text: Professional baseball began in the United States around 1865, and the National League was founded in 1876 as the first true major league.\n\nThe teams were: the Athletic of Philadelphia (folded in 1876), the Boston Red Caps (now the Atlanta Braves), the Chicago White Stockings (now the Cubs), the Hartford Dark Blues (folded in 1877), the Mutual of New York (folded in 1876), and the St. Louis Brown Stockings (folded in 1877). They were joined by two others, the Cincinnati Red Stockings (folded in 1880), and the Louisville Grays (folded in 1877).