About
Baseball has been called America's national pastime since the 1850s. The modern game was codified by Alexander Cartwright in 1845; the first professional league (National League) formed in 1876. Major League Baseball (MLB) runs a grueling 162-game season, culminating in the World Series — one of North America's most prestigious championships.
Baseball pioneered the use of advanced statistics (sabermetrics) in sports — the 'Moneyball' revolution (Oakland Athletics, early 2000s) used analytics to compete with wealthier teams, transforming how all sports evaluate talent. Baseball also has an extraordinary history of African American pioneers, from Jackie Robinson's integration of MLB in 1947 to Henry Aaron's home run record.
# Top 10 Baseball facts
- 1Jackie Robinson integrated MLB in 1947 — enduring death threats and abuse to break baseball's color barrier
- 2The 'Moneyball' revolution in baseball pioneered the use of statistics that now pervades every major sport
- 3Babe Ruth hit 714 home runs — a record that stood for 39 years — while also pitching to an 0.87 ERA
Fascinating Facts
- ◆Jackie Robinson integrated MLB in 1947 — enduring death threats and abuse to break baseball's color barrier
- ◆The 'Moneyball' revolution in baseball pioneered the use of statistics that now pervades every major sport
- ◆Babe Ruth hit 714 home runs — a record that stood for 39 years — while also pitching to an 0.87 ERA
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