Timeline of Major League Baseball

The following is a timeline of franchise evolution in Major League Baseball. The histories of franchises in the National Association of Base Ball Players (NABBP), National Association of Professional Base Ball Players (NA), Union Association (UA), and American Association (AA) before they joined the National League are also included. The charter members of the American League had all been members of the minor league Western League prior to it becoming a competing major league.

The first line is the formation of the National League in 1876, and the second is the transformation of the American League to a major league in 1901. The third line is the beginning of the expansion era in 1961.

Major League Baseball (2013)
AL East Central West
Baltimore Orioles Chicago White Sox Houston Astros
Boston Red Sox Cleveland Indians Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim
New York Yankees Detroit Tigers Oakland Athletics
Tampa Bay Rays Kansas City Royals Seattle Mariners
Toronto Blue Jays Minnesota Twins Texas Rangers
NL East Central West
Atlanta Braves Chicago Cubs Arizona Diamondbacks
Miami Marlins Cincinnati Reds Colorado Rockies
New York Mets Milwaukee Brewers Los Angeles Dodgers
Philadelphia Phillies Pittsburgh Pirates San Diego Padres
Washington Nationals St. Louis Cardinals San Francisco Giants
Postseason: World Series (Champions) · NL (NL Champions · NLCS · NLDS· NLWC) · AL (AL Champions · ALCS · ALDS · ALWC)
All-Star Game · World Baseball Classic · Records · MLB awards · Hall of Fame · Executive Management (Winter Meetings · Hot stove league · MLB Draft (First year player · Rule 5)) · MLBPA · TV contracts · Highest paid players · MLB logo · Seasons · Minor leagues · History (NL · AL) · Tie-breakers · Rivalries · Interleague play · Schedule · Stadiums · Civil Rights Game · Spring training · Lockouts

Famous quotes containing the words major, league and/or baseball:

    “Inanimate objects are classified scientifically into three major categories—those that don’t work, those that break down and those that get lost.”
    —Russell Baker (b. 1925)

    “I am not impressed by the Ivy League establishments. Of course they graduate the best—it’s all they’ll take, leaving to others the problem of educating the country. They will give you an education the way the banks will give you money—provided you can prove to their satisfaction that you don’t need it.”
    —Peter De Vries (b. 1910)

    “Compared to football, baseball is almost an Oriental game, minimizing individual stardom, requiring a wide range of aggressive and defensive skills, and filled with long periods of inaction and irresolution. It has no time limitations. Football, on the other hand, has immediate goals, resolution on every single play, and a lot of violence—itself a highlight. It has clearly distinguishable hierarchies: heroes and drones.”
    —Jerry Mander, U.S. advertising executive, author. Four Arguments for the Elimination of Television, ch. 15, Morrow (1978)