City had many clubs in the "amateur" era leading up to 1869–1870, and the "professional" era after that. Knickerbocker, Mutual and Gotham were some of the more prominent clubs. The short-lived Federal League entry in New York was the Brooklyn Tip-Tops. The Fed teams had some innovative names, and this was probably the only major league team ever named for a loaf of bread. New York Mets Since the amateur Metropolitan Base Ball Club was founded in New York as far back as 1857, three years before Athletic of Philadelphia, the Mets can claim to have the oldest team name in major-league baseball. The first professional Metropolitan Baseball Club was a member of the 19th Century American Association, a club which lasted until 1887 but could not compete with the Giants. They were normally listed as "Metropolitan" in the standings, and writers would sometimes use the pluralized "Metropolitans" or just "Mets" in the style of the day, to distinguish them from the "New Yorks", their next-door neighbors. The Metropolitans were never referred to as "New York." When major league baseball expanded in 1962, the old name was revived in the form of the Metropolitan Baseball Club of New York, otherwise known as the New York Mets. "Met" is a common short form of "Metropolitan", as in "The Met" for the Metropolitan Opera; "MetLife" for the Metropolitan Life Insurance Company; and so on. The New York Jets of the NFL, originally known as the New York Titans, were the first of several New York area teams whose names rhymed with "Mets". Others included the New York Nets of the NBA (now Brooklyn Nets), and the New York Sets of the short-lived Team Tennis league. New York Giants First official use: 1911 The early entry of this team in 1883 was simply the New Yorks, also sometimes called the Gothams, "Gotham" being a synonym for New York City. According to legend, manager Jim Mutrie was bragging to newspaper reporters about the stature of his players, "My big fellows! My giants!" and by about 1885 the name was stuck on the team for good. "The club was first called the Giants about 1885. P.J. Donohue, New York World baseball writer, probably picked up a chance to get into a type argument with Harry Palmer of Chicago and Charles F. Mathison of Detroit. All three scribes followed teams that had big men, were proud