Baseball is a team sport, popular in the Americas and East Asia. In the United States, it was for many years the "national sport," though American football is now more popular among spectators. In its usual form, the game is between two teams of nine players on a playing field consisting of 4 bases, arranged in a diagonal square ("the diamond") and a large outfield. The standard layout is shown in the diagram below:
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Diagram of a baseball field.
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2 Pitching 3 Batting 4 The Style of Play 5 Equipment 6 Clothing 7 Related Topics 8 References and External Links |
The basic contest is always between the pitcher, who tries to throw the ball so it cannot be cleanly hit, and the batter, who tries to hit the pitched ball with a rounded bat. If the batter hits a "fair ball" into the field of play, the hitter runs to first base and any of his teammates who are already "on the bases" may attempt to advance to another base. There are four bases, named in counterclockwise order, first base, second base, third base and home base or home plate. Baserunners must always progress in order from first base to second, third, and then home, touching each base along the way, in order to score a run. If a baserunner is already on first base, they must try to advance or the batter will be out; no two offensive players may ever stay on the same base.
If the ball is caught before it bounces, or the ball is fielded and thrown to a base before a runner arrives there, the player is out, and must return to his team's dugout. The initial decision to make first base 90 feet from home plate was an inspired one; it means that no runner, no matter how fast, can beat the throw to first of a ball cleanly fielded and properly thrown to first by a fielder in proper position. But if the fielder is out of position, or hesitates, or throws wide of the base, the play is often razor-close, and quite exciting.
There is also an imaginary area above "home plate" (where the batter stands) between the batter's knees and chest called the "strike zone". (Actually the "strike zone" varies a good bit depending on the league level of the teams and is relatively frequently re-defined by league rules makers.) Any pitch which passes through this area is a "strike", as is any pitch at which the batter swings and misses. If a batter records 3 strikes before putting the ball in play, he is out - called a strikeout. (An exception is if the third strike evades the catcher but this rarely occurs.) Any pitch which is not a strike is called a Ball. A batter who receives 4 balls from a pitcher may walk to first base and cannot be tagged out. This is called a "walk." A batter may also move to first base if he is struck by a pitched ball, unless he puts himself in the path of the pitch and makes no attempt to avoid being struck. In addition, if a player does make contact with the ball but does not hit a fair ball, this is called a foul ball. Whether a ball hit is fair or foul is defined by two lines at a right angle, drawn to the side of the diamond, and by two poles, located to the left and the right of the outfield. Also, anytime the player hits the ball backward and it leaves the play area, this is called a foul. Fouls also count as strikes, unless the player has two strikes already when hitting the foul, in which case the player must go at bat for one more turn. If a foul ball is caught by a defensive player before it bounces, then the hitter is out.
After three outs (a "half-inning") the roles of the fielding and hitting sides are reversed. Usually, nine innings are played. The aim of the game is to score more runs than the opposing team. If both teams have scored the same number of runs at the end of 9 innings (7 in high school and college), an extra inning is added to the game. If the score remains tied, another inning is added. This process repeats until the score is no longer tied at the end of an inning. Thus, the team which hits in the second (or "bottom") half of the inning always has a chance to respond to a run scored by the team batting in the first (or "top") half. As there are tactical advantages to this, the home team is always granted the right to bat in the bottom half of the inning.
In the American Major Leagues, baseball games end with tie scores only because conditions (e.g. severe weather) have made it impossible to continue play. Games in which the score is tied are not counted towards a team's game total (as technically a tie game is considered as unfinished), although statistics are retained as long as the game is of official regulation (five half innings for each team; only four for the home team if the home team is ahead). In Japan, games end after nine innings and a tie is considered honorable to both teams.
Some leagues, especially youth leagues, will end a game if one team is ahead by 10 or more runs, so as not to further humiliate the other team.
Five to seven additional pitchers are employed as relief pitchers or relievers, to pitch the innings not handled by the starting rotation. The variety of relievers is dictated by the situation. Hence, there are long relievers, setup men, specialists (pitchers used for a specific batter to maximize matchups), and closers. Today, every team typically has one pitcher designated as the closer. This relief pitcher is specifically designated to pitch the final inning (or possibly longer) of a game in which his team is leading, in order to preserve the win. To earn a save, the closer must finish the game, not be the winning pitcher, and a) pitch three or more innings or b) pitch at least one inning with a lead of 3 runs or less or c) come in to the game with the potential tying run on base, at bat, or on deck.
In 1919, Babe Ruth broke the standing home run record, and changed fundamentally the way the game was played, becoming a popular sensation in the process. The introduction of regularly changed balls, the new cork-centered balls introduced in 1910 and the banning of tampering with the balls (with spit or by scuffing the surface) made the hitters task easier. The fresh white balls were easier to see and travelled further, making the home run more likely. It has also been suggested, although there is little evidence, that owners had the baseball "juiced", since this new offensive style was very popular and was helping to redeem the game after it was rocked by the Black Sox gambling scandal. Regardless, ever since, the mighty home run has become the surest way to rouse a crowd. Accordingly, the most common batting style employed today is the free-swinging style of Ruth rather than the place-hitting style of Keeler.
Occasionally, players have been caught using illegally modified bats, ie. corked bats, an action subject to ejection and possible suspension and fines.
(In recent decades, observers have criticized baseball for this, with some justification as the time required to play a baseball game has increased steadily through the years. One hundred years ago, games typically took an hour and a half to play; today, four-hour nine-inning games are not uncommon. However, this is primarly due to increased commercial breaks more than a decrease in playing speed. However, increased offense and more pitching changes also prolong the length of the game.)
Baseball is a team game -- even two or three Hall of Fame players cannot guarantee a pennant by themselves. In the last years of the 20th century, a trend toward building teams based on a more even distribution of talent throughout the lineup became noticeable. The Seattle Mariners and the Florida Marlins were two teams that began moving away from the previous belief in building teams around superstars. Team salary caps led to the decision by many owners to pay more solid players decent money rather than surrounding one or two expensive superstars with a below-average set of teammates. It remains to be seen if this strategy will be successful.
Paradoxically, the game places individual players under great pressure and scrutiny one at a time. The pitcher must make a good pitch or suffer reproach; no one can help him throw the ball. The hitter has a mere fraction of a second to swing the bat; no one can help him then. If the batter hits a line drive, the outfielder makes a lonely decision to try to catch it or play it on the bounce. Baseball history is full of heroes and goats -- men who in the heat of the moment distinguished themselves with a timely hit or catch, or an untimely strikeout or error.
It is a beautiful, leisurely game on the surface (some would say boring) but sudden and fierce beneath. Many people fail to recognize that baseball is a game of strategy and anticipation, as much as it is a game of skill and athleticism.
Play of the Game
As the game starts, the home team takes the field, while the visitors come to bat. After making three outs, the visitors take the field and the home team bats.Pitching
Effective pitching is vitally important in baseball. A pitcher who starts games should be able to pitch for six or seven innings before being replaced by specialist relief pitchers, who finish the game off. For a starter to pitch all 9 innings (a "complete game"), a personal achievement is attained, although this was not always so. The average number of innings pitched has been declining slowly in the professional leagues almost since their inception, yet 9 innings was once the norm. Pitching is also physically demanding: a modern-day starting pitcher can usually throw 100-110 pitches with no ill effects, but throwing many more reduces effectiveness, and over time, may lead to serious and permanent arm injury. Typical coaches do not allow their starters to throw more pitches than this. In a major league season then, a club usually keeps a cadre of 5 starting pitchers (known as the "starting rotation") to start games, giving pitchers at least 3 or (preferably) 4 or 5 days rest between starts.Types of Pitches
In order to prevent the batter from hitting the ball well, a good pitcher should be able throw a variety of different pitches, which will usually be a subset or blend of the following basic types.
The pitcher will try to make the batter miss the ball entirely ("go out on strikes") or hit it so that it can be handled by one of the fielders. This generally involves throwing the ball in a way, or to a location, that the batter is not expecting, causing him to hit it weakly or not at all. Good fielders may have some idea of where the pitcher is likely to throw the ball, and therefore where the hitter is likely to hit it (an "outside" pitch will generally be hit to the side of the field that the batter faces, for instance), and may be prepared to field the ball there if the batter hits it well. Good hitters are able to hit the ball wherever they wish, regardless of the location of the pitch.Batting
The batter tries to hit the ball in such a way that it cannot be cleanly handled by a fielder; good hitters can place the ball where they want with surprising skill. In the early 1900's, place hitting was a high art, and the home run was considered a freakish spectacle. Place-hitting was exemplified by Willie Keeler's axiom, still shouted today: "Hit 'em where they ain't."The Style of Play
Baseball has an antique, unhurried pace. Both football and basketball use a clock, and fans must often watch games end while one team degrades the competitive element of the game by "killing the clock" rather than competing directly against the opposing team. But baseball has no clock; you cannot win without getting the last man out, and a rally can start at any time.Equipment
Clothing
Related Topics
References and External Links