Americans consider baseball as an American sport. They often refer to something being “as American as baseball and apple pie”. But is baseball really an American sport? And what are origins of baseball anyway?
The American game of baseball more than likely came from several European ball games. Russia had an early form of baseball and so did Germany and Romania. People in England played a game called “stool ball”. In this game, the pitcher(投手)tried to hit a stool(凳子)or chair with a ball and the batter(击球手)used a stick to keep the ball away. But American baseball was most likely based on another English game, which is called “rounders”. Players use a soft ball rater than a hard ball while playing rounders.
So when was the first real game of “baseball” played? It seems that it took place in the 1840s. The father of baseball was Alexander Cartwright, who organized a baseball club in New York. Cartwright developed 20 rules that distinguished baseball from previous ball games.
In 1858, the first organized baseball league—the National Association of Baseball players—was formed. This league began charging fans to watch the games. However, the players were all amateurs and did not get paid . In 1869, the Cincinnati Red Stockings began to pay their players. Since they could hire the best players, Cincinnati won 57 games and lost none in their first season. As a result, other teams decided to hire players too. By 1871, the National Association was the first professional baseball league.
Today baseball is liked very much in America. Top professional baseball players earn millions of dollars each year. There are two professional leagues—the National League and the American League. The best teams from these two leagues pete for the baseball championship every year.
【小题1】81.What do Americans think of baseball? (No more than 3 words)2’
【小题2】82. Why was Alexander Cartwright called “the father of baseball ”?(No more than 16 words).3’
【小题3】83. Where did the American baseball most probably e from?(No more than 5 words).2’
【小题4】84.What does the passage mainly talk about?(No more than 5 words).3’An American sport
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(答案→)An American sport
解析：
【文章大意】本文是一篇说明文。文章介绍了美国棒球的发展史。
【小题1】An American sport 或 Very important考查同义句表达。根据文章第一段中的Americans consider baseball as an American sport.可知答案；
【小题2】Because he organized a baseball club and developed 20rules distinguishing baseball fromprevious ball games 根据文章第三段中的The father of baseball was Alexander Cartwright, who organized a baseball club in New York. Cartwright developed 20 rules that distinguished baseball from previous ball games.可提炼出答案；
【小题3】An English gamecalled“rounders” 根据第二段中的American baseball was most likely based on another English game, which is called “rounders”. Players use a soft ball rater than a hard ball while playing rounders.可知答案；
【小题4】The history of American baseball 考查文章主旨要义。根据文章第一段提出的问题可知，本文主要讲的是美国棒球的历史。