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→The Origins of Baseball
The late 18th century game of baseball was still quite different. It seems to involve one out before the opposing team would then get an opportunity to hit the ball. The batter had three attempts to hit the ball. Nevertheless, very likely the rules were not well codified and variations existed. In fact, even the term baseball was not universally agreed upon, as variations such as town- or round-ball were used.
A key development was the Knickerbocker Rules, developed in 1845 in New York. Some of the rules are still utilized from these rules today, such as the rule that the baseball must be pitched and not thrown. However, many rules, such as the number of outs (21) and hitting the ball out of the filed is a foul are not.<ref>For more on the Knickerbocker Rules, see: Melville, T. (2001) Early baseball and the rise of the National League. Jefferson, N.C, McFarland, pg. 12</ref> Nevertheless, the standardization attempt now began to harmonize baseball rules across different areas, leading to the eventual merger of the game.
==The Rules Develop==
