Baseball is played on a field made up of two ports: an infield and an outfield. The infield is square and erroneously referred to as a “diamond.” The distance from the batter’s box, also called “home plate,” to first base is 90 feet. The distance between first base and second base, between second base and third base, and between third base and the home plate also is 90 feet. The pitcher’s “box,” from which he makes the delivery of the ball, is 60 feet, 6 inches from home plate.
The outfield area has no maximum or minimum limit. However, when a ball field is laid out in on enclosed area, the farthest limit of the outfield is fixed by the stands, or the fences. In areas not enclosed the outfield is that part of the field back of the infield, regardless of length.
The game is played with a ball and bat, and the players wear leather gloves. The ones used by the catcher and the first base man are thicker than those used by the other players, and are called mitts.
The ball has a rubber core, is wound with yarn, and has a leather cover, which is stitched on. The ball must not weigh less than 5 ounces nor more than 5 1/4, and must not be less than 9 inches and no more than 91/4 inches in circumference. The bat must be round, not more than 23/4 inches in diameter at the thickest part, no longer than 42 inches, and must be made entirely of wood, but there is no limitation as to weight.
Nine players make up a team: catcher, pitcher, first baseman, second baseman, third baseman, shortstop, right fielder, centerfielder, left fielder. Substitution may be made at any time, but the retired player cannot re-enter the game.
The game is ruled by an umpire or umpires. There may be as many as four umpires: one to judge balls and strikes back of the plate, one to make decisions at first base, another at second base, the other at third base. The plate umpire is supreme.
A game consists of nine innings, with each team having equal turns at bat. If the score is tied at the completion of nine innings, the plate umpire rules it to go on until the tie is broken or weather, visibility, or any other conditions make continuation impossible.
Customarily, the visiting team takes first turn at bet. If continues at bat until the defending team has put out three of the visiting players, after which the home team goes to bat, remains at bat until three of its men have been put out, and that completes an official inning.
A player may be put out in various ways. If he hits a fly ball, he is out, whether it is foul or fair, if the ball is caught on the fly by one of the defensive players. If he hits a ground ball, and the ball is scooped up and throw to first base, arriving there before he does, he is out. Base runners may be forced out. For instance, if a runner is on first base, and his batting teammate hits a ground ball, the runner must vacate first base, so as to make room for the hitter, and must try to advance to second. If the ball reaches that base before the runner, he is out. Runners can be forced out at any of the bases, and also at home plate.
If a base runner is tagged with the ball while the game is in action at a time when he is not standing on the base, he is ruled out. A base runner also is out if hit by a ball batted by teammate.
A player may be “struck out.” If three strikes are called against him before he has been given four bad pitches, he is a “strikeout” victim. The first two foul balls hit by a batsman count as strikes against him. If a pitch to the batter has been perfect, in the opinion of the umpire, and the batsman did not strike at it, the umpire calls a strike on the batter. Of course it also is a strike if he swings at a pitch and misses it.
The batter is out if the umpire declares the hit on infield flying. That is if, before two men are out, while First and second, or first second, and third bases are occupied, the batter hits a fair fly ball (other than a line drive) that can be handled by an infielder. This is declared an infield fly by the umpire, and the base runners may be off their bases or advance at the risk of the ball being caught, the same as any other fly ball.
These are the major methods by which or batsman, or base runner, may be put out.
A batsman may get on base in various ways. If he is hit by a pitched ball, that automatically sends him to first base. If the pitcher throws him four balls that are judged as ‘bad' by the umpire, before the pitcher has thrown three strikes, that gives the batter a pass to first base. He also is passed to first if the opposing catcher interferes with the swing of his bat,
If the baiter makes a clean hit, he may advance along the bases as far as possible. If he hits just far enough to get to first base, that is called a single; if he gets to second base on the merit of his hit, it is a double; if to third, It is a triple; if he knocks the ball into fair territory in the stands, or knocks it over the fence inside the foul line, he gets four bases, called a home run, It also is a home run if he hits a ball to the for outfield and beats the ball back to the home plate.
A base runner may advance in various ways: he may try to make a run for the next base while the ball is in action elsewhere; if he succeeds, that is recorded as a stolen base. He may be advanced by hits made by succeeding batters; he may be advanced by a sacrifice hit-meaning that a teammate deliberately makes an out in such a way that the base runner has the opportunity to advance to the next base. Of course base runners may advance also on errors mode by the defensive team.
The object of the game is to score runs. It is counted as a run when a player has advanced from home plate all the way around to home plate again. The team scoring the most runs is winner of the game. In cases where games are forfeited by action of the umpire, the official score is 9 to 0 in favor of the team which has been victimized in one way or another.