棒球并非美国人发明
Historians in England have shown evidence that baseball may not be an American invention. The BBC reports that baseball was played in England in 1755, twenty-one years before America’s independence. This may come as a shock for lovers of the America’s national game, who believe baseball is an American creation.
A recently discovered diary is “proof(证据)” that Englishmen were hitting home runs(全垒打) long before their cousins across the Atlantic. The diarist was a man called William Bray, who wrote about the game being played in the county of Surrey, south of London. The Surrey History Centre confirmed the diary was authentic(真实的) and that it has an entry describing the game of baseball. The BBC says Major League Baseball officials are aware of this news.
It will come as no surprise to many sports fans that baseball first appeared in England. The English invented the world’s most popular sports, including football, tennis, rugby and cricket. What might come as a surprise is that the beginning form of baseball was played by both men and women. William Bray’s diary describes a game of baseball played on a spring afternoon in which “young ladies” took part.
A Washington Post journalist, Kevin Sullivan, told the BBC that he was not surprised that baseball came from England. He said, “It’s a great American tradition to take things from other places and improve them. We’ve always known that baseball was brought in and improved; it wasn’t invented like basketball.” Despite the recent discovery, it seems unlikely that England will overtake America as the number one baseball power.
1.In which year did America become independent?
A 1775.
B 1796.
C 1776.
D 1754.
解析：选C。C 推理判断题。根据第一段的“baseball was played in England in 1755, twenty-one years before America’s independence.”可知，1755 年，英国人开始打棒球，这比美国独立早了 21 年。由此判断美国是在 1776 年(1755+21)独立的。故选 C。
2.Who do the underlined words “their cousins” refer to?
A Englishmen.
B Americans.
C Diarists.
D Officials.
解析：选B。B 词意指代题。根据本句句意可知，最近发现的一本日记“证明”英国人击出本垒打(打棒球)的时间远早于他们大西洋彼岸的表亲。根据前文描述的对象是英国和美国，结合大西洋彼岸，可推测英国人的“表亲”指的是美国人。故选 B。
3.How many sports invented by the British are mentioned in this passage?
A Six.
B Five.
C Four.
D Three.
解析：选B。B 细 节 理 解 题 。 根 据 第 三 段 的 “The Englishinvented the world’s most popular sports, including football, tennis, rugby and cricket. ” 可知英国人发 明的运动有四种，再加上本文主要讨论的棒球，一共有五种。故选 B。
4.What surprised sports fans most about early baseball?
A It was invented in England.
B The English liked it a lot.
C Both men and women played it.
D It was often played in spring.
解析：选C。C 细节理解题。根据第三段第三句“What might come as a surprise is that the beginning form of baseball was played by both men and women.”可 知，令人惊讶的是，棒球最初是男女都可以玩的。故选 C。
5.What can we infer from the last paragraph?
A Basketball was first invented in America.
B Americans often take things from others.
C Englishmen want to be powerful in playing baseball.
D Kevin Sullivan thought baseball not surprising.
解析：选A。A 细节理解题。根据最后一段的“We’ve always known that baseball was brought in and improved;it wasn’t invented like basketball.”可知美国人一直都知道棒球是引进来并且被改良的，它不像篮球是被(美国人)发明的。由此可知篮球是在美国发明的。故选 A。