National Association of Base Ball Players

The National Association of Base Ball Players (NABBP) was the first organization governing American baseball (spelled as two words in the 19th century).

Their report was adopted at the final meeting of the convention on February 25,[1] effectively bringing to an end the Knickerbocker era, when games were played under rules largely at the discretion of individual clubs.

In the 1860s, aided by the War, "New York" style baseball (as often played by Union Army troops passing the uneventful days of camp life between occasional skirmishes and battles) expanded through various corps, regiments, brigades, and other units into a national game.

In addition, the parallel civilian NABBP, as its governing body, expanded into a true national organization, although most of the strongest clubs remained those based in New York City, Brooklyn and Philadelphia.

However, even early in its history some star players, such as James Creighton of the Excelsior club of Brooklyn, received compensation, either secretly or through emoluments.

To maintain the integrity of the game, at its December 1868 meeting the NABBP established a professional category for the coming 1869 season, and clubs who desired to pay players were now free to do so without sanction.

Generally the clubs joined the association and retained membership by sending delegates to the annual convention, usually in the December preceding each season (the ancestor of modern Major League Baseball's so-called Winter Meetings).

For 1865 there were only 30 members with not one in New England and western outliers merely in Washington, Altoona in southwestern Pennsylvania, and Utica in central New York state.

In 1859, though, Atlantic did emerge as decisive champions of baseball with an overall record of 11 wins and 1 loss and series victories over both Eckford of Brooklyn and Mutual.

Thereafter, a formalized challenge system developed whereby the championship, symbolized by a "pennant", would change hands upon the defeat of the existing champion in a two out of three series.

A challenge format makes sense for that purpose, and it fits the convention whereby contestants meet on the field with money or a trophy at stake.

Indeed, in several NABBP seasons it appears that the strongest team never played a series for the championship, including at least Athletic of Philadelphia in 1868 and the Cincinnati Red Stockings in 1869.

Another team that claims lineage from the NABBP is the Buffalo Bisons, currently a minor league ("Triple A") baseball squad that counts the Niagara club as a predecessor.