Although it is clear that modern baseball developed in North America, the exact origin of the game is difficult to determine. Most scholars believe that baseball evolved from a variety of similar games that have been played for centuries. A popular legend claims that Abner Doubleday, who was a Union officer during the American Civil War (1861-1865), invented baseball in Cooperstown, New York, in 1839. But there is little support for this story.

There is evidence that people played games involving a stick and a ball since the early days of civilization. Ancient cultures in Persia, Egypt, and Greece played stick-and-ball games for recreation and as part of certain ceremonies. Games of this type had spread throughout Europe by the Middle Ages (5th century to 15th century) and became popular in a variety of forms. Europeans brought stick-and-ball games to the American colonies as early as the 1600s. Until the late 1700s, however, they were widely considered children's games.

By the early 1800s, a variety of stick-and-ball games had become popular in North America. Most of these games originated in England. Many people in northeastern cities such as Boston, New York, and Philadelphia played cricket, a traditional game of English aristocrats. But an English game called rounders, which was eventually played in rural and urban communities throughout North America, most closely resembled modern baseball.

Rounders called for a batter to strike a ball and run around bases without being put out. Balls that were caught on the fly, or in some cases after one bounce, were commonly outs. Rounders also involved the practice of plugging, soaking, or stinging, in which fielders could put runners out by throwing the ball at them as they ran between bases. The rules of rounders varied widely from place to place, and people used various names to describe it, including town ball, one o' cat, and base ball (which was eventually shortened to baseball).

By the 1820s and 1830s baseball had become a common form of recreation, played according to local customs throughout Northeastern America. Early forms of baseball were played in cities such as New York, Boston, Philadelphia, and Rochester as well as in many rural towns and villages. On June 4, 1838, a group of residents gathered in Beachville, Ontario, to play a local version of baseball with five bases, a game believed to be the first ever played in Canada. People in some communities formed clubs especially to play the game. But elements of rounders, such as plugging the runner, remained common, and baseball lacked official rules or formal organization.

The most important early organized baseball club was formed in 1845 by a group of young men in New York City. This group, led by Alexander Cartwright and later by Dr. Daniel L. Adams, called their club the Knickerbocker Base Ball Club. The Knickerbockers developed a set of 20 rules-14 governing play and 6 relating to administration-that became the foundation of modern baseball. These rules, first published in 1845, defined the playing field with a home plate and three additional bases set apart at specific distances. They also abolished plugging and replaced it with the practice of tagging runners or forcing them out at a base.

The Knickerbockers also established foul lines, which became one of the most significant developments in baseball. In previous versions of the game, the ball could be struck in any direction. By drawing foul lines from home plate, the Knickerbockers added focus to the game. Perhaps more significantly, they created an area close to the action where spectators could gather and watch the game without interfering. Although there were few baseball spectators in the early days of the Knickerbockers, the creation of foul territory established an area where onlookers might safely gather to watch the game. Eventually, as the Knickerbockers' style of play became popular, baseball games drew increasing public attention.

On June 19, 1846, the Knickerbockers played in what is widely considered the first modern baseball game. They met another organized baseball team called the New York Club in what is now Hoboken, New Jersey, and played a complete game according to the Knickerbocker rules. The Knickerbockers lost, 23-1.

The Knickerbocker style of play spread rapidly during the 1850s, when baseball clubs formed throughout New York City and adopted the new rules. By the late 1850s the game's popularity had spread beyond the city, and it became known as the New York Game. By the mid-1850s crowds of several thousand were not uncommon at baseball games in the New York City area.

The New York Game spread more rapidly during the Civil War as Union soldiers introduced the game in places where they traveled. By the end of the war in 1865, the game had become the most popular variety of baseball throughout the country. Soon after, the name New York Game disappeared-it became simply baseball.

Baseball is played on a level field, which usually covers about 2 acres (0.8 hectares). The playing area is divided into the infield and the outfield. Together, these two areas make up fair territory. The rest of the field is called foul territory.

The infield consists of a square-shaped plot called the diamond, which measures 90 ft (27 m) on each side. One corner of the diamond is marked by a five-sided piece of rubber called home plate. Batters hit the ball from a position on either side of home plate, depending on their preference. At the three other corners of the infield-moving counterclockwise from home plate-are first base, second base, and third base. Each base is marked with a canvas bag.

The pitcher's mound, a slightly raised piece of ground, lies near the center of the infield, between home plate and second base. A strip of rubber is nailed to the top of the mound, 60 ft 6 in (about 18 m) from home plate. Pitchers place one foot on the rubber when they put the ball in play.

Base lines run from home plate to first base and from home plate to third base. Extensions of these lines, called foul lines, run along the outer edges of the outfield. These lines divide foul and fair territory. Base lines also extend from first to second to third base, marking the path of a runner. The region of the outfield behind first base is called right field, the region behind second base is called center field, and the region behind third base is called left field. A fence runs along the farthest limits of the outfield.

Two covered shelters called dugouts are located in foul territory along each base line. Players occupy the dugouts when they are not on the field. The baseball field is also designed with a number of markings that indicate the use of certain regions. Boxes outlined in chalk on each side of home plate indicate where a batter may stand. Chalk boxes in foul territory near first and third base define the position of team coaches. Similar regions limit where pitchers may warm up during the game and where players may prepare before batting.

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