Major League Baseball is composed of 162 games played during the year against 30 teams from two leagues. Since 1903, MLB has been divided into two leagues, the American League (AL) and the National League (NL).
Both leagues signed a national agreement in 1903 to be combined under the MLB banner and start a championship title game known as the World Series, which has the best team of the AL face the best team from the NL.
While MLB has changed a lot over the years, with more teams and games being played now than back in 1903, it has still been a pastime sport that all Americans love and enjoy to this day.
The AL and NL have three separate divisions, each with five teams, making up the MLB divisions. The three divisions are the East, Central, and West.
These three divisions came about after the 1994 realignment of the East and West divisions.
The realignment was done to help compensate for new expansion teams coming into the league.
AL East
The AL East comprises five teams: the Boston Red Sox, New York Yankees, Baltimore Orioles, Tampa Bay Rays, and Toronto Blue Jays. The Red Sox, Yankees, and Orioles are the three oldest clubs from the AL East, as they have been around the AL since 1901.
While this division is usually very competitive, there was a time when the New York Yankees were the dominant force of the AL East every season.
AL Central
The AL Central comprises five teams, those five teams being the Cleveland Guardians, Detroit Tigers, Chicago White Sox, Minnesota Twins, and Kansas City Royals.
The Tigers and White Sox are the two oldest teams in the AL Central, having been in the AL since the league was established in 1901.
The AL Central came about after the 1994 realignment, seeing teams like the Royals and Guardians having successful years at the top while Twins, White Sox, and Tigers have also found occasional success.
AL West
The AL West comprises five teams, those five teams being the Seattle Mariners, Los Angeles Angels, Houston Astros, Texas Rangers, and Oakland Athletics.
The Athletics are the oldest team in the AL West and have been around under different team names since the AL was established in 1901.
Since moving to the AL West in 2013, the Astros have been one of the best teams in the AL West.
NL East
The NL East comprises five teams, with those five teams being the Atlanta Braves, New York Mets, Philadelphia Phillies, Washington Nationals, and Miami Marlins.
The Braves and Phillies are the two oldest clubs from the NL East, as they have been around since the original creation of the MLB.
While this division is usually very competitive, there was a time when the Atlanta Braves were the dominant force of the NL East every season.
NL Central
The NL Central comprises five teams, those five teams being the Chicago Cubs, Cincinnati Reds, Milwaukee Brewers, St. Louis Cardinals, and Pittsburgh Pirates.
The Cubs are the oldest team in the NL Central and are one of the two charter baseball teams from when MLB was first created in 1876.
The NL Central has been competitive among three teams in that division, the Cubs, Brewers, and Cardinals.
NL West
The NL West comprises five teams, those five teams being the Arizona Diamondbacks, Colorado Rockies, San Francisco Giants, San Diego Padres, and the Los Angeles Dodgers.
The Dodgers and Giants are the two oldest teams in the NL West and have been around under different team names since their beginnings in the 1880s.
The Dodgers are one of the teams that have dominated the NL West in recent years, with the Giants also being one of the other teams that have done well in the NL West in past years.