The origins(起源) of baseball probably stretch back to 1839 when Abner Doubleday, a civil engineering student, laid out a diamond－shaped field at Cooperstown,

The origins(起源) of baseball probably stretch back to 1839 when Abner Doubleday, a civil engineering student, laid out a diamond-shaped field at Cooperstown, New York, and attempted to standardize(使标准化) the rules governing the playing of such games as town ball and four old cat, the ancestors(祖先) of baseball. By the end of the Civil War, interest in the game had grown rapidly. Over 200 teams or clubs existed, some of which toured the country playing rivals; they belonged to a national association of "Baseball Players" that had proclaimed(宣布) a set of standard rules. These teams were amateurs(业余爱好者) or semi-professionals, but as the game waxed in popularity, it offered opportunities for profit, and the first professional team, the Cincinnati Red Stockings, appeared in 1869. Other cities soon fielded professional teams, and in 1876 the present National League was organized chiefly by Albert Spalding. Soon a rival league appeared, the American Association. Competition between the two was intense, and in 1883 they played a post-season(季后赛) contest, the first "world's series". The American Association eventually collapsed, but in 1900 the American League was organized.

1. According to the passage, baseball originated in 1839 because ____.

A、Abner Doubleday invented a special diamond-shaped pitch

B、the rules of earlier games were amalgamated(合并) and regularized

C、civil engineering students became interested in playing games

D、the old games died out and a new one was needed

2. What was different about "Baseball Players" compared with earlier players?

A、They travelled widely.

B、They belonged to many clubs.

C、They played by agreed rules.

D、They were not professional.

3. According to the passage, the Cincinnati Red Stockings were formed in 1869 ____.

A、because baseball had become more popular by then

B、to enable the amateur players to become professional

C、so that the public had the opportunity to profit from a professional team

D、to produce a means of making money

4. From the passage, we understand that the National League was formed in 1876 to ____.

A、reorganize the professional teams

B、enable more professional teams to be set up

C、to provide a governing authority for baseball

D、authorize amateur and professional teams to combine

5. According to the passage, at the turn of the century the only remaining baseball organizations were ____.

A、the American League and the National League

B、the American League

C、the American Association and the American League

D、the American Association