks achieved in Major League Baseball. This is a list of most common Major League Baseball post-season matchups: World Series matchups 1 The following players have played or pitched in the most regular season Major League Baseball games without appearing in the World Series. Highest season home totals by team Top-ten highest home attendance totals Progression of the home field attendance record Largest This is a list of Major League Baseball franchise postseason and World Series droughts through the most recently completed baseball season (2008 In Major League Baseball, the 500 Home Run Club is an informal term applied to the group of players who have hit 500 or more career Home runs The first member of the At the end of each Major League Baseball season the league leaders of various statistical categories are announced At the end of each Major League Baseball season the league leaders of various statistical categories are announced Records are for post 1900 only and need to be verified by a reference source preferably the Elias Book of Baseball Records. A perfect game is defined by Major League Baseball as a game in which a Pitcher (or combination of pitchers pitches a victory that lasts a minimum For other uses of this term see Triple crown In Baseball, the Triple Crown refers to A batter who (at season's end leads In Baseball, an unassisted triple play occurs when a defensive player makes all three putouts by himself in one continuous play without any teammates touching the ball In Baseball, the Cy Young Award is an honor given annually to the best Pitcher in Major League Baseball (one each for American and National The Edgar Martínez Award is presented annually to the most outstanding Designated hitter in the American League. The Hank Aaron Award is an annual award in Major League Baseball awarded to the top hitter in each league For manager award presented by The Sporting News see The Sporting News Manager of the Year Award, and for English Football manager awards see FA Premier League Manager The Most Valuable Player Award (commonly known as the MVP award is an annual award given to one outstanding player in each league of Major League Baseball. Rawlings is a sports equipment manufacturing company in the United States. For the award given to amateur boxers see Golden Gloves. In American Baseball, the Rawlings Gold Glove Award, usually referred to In Major League Baseball, the Rolaids Relief Man of the Year Award, first awarded in, is a distinction given to the top Relief pitcher in each league at the end of In Major League Baseball, the Rookie of the Year Award is given annually to one player from each league as voted upon by the Baseball Writers Association of America The The Sporting News Reliever of the Year Award was established in 1960 by The Sporting News (TSN as TSN Fireman of the Year Award The Player of the Month award is a Major League Baseball award named by each league every month of the regular season The Player of the Week award is a Major League Baseball award named by each of the American and National Leagues each Week of the Regular The wild card was established for Major League Baseball 's playoffs in 1994 with the intention of helping the best teams that did not win their division to still have The Major League Baseball All-Star Game, also popularly known as the "Midsummer Classic" is an annual Baseball game between players from the National League In Major League Baseball, the American League Division Series ( ALDS) determines which two teams from the American League will advance to the American The Major League Baseball China Series (or MLB China Series for short was a series of two Spring training games played by the San Diego Padres and This is a list of division champions in Major League Baseball since 1969. The Major League Baseball Opening Series Japan 2008 (or MLB Japan Series 2008 for short was played on March 25 and 26 2008 in Tokyo, Japan. In Major League Baseball, the National League Division Series ( NLDS) determine which two teams from the National League will advance to the National The wild card was established for Major League Baseball 's playoffs in 1994 with the intention of helping the best teams that did not win their division to still have A one-game playoff or pennant playoff is a Tiebreaker in certain professional sports to determine which of two teams tied in the final standings will qualify In Major League Baseball, spring training is a series of practices and exhibition games preceding the start of the Regular season. The World Baseball Classic, sometimes abbreviated WBC, is an international Baseball tournament first held in March 2006. For other events named "World Series" see World Series (disambiguation. com
• Aerial and Satellite Photography of National League Stadiums from SightseeBySpace. com
• Baseball History Site
• MLB Power Rankings