Baseball

Baseball is the most popular sport in America. In a baseball game there are two teams of nine players. Players must hit a ball with a bat and then run around four bases. A player who goes around all the bases scores a run for his team. The team that finishes with more runs wins the game.

Where did baseball come from? No one knows for sure. Many people believe that the idea came from a game played by children in England.

Other people believe that a man named Abner Doubleday invented the game in Cooperstown, New York, in 1839. But the first real rules of baseball were written in 1845 by Alexander Cartwright. Two teams from New York played a game following Cartwright’s rules. The rules worked well. Soon there were many teams.

These early teams were not professional (专业的). They played only for fun, not money. But baseball was very popular from the start. Businessmen saw that they could make money with professional baseball teams.

The first professional team was started in 1869. This team was the Red Stockings of Cincinnati. Within a few years, there were professional teams in other cities. In 1876 these teams came together in a league, or a group, called the National League. The teams in the National League played one another.

In 1901 a new league, called the American League, was formed. To create some excitement, in 1903, the  two  leagues  decided  to  have  their  first-place teams play each other. This event was called the World Series.

Each year since then the National League winner and the American League winner play in the World Series. And, each year, millions of people look forward to watching this exciting sports event.

True (T) or False (F).

1. Baseball was invented in England.

2. Abner Doubleday played the game with Alexander Cartwright.

3. The Red Stockings of Cincinnati was the first professional team.

4. The World Series has been played since 1903.

5. Baseball players must hit a ball with a bat and run around nine bases.

【答案】（反白可见）：FFTTF