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Show : ' , \ , . ORIGIN OF BASEBALL . I " While 'hIle hIle ' baseball .as as . , as we know it is a sport of compara compara- comparatively comparatively comparatively - i , tossed ball ballpo ballwas ballrwas po powas tively recent development , a game in which a was batted with a rude club has been traced back to the14th the ' . The present American gamewas gamewas game 14th 3.4th 34th . century 'in in n Europe _ _ . . _ . Was probably yi-uuauly yi uuauly - ' an cm outgrowth i/m/ i m imjin / - / j-i/n j i n - / x * * of . . . that thatutown fl * - .L L utown "town town " - , . . l ball . - - TI _ , , If " played playedin t tva3 va3 va3Was 7 - ; in m New England from about 1830 , in which the runs runsT 1 ? l i ' lwere iwere -were were - made around posts set ; in the ground , instead ofbases ofbases of ofbases I bases . i The first code of baseball rules was formulated bythe bythe by bythe the Knickerbocker club of New York in 1845 , the fir/t fir t first firtmatch firstmatch firbtmatch / ) match game was played the following year , and the firstgatemoney fIrst fIrstgate firstgate-money firstgate money gate gate-money gate money - money series of games itook took place at Hoboken in in1858 1858 . The development of the game was checked by the theCIvIl theCivil theCivil CIvIl War , but was levived revived in 1865 , w when hen a convention conventionwas . was held at which representatives of 30 clubs wel wee weie weiepresent e epresent epresent present . A Rockford , III Ill , team first employed regulally regularly regulallysalarIed regularlysalaried regulailysalaried salarIed players , but the Cincinnati Cmcinnati Red Stockings , or- or orgamzed organized or organized - ' ganized gamzed in m 1868 , is considered the first professional club club.It clubIt . . It made a tour in m 1n 1869 , winning Wl11nmg 69 games without meet meet- meeting meeting meeting - ing a single smgle defeat . In 1870 it won 29 straight games be- be bemg bemg be being - - ing mg defeated in m the 30th by the Atlanties Atlantics of Brooklyn . Gambleis Gamblels Gamblers having havmg gotten control of the game , a con con- conventIon convention convention - vention was held in m Louisville in 1n 1876 , at which strictrules strict strictrulec strictrules I rulec rules ; to overcome bubery bribery , , betting bettmg by players and other otherabuses otherabuses otherabuses abuses " \ were "ere ere \ ere adopted , and the National League wafJ was wafJformed wasformed wasformed formed . . There are now more than 20 professional professionalIeague professionalleagues professionalleague Ieague leagues , of which the National and the American , orig- orig originally orig orlg- orlg orlgmally originally - - inally mally theVesteln tho the Westein \Vesteln Vesteln Western \ , ( foimed fOlmed formed by Ban Johnson in m 1893)ai 1893ai 1893)a1 1893) 1893 1893)are ) a1 are e ' zhe 'the the two "big big " leagues " ' " The most significant sIgl1lfIcant event in 1n baseball history was wasthe wasthe wasthe the appointment apPo'l11tment apPol11tment ' of Judge Kenesaw Mountain Mountam Landis as"baseball as asbaseballcznl"JnJ920 - " < ( " 1920 . "baseball baseball baseballcznl"JnJ920 baseballcznlJnJ920 czm czar In |