People equally love the American League and National League. They promote the baseball and baseball teams. A specific season is assigned to the American and National League events.
They are very famous on the American continent. Multiple professional teams from the United States and Canada participate in these prestigious leagues.
Key Takeaways
- The American League uses a designated hitter, while the National League lets pitchers hit.
- The American League has a more offensive play style than the National League.
- These two leagues represent the two distinct components of Major League Baseball.
American League vs National League
The difference between American League and National League is that the national league is an older association while American League was founded after 25 years of the national league. When the professional teams of AL and NL become champions, they play against each other in the world series. Hence they are quite different from each other.
American League consists of two baseball teams of professional players in the United States and Canada. It is considered to be the major league of America.
American League was founded in 1893, and it was known as Western League in the early stage. This association was minor when it was established.
National League is among the highest leagues in the United States and Canada. The short-term used for the National League is NL. National League is an association of professional teams of baseball.
Even in the early stages, National League was known National League of Professional Baseball Clubs. The teams of the National League play against the American League.
Comparison Table
| Parameters Of Comparison | American League | National League |
|---|---|---|
| Founded | The American League was founded on 28 January 1901. American league belongs to Canada and United States. Ab | The National League of the baseball team was founded on 2 February 1876. It was established in Manhattan, New York. |
| Founder | The founder of the American League was Ban Johnson who was known as the professional baseball player in American executive. | The number of the founder of the National League is two were William Hulbert and Albert Goodwill Spalding. |
| Sports | The priority given to sports in American League is various. It mainly focused on baseball. | National League also promotes baseball. The champions play against the American League winner in the world series. |
| Focus | The focus is on home runs and power achieved by the players of professional teams playing in the American league. | The focus is on offense running and pitching of the players of professional teams playing in the National league. |
| Priority | American league allows the use of a designated pinch-hitter where the hitter can bat in the place of the pitcher. | The national league does not use the designated pinch-hitter where the hitter can bat in the place of the pitcher. |
What is American League?
American League was a very small association when it was founded. It is shortly known as AL. It was given a different name when it was established, and the name was Western League.
But in the year 1899, the name of the Western League was changed to the American League of Professional Baseball Clubs. American League was officially founded in 1901, a century ago, in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
Ban Johnson was the founder of this league. American League was declared as the major league in 1901 after, 8 years of its establishment. This year is also recognized as the first official season of the American League.
American League is divided into 3 divisions, and it consists of 15 teams. The 14 teams in the American League are from the United States, while only 1 team is from Canada.
When the season of the American League finishes, the winning team plays against the National League champions in the world series. The two seasons of the American League in 1904 and 1994 could not play in the world series.
The first world series was cancelled because the AL champion New York Giants refused to play, and the second time it was cancelled because there was a players ‘strike.
The New York Yankees is a very prestigious American League Team. This team won 27 world series, which is the most.
What is National League?
National League is a very old association formed by MLB’s constitution (Major League Baseball). National League belongs to the United States and Canada.
It is considered to be the oldest sport league that includes professional teams. National League was founded on 2 February 1876, and it is denoted simply as National Association.
The National League has two founders were William Hulbert and Albert Spalding. It is a senior league to the American League. The sport promoted in National League is baseball.
National League is also divided into three divisions and it consists of 15 professional teams. The National League coexisted with American League for the first 96 years.
There have been various conflicts between the National and American leagues.
In 1875, an association known as the National Association of Baseball Players was founded.
But it didn’t give the desired output because it was dominated by one team, the membership of cities was unstable, and there was no strong authority to look over it.
William Hulbert was the first person to reach authorities to provide necessary aid to the Weekend League and he succeeded as well by turning the weekend league into a major league known as NL.
Now National League is considered to be one of the major leagues on the whole continent.
Main Differences Between American League and National League
- The short-term used for American League is AL. On the other hand, the short term used for National League is NL.
- American League is considered to be the successor of the western league, while there is nothing like that with the National League.
- Ban Johnson was the man who founded American League, while it was Albert Spalding and William Hulbert founded National League.
- The designated pinch-hitter rule is allowed to adopt by American League, while National League does not allow this rule at all.
- The techniques prioritized by American League are home runs. On the other hand, National League notices pitching and offensive running.
- https://journals.lww.com/jclinrheum/fulltext/2009/06000/Management_of_Patients_With_Rheumatoid_Arthritis.13.aspx
- https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/j.1365-2648.2012.06048.x
Last Updated : 13 July, 2023
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Emma Smith holds an MA degree in English from Irvine Valley College. She has been a Journalist since 2002, writing articles on the English language, Sports, and Law. Read more about me on her bio page.
Both leagues have a long history and contribute to the sport of baseball.
The difference between the two leagues is quite interesting. The designated pinch-hitter rule is allowed in the AL, but not in the NL.
The different focuses and opposing play styles give the leagues their distinct characteristics.
The history and the development of these leagues provide an interesting insight into baseball’s evolution.
National League’s foundation history is quite impressive, as it was established in 1876 and is still considered to be a major league.
The long-standing legacy of the NL contributes to the continuity of baseball.
The strong legacy of the NL provides a solid foundation for the sport.
The conflicts between AL and NL show the complexity of baseball.
The level at which strategy is involved in these conflicts is similar to a game of chess.
The distinct game strategy in each league gives players a chance to excel in different ways.
The differences between AL and NL make the competition between the two leagues very intriguing.