why did MLB split into two leagues?
374898
because of dh duh, one side wanted it the other side didnt
255904
Hopefully that won't happen now. The league has a very nice balance with 16 teams in each conference and with each conference having four 4-team divisions. Adding a teams (or teams) would screw that up again, not to mention putting the league at risk of overexposure.
394153
You are describing a basic substitution with a position change afterward. Those happen all the time. But to answer your question, you could do a double switch that doesn't involve the pitcher. Say your starting left fielder gets hurt diving for a ball and they have to take him out of the game. The left fielder's position is due up first the next inning, but the new left fielder is a weak hitter. The manager can make a double switch (say, take out both the first baseman and the left fielder at the same time) and put the two new players in either vacated position of the batting order. That's really how a double switch works. It's most common with pitchers, but there is no rule that says it's the only way to do it.
946135
Well its not that its divided up they were never mixed to begin with although teams have jumped from the AFC to the NFC. Way back when the NFL didnt exist the way it does today there was a handful of teams. There was the AFL and they murged together thus creating the AFC and the NFC. Plus the NFL doesnt mix up the Confrences because in each regine there is an odd number of teams such as in the west there are more teams and in the east there is i think 6 teams less.
1156714
The two sports were kicked out of the Olympics, unwanted by international sports officials who felt they were too American for the world sports stage.\n\nThe decision, made during a secret vote in Singapore, is effective for the 2012 London Games, meaning the two sports will have a final fling at the 2008 Beijing Olympics. The sports, the first eliminated since polo in 1936, are eligible to reapply for the 2016 Games.\n\nEach of the 28 existing sports was put to a secret vote by the IOC, and baseball and softball were the only two that failed to receive a majority. The IOC then rejected adding squash and karate, which failed to get the necessary two-thirds approval. Softball reportedly was only one vote short of 50% needed to remain.\n\nIOC officials were unhappy about the absence of major leaguers. The NBA has sent its best players since 1992 and the NHL stopped its season for 1998 and 2002 Winter Olympics.\n\nSo, basically the IOC wants to blame MLB for not disrupting their season so major leaguers can play in the games. But who knows for sure. I think the ballot should be made public, but it won't happen...to think, we'll have EXCITING sports like Archery, Badminton, BMX racing, Canoeing, Equestrian, Field hockey, Team Handball, Open water swimming, Synchronized Swimming, Modern Pentathlon, and Table Tennis, but no softball/baseball...utter BS....
144032
In the mid 1800s when baseball became popular, it was something for people to pass what free time they had. The more industrial a society, the more free time the citizens have. Baseball's history is entwined with the proliferation of a working class who needed entertainment whether playing or cheering. They didn't have televisions or radios, and allowed different towns cities and communities to interact with one another in a social competitive environment.
219761
I think that originally, there weren't any Canadian teams included in Major League Baseball.  Also, baseball began in America, so it was the only baseball league, and therefore it sort of WAS the world of baseball competing (except the world was only America, since there wasn't baseball anywhere else).  Thus, the World Series was a big deal since it was the two best teams in baseball in the whole world!  Also, it probably just makes it sound more exciting with "World" in front of it, so they didn't change it when Toronto and Montreal joined; they just stuck to tradition.
881955
Once upon a time, there were two unrelated football leagues.\n\nThe AFL, or American Football League, and the NFL, or National Football League.  The AFL was formed by the oil rich Hunt family, in response to being turned down for an expansion NFL franchise in Dallas.\n\nThe league played in the shadow of the NFL for about 10 years, and finally merged with the NFL.  The merger began in 1967, but the last AFL game was played in 1970.\n\nAll the AFL teams joined the NFL and the newly merged league kept the "NFL" name.  Part of the merger included a playoff and championship game between the old  former leagues, which now existed as conferences in the NFL.  That's why we have a Superbowl, which is the single biggest sporting event we have.\n\nWe decide which team is the best of its conference by the regular season record and the conference playoffs.  The only other way to do a playoff that I can think of would be a round robin tournament, which would mean each team plays every other, and would take much longer to accomplish.  No major sports league does it that way.
309531
It's not the players, it's the owners who should be paying.  The problem is that there are more cities who want MLB teams than there are teams, so when an owner wants to build a stadium, they can extort money from the local government by threatening to move the team out of the area.  \n\nIt is true that MLB teams contribute to the local economy by providing jobs and increasing revenue in surrounding businesses, but the local governments need to make sure that they're getting a decent return on the investment.\n\nThe whole stadium-building race is being driven by luxury boxes leased to corporations.  In baseball, where revenue sharing among teams is minimal, a team that doesn't maximize its revenue is at a competitive disadvantage.
1067649
It's a double header make up for yesterday. They might postpone one, but not both. It would be almost impossible to make up 2 interleague games.
251241
It is all in the grip.  I think the only difference between a major league change-up and any other is being able to locate them consistently.  The mechanics is the same.\n\nSee the link below for some illustrations.
401423
Because that division doesn't exist.  There is only one division in the National League.....The NL East.  Let's Go Mets!
850427
There are leagues that are just pick-em win or lose and not against the spread. They are compared to those.
870963
sorry, commissioner's have complete jurisdiction over their leagues...bottom line, they can do whatever they want..\nyou can't delete your team from the league after the draft..\nyou don't have to play in the league if it sucks that bad....waste of draft time, i know, but thems the breaks....\n-nny
1031282
15 teams in each league means interleague play all season long.  Not a good idea.\n\nIf you really want realignment, then add two teams.  16 teams in each league works.
682313
It has happened before, but it is a rare event.  The problem with doing it is that you end up loosing more players, because, you bump the player at the position the pitcher goes to, and then have to bring in another player to play that position once he goes back on the mound.  \n\nAlso take into account the simple fact that pitching is just as much a mental as it is a physical thing, and that taking the pitcher out of the position even for a short time can cause him to loose that mental toughness.  Concentration is so critical for pitchers, and any inside game distraction such as asking them to play another position, even for just one batter, can break that concentration, causing them not to be as effective as normal.
554299
It was actually a combination of low fan support and poor ownership support. Back when the Expos were a decent team they couldn't fill up that abortion of a ballpark called Olympic Stadium. The owners wanted to move for years but were locked into a lease with the stadium, so they quit putting a good team on the field. Some big names have played in Montreal, but were traded or cut loose as soon as they were going to cost any real $$. Finally a few years back MLB had enough and tried to contract the league by getting rid of two teams, Montreal and Minnesota. Minnesota responded by making a run at the world series. The contraction plan was eventually thrown out the window and the other team owners with MLB bought the Expos and operated for at least one year in Montreal until a plan to move them, ultimately to DC, was developed. They finally, this year, had finalized a deal to sell the team to a DC based group.