October 26, 1870: In a rematch of the game that finally ended their unbeaten streak at the Capitoline Grounds in Brooklyn the previous June, the Cincinnati Red Stockings take on the Atlantics of Brooklyn‚ on neutral ground, at the Jefferson Street Grounds in Philadelphia. Led by 1st baseman Joe Start (pictured), the Atlantics score 5 runs in the bottom of the 9th to beat the mighty Reds‚ 11-7.
This was, effectively, the end of the 1st era of organized baseball, the all-amateur era. The next season, the National Association, the 1st professional league, began play. The Boston Red Stockings were formed, taking about half of the Cincinnati players, and they continued to dominate baseball in the 1870s. The National League came along in 1876.
The Boston club won NA Pennants in 1872, '73, '74 and '75, and NL Pennants in 1877 and '78, before poachings from other teams finally forced them off their perch. They won just 1 Pennant between 1878 and 1891, before starting a new dynasty.
The Atlantics weren't so lucky, as they refused to join the NA, and lost most of their good players to that league. They continued to play an independent schedule until folding in 1882, baseball's first great team (founded in 1855) going out not with a bang, but with a whimper.
October 26, 1870 was a Wednesday. There were no other scores on this historic day, as baseball was America's only organized team sport at the time.
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