1. Baseball for Becca (and other beginners)
So another subtitle for this could very easily be “all of baseball is inside baseball” because as I was putting this together I realized just how many words I had to define relative to their baseball context.
I started developing this because my girlfriend now fiancee Becca noticed I was listening to an awful lot of baseball as the Brewers pushed towards the playoffs last year. Being the wonderfully supportive person she is she decided she wanted to learn more about the sport and watch a few games with me that’s how the first draft of this presentation started coming together.
When I told the members of the research committee about this they thought it was hilarious and asked me to present to you all as well.

2. Objective - Score More “Runs” Than the Other Guys
Run = point
Players score a run by safely making their way around all four bases.
Runs, are equivalent to points in any other sport. Players must make their way around all four bases “safely” in order to score
This is one example of a word we use so differently in baseball: “Run”. When I told Brenda I had to explain to Becca what a run is Brenda asked “Oh, where is Becca from?”
“Minnetonka,” I said.
“Oh I thought she was from some other country!”
But when you think about it, it’s an interesting twisting of the English language that you can have a walk-off walk walk in a run. Is it still a run when all baseball players seem to take a light jog around the bases? A three-run home jog doesn’t sound quite as good though.

3. Layout of a Baseball Field
Typically a wall encloses the edge of the outfield.
Foul lines
Second base
Infield - The brown area inside the foul lines, and the smaller green area inside the foul lines.
Outfield - The bigger green area inside the foul lines.
First base
Third base
Home Plate
Players run counterclockwise from home plate to first base, to second, to third, and home again home again jiggity jig.
Hit inside the foul lines are always in play and result in some form of play. Balls outside of them are playable, but if they land without being caught they either count as a strike or nothing happened depending on circumstances we’ll get to later.
Pitcher’s mound

4. Actual Field Dimensions Can Vary
Another odd quirk of baseball is that the field is one of the few in sports that is non-standardized. Major league baseball only mandates that the distance from home plate to the nearest outfield wall is a minimum of 250 feet. As such, the distance from home plate to center field ranges from 395 feet at Dodger Stadium, to 420 feet at Comerica Park (Detroit Tigers) and Fenway Park.
MLB suggests minimum distances of 320 feet from home to the right and left field lines, and 400 feet from home to center.
This is in sharp contrast to the football field that is a rigid 100 yards by 53 ⅓ yards, or even the soccer pitch, which can vary in dimensions, but is also required to be a rectangle.
Fenway Park
Dodger Stadium

5. Baseball Fielding Positions
P - Pitcher - Position 1 for scoring
C - Catcher - 2
1B - First Base - 3
2B - Second Base - 4
3B - Third Base - 5
SS - Shortstop - 6
LF - Left Field - 7
CF - Center Field - 8
RF - Right Field - 9 CF LF RF SS 2B 3B 1B P
Diagram shows general positionings, these may be moved around for strategic defensive purposes. A team might know one batter much more frequently hits to one side of the field, and so players will shift far to the left or right. But the players retain their labels and numbers regardless of their on-field location, unless they are formally substituted to a different position by their Manager (head coach). C

6. Innings and Outs
The longest Major League Baseball game ever finished was 25 innings (almost three whole games!) between the White Sox and Brewers in 1984.
9 innings in a baseball game
Top (first half) of an inning sees the visitors batting, and the home team pitching.
Bottom (second half) is the other way around
3 outs per half inning
Therefore each team gets 27 outs in a game
NO TIME LIMIT - No clock management gimmicks
Baseball cannot end in a tie. If the game is tied after 9 innings, additional innings will be played until there is a winner.

7. Pitcher vs. Batter Duel - Objectives
Foul lines.
Batter’s boxes
Pitcher’s mound
Batters are on offense, pitchers are on defense. Baseball is one of the very few sports where the team on defense is in control of the ball.
Pitchers stand on the pitcher’s mound, and must start with one foot on the piece of rubber (white stripe) at the mound’s center. They throw the ball toward home plate, and try to make the batter miss or otherwise record an out.
Batters stand in one of the two batter’s boxes, depending on if they are left or right handed, and always face towards the pitcher. They try to hit the ball into fair territory and safely advance around the bases.

8. Pitcher vs. Batter Duel - Rules
“Why is it called a ball if it misses? It should be called something else. It’s already always a ball.”
EXPLAIN THE STRIKE ZONE
If a batter swings and misses at a pitch, it is always a “strike”.
A pitch thrown in the strike zone is a strike whether or not the batter swings at it.
A pitch thrown outside of the strike zone is a “ball” if the batter does not swing at it.
If the batter swings and hits a pitch and it lands outside of the foul lines, it is a “foul ball.” This can count as a first or second strike, but usually not as the third. (If a batter “bunts” a third strike foul, it does count. When a batter bunts, he does not swing the bat, he just holds it out so the pitch runs into it.)
If three strikes are recorded this is a “strikeout” and the batter is out on strikes.
If four balls are recorded, this is a “walk” or a “base on balls”, and the runner walks to first base because of the balls.

9. The Batter Wins - Reaching base safely
A batter may reach base safely a number of ways.
Four balls is a walk awarding him first base.
If the pitcher hits him with the ball the batter is awarded first base.
If he puts the ball in play and it hits the ground before being caught, the batter may run to as many bases as he desires. Batters sometimes gamble and lose as to how many bases they can run to without being tagged out by the fielders
This is a “hit.”
If he reaches 2nd base or better it is an “extra base hit.”
Sometimes the fielders (defenders) will make a mistake allowing a runner to reach safely when he otherwise would not. This is recorded as an “error” rather than a hit, but otherwise the same rules apply.
Other less common circumstances also apply.

10. I’m at the third game of the Twins Brewers series in Minneapolis with my friend John.
Miguel Sano hits a deep fly ball to center field, really good sound off the bat, and after lots of oos and ahhs from the crowd, it ends up being short of a home run, and plops into Lorenzo Cain’s glove.
John, who usually is a very sports knowledgeable person turns to me and says, rather assertively mind you:
“Well at least that’ll help his batting average!”
I say, “No it won’t. It was an out, his batting average would only go up if he got a hit.”
John says, “Whaddya mean? He hit the ball.”
“YES JOHN but there’s a difference between hitting the ball, and getting A HIT”

11. The Pitcher Wins - Outs
Generally, pitchers record outs in one of four ways. More than one out can be recorded in a single play.
Strikeouts
Ground Outs
Tag outs
Fly/Line Outs
Strikeouts: where the pitcher gets a third strike.
Fly/line outs: where a batted ball is caught before it hits the ground
Ground outs: a batter hits a ground ball, but the fielders get the ball to the base he is supposed to reach before he gets there.
Tag outs: a runner is not touching a base, and a fielder taggs the runner.

12. Baserunning rules - forced or unforced advancement
Base runners
Batters become “base runners” when they reach safely. Only one runner can occupy an individual base. Runners advance counterclockwise from home, to 1st, to 2nd to third back to home. Or 6 → 3 → 12 → 9 → 6.
If runners occupy all preceding bases and a ball is hit on the ground in fair territory, runners must advance.
If a ball were hit on the ground in this diagram, the runner at first base MUST advance, as the batter needs to take up first base. But since the runner on first can move to second, the runner on third can choose to run or not, as no one needs the base he currently occupies.

13. Baserunning rules - potential for advancement
Becca: “Hey he’s cheating!”
John: “Becca it’s called leading off!”
Anders: “Did you mean stealing? He isn’t doing that and even if he was that’s not cheating..”
“Hey he’s cheating!”
“Becca it’s called leading off! Did you mean stealing? He isn’t doing that and even if he was that’s allowed.”
Runners have several opportunities to advance which they can choose to take.
Runners may “steal” a base, typically begining when a pitcher starts his motion to throw the baseball towards home plate. Catchers then have the opportunity to throw to the appropriate base, where a fielder may tag the runner out.
Runners may advance on a fly ball under more restrictive circumstances. They must keep touching the base until the base they currently occupy until such time as the ball is caught. Fielders can try to throw them out like with steals. If a runner tries to advance on a ball before it is caught, the fielder can throw back to the previous base and try to get the runner out.
Runners may also advance on a “wild pitch” or “passed ball” where the catcher cannot handle a pitch and it gets away from him. Same rules as steals apply.
Runners are “safe” when the are touching a base, and can be tagged out with the baseball at any point they are not touching a base.

14. Substitutions
Unlike other sports, except professional soccer, once a baseball player is removed from a game, he is unable to return to the game. Players take the place in the batting order of the player they replace, though the fielding positions can be shuffled around endlessly. Pitching changes are the most frequent, and dramatic, substitions, with multiple pitchers being used in a game, sometimes for just one batter, though that is going to be eliminated with a rule change next year.

17. The End