The U.S. Congress officially declared Alexander Cartwright Jr. as the inventor of the modern game in 1953.
However, according to MLB historian John Thorn, that honor should go to Daniel Lucius Adams, William Rufus Wheaton and Louis Fenn Wadsworth.
Cartwright’s plaque in the Baseball Hall of Fame declares he set the bases 90 feet apart and established nine innings as a game and nine players as a team. He did none of these things, and every other word of substance on his plaque is false.
Adams, known as Doc, set the base paths at 90 feet, among other notable innovations, including creating the position of shortstop.
Wheaton created the Knickerbocker rules by copying a set he had drawn up for an earlier ball club, the Gothams, in 1837.
As to nine men and nine innings — and perhaps even more — these may be credited to Wadsworth.
Read more from an adapted excerpt of a new book that appeared in Sunday's New York Times.
Of interest, check out the Top 10 Greatest Sports Inventions, featured on BleacherReport.com