Baseball Facts To Learn
If you're just getting into baseball, it might feel like a whole lot of information is being thrown at you. You have to learn specific terms, understand how innings work, and what everyone's role on the field is. To make your viewing experience much more enjoyable, we've broken things down to make things simple. Here are five essentials to learn so that you can follow along with a complete understanding.
1) The Goal of Each At-Bat
Baseball essentially centers around each team trying to score runs by moving runners around the bases and bringing them home to touch home plate. The pitcher and batter are the center of the action, while on the opposing team, the defense is supporting the pitcher’s plan.
2) Balls, Strikes, and Outs
How does the scoring system work in baseball you might ask? Well, there are three terms you should know. One, “strike” is when a batter swings and misses, or when a pitch passes through the strike zone and the batter doesn’t swing. Two, a “ball” is a pitch outside the strike zone that the batter does not swing at, and four balls give the batter a walk to first base. And lastly, three "strikes" make an out, and when the team hits three outs, it ends their turn at batting.
3) Innings and How the Game Flows
A standard game has nine innings, which is definitely longer than many sports games. Within each inning, there's a top and bottom half so both teams get a chance to bat and earn points. Teams alternate between offense and defense, and if the game is tied after nine, extra innings continue until one team leads at the end of a full inning.
4) The Basics of Baserunning
There's a lot more running than hitting when it comes to baseball! Runners typically reach base by getting a hit, drawing a walk, or taking a base due to a defensive mistake. Once they're on a base, they can advance on hits, certain outs, and a few specific plays like stolen base attempts.
5) Key Stats and What They Suggest
Here's where things get more technical. If you're wondering what all those abbreviations on screen stand for, we've broken them down for you. Batting average (BA) shows how often a player gets a hit, while on-base percentage (OBP) reflects how often they reach base by any allowed method. Opposite the batters, pitchers earned run average (ERA) gives a sense of how many runs they allow per nine innings.
