How did baseball's World Series get its name when the teams that contest it are predominately American?

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Baseball history shows that, beginning as far back as 1884, there were several years where post-season championship games took place. However, they were "hit or miss" until 1903. That year, the National League and the recently-established American League signed a "peace treaty" designed to end the raiding of players by each league's member clubs. Although no mention of a post-season championship series was mentioned, the presidents of the winning Pittsburgh Pirates and Boston Pilgrims (known to us as the Red Sox), respectively, came up with the idea of a nine-game, post-season series to show off their teams, establishing the annual event eagerly awaited by baseball fans everywhere. The 1904 Reach Guide reported on this first official "World's Championship Series," (played in 1903) using a name first coined in 1886 by the Spalding (of athletic equipment fame) Base Ball Guide in reference to the post-season game between Chicago and St. Louis. Spalding's editor noted that since both teams were already "champions of the United States" in their respective leagues, the winner of the post-season games would be "world" champions, hence the "World's Championship Series." Spalding's continued to refer to post-season games by this name, adding that as other nations embraced baseball, their winning teams would participate in the playoffs, turning the "World's Championship Series" into a reality. Mar 17 04, 1:44 AM

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Part two - Although this never happened, the name remained in use, becoming shorter as time passed. This was most evident in the Reach and Spalding's Guides, both of which referred, over the years, to the "World's Series," and eventually the "World Series." In the 1930s, these guides merged, ceasing publication in 1941, when they were replaced by the Sporting News Guide. The latter used "World's Series" from 1942 through 1963, switching to the still-in-use "World Series" in 1964. http://walnutcreeknews.com/articles/index.cfm?artOID=92424&cp=143 Mar 17 04, 1:45 AM