Major League Baseball (MLB) is the world's most famous baseball league. All the best baseball players in the world have ideals to compete in this league. Founded around the end of the 19th century, MLB still exists today and is able to make baseball one of the most famous sports in the United States, alongside American Football and Basketball. The players in this league not only come from the United States alone. Some are from Canada, South America, Central America, some from Europe, and East Asia. Surely I will not discuss the baseball game because I have explained in the previous post. Anyhow here, I'll tell you about the world's greatest baseball leagues.

# 1. Early History

Early MLB history can not be separated from the history of baseball itself. The history of this league began in the 1860s when there was a civil war in the United States. At that time, the "New York" baseball style (I do not know how to interpret it) evolved into a nationwide game and then became the forerunner of an early association called The National Association of Base Ball Player (NABBP). NABBP runs as an amateur league that lasts for 12 years. There are about 400 members who joined in it. Then the strongest teams in the northern part of the United States formed the first professional baseball team in 1869, named Cincinnati Red Stocking.

# 2. The Season Structure in MLB

  • Spring Training # You could say this is just a warm-up game or an exhibition between MLB teams. If in football, we know it as a pre-season game. The teams are split into two different league divisions: Grapefruit League and Cactus League. The MLB teams can test their new players here, and also do a selection of young players from minor leagues to get a chance to play in MLB teams. At Spring Training, Pitcher from NL did not hit so all teams used the Designated Hitter (DH) rule. Spring Training is just a warm up event and players are still adjusting to the pitcher for their long holiday. Spring Training begins in mid-February and ends in the first week of April, just as the regular season or MLB main season begins.
  • Regular Season # The regular season begins in early April to early October. There are 162 games played by all teams, both from AL and NL. Each leads a series game that generally consists of 3 games against one team, sometimes 2 matches and even 4 games in a row to face the same team. On weekdays, matches are made at night while on weekends or on weekends the game is held during the day. Each team has five matches in one week. The matches can be played at home or away to other teams.
  • Post Season # Post season is followed by the best teams from each division. The top position at the end of the season for teams from each division is entitled to the division title and automatically advance to the playoffs. That is, there are 6 direct teams that are heading for the playoffs. The remaining 2 places are contested via wild cards. There are 4 teams that follow the wild card and the game is held only once. 2 of the best-placed AL teams pitted for 1st place in the playoffs, as well as 2 teams from the best-placed NL pitted for 1 other place in the playoffs. Each winning team completes 6 automatic escaped teams.

Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Major_League_Baseball