National Association of Professional Base Ball Players - Timeline

Timeline

• 1869: The previously amateur National Association of Base Ball Players establishes a professional category.
• 1869–70: Cincinnati Red Stockings demonstrate that professional baseball is a viable business enterprise.
• 1871: Several clubs from the National Association of Base Ball Players break away to found the first professional league, the National Association of Professional Base Ball Players (NA).

Several others found the National Association of Amateur Base Ball Players. It does not survive long or inspire a replacement, so the short forms professional association and amateur association do not survive long.

• 1876: Six clubs from the NA and two independents establish the National League of Professional Base Ball Clubs: Boston Red Stockings, Hartford, Mutual, Athletic, Chicago, and the St. Louis Brown Stockings from the NA plus independent clubs Louisville and Cincinnati.