Profile
| Founded | January 28 1901 |
|---|---|
| No. of Teams | 15 |
| Recent Champion | To be decided between New York Yankees or Cleveland Guardians (2024) |
| Most Titles | New York Yankees (40) |
Introduction
It developed from the Western League, a minor league based in the Great Lakes states, which eventually aspired to major league status. It is sometimes called the Junior Circuit because it claimed Major League status for the 1901 season, 25 years after the formation of the National League (the "Senior Circuit").
Since 1903, the American League champion has played in the World Series against the National League champion with only two exception: 1904, when the NL champion New York Giants refused to play their AL counterpart, and 1994, when a players' strike resulted in the cancellation of the Series. Through 2022, American League teams have won 67 of the 118 World Series played since 1903, with 27 of those coming from the New York Yankees alone. The New York Yankees have won 40 American League titles, the most in the league's history, followed by the Philadelphia/Kansas City/Oakland Athletics (15) and the Boston Red Sox (14).
For decades, Major League baseball clubs only played teams from their own league during the regular season and playoffs until their pennant winners met in the World Series. This separation gradually caused the leagues to develop slightly different strategies and styles of play. The American League was usually regarded as the less "traditional" league during the 20th century, a reputation most exemplified by the introduction of the designated hitter rule in 1973, which encouraged AL managers to largely abandon "smallball" tactics. However, with the advent of free agency in the 1970s allowing for more player movement between leagues, the introduction of regular season interleague play in 1997, and the NL's adoption of the designated hitter rule in 2022, the difference in play between the two major leagues has diminished considerably.
Though both leagues agreed to be jointly governed by a commissioner in 1920, they remained separate business entities with their own presidents and management. This was the case until after the 1999 season, when the American League legally merged with the National League under the auspices of Major League Baseball, which now operates much like other North American professional sports leagues, albeit with two "leagues" instead of "conferences".
See Also
Pacific League (NPB): Junior League Counterpart from Japan
