The term "Pennant" when was it first used
 

Hi, does anyone know when in baseball the expression "winning the pennant" was first used?

Or was it used since day 1 back in the 1903 World Series?

And why exactly was the term used? Just looking for a simple explanantion from any baseball history buffs.

Etimology..............
 

Origins of "pennant"..........


pennant : 1610s, "rope for hoisting," probably a blend of pendant in the nautical sense of "suspended rope" and pennon. Use for "flag on a warship" first recorded 1690s; "flag symbolizing a sports championship" (especially baseball) is from 1880; as a synonym for "championship" it was first used 1915.

Tim, can you distinguish the penultimate and ultimate usages? They seem the same to me.