In Major League Baseball, games end with tie scores only because conditions have made it impossible to continue play. Inclement weather may also shorten games, but at least five innings must be played for the game to be considered official (four-and-a-half innings if the home team is ahead). Previously, curfews and the absence of adequate lighting caused more ties and shortened games.
In Japan, if the score remains tied after 9 innings, up to 3 extra innings can be played. If the game remains tied in the 12th inning, however, the game will be called a tie. Some youth or amateur leagues will end a game early if one team is ahead by 10 or more runs.
Baseball is played between two teams of nine players each. The teams take turns at bat and in the field. At the start of the game, the home team is in the field, with all nine players on the field at once, while players on the visiting team come to bat one at a time.
A batter follows through after swinging at a pitched ball. The basic contest is always between the pitcher (fielding team), and a batter. The pitcher throws the ball towards home plate, where the catcher (fielding team) waits to receive it. The batter stands in one of the batter's boxes and tries to hit the ball with a bat (righthanded batters stand in the box to the left side of the plate, lefthanded batters in the box to the right side, as viewed by the catcher). The catcher's job is to catch any ball that the batter misses or does not swing at.
The pitcher tries to throw the ball over the plate in such a way that the batter cannot hit it cleanly. The batter's objective is to hit the ball into the fair territory of the field (a fair ball) so that the players of the defending team cannot catch it before it touches the ground. If he succeeds in this, the batter becomes a baserunner and must run to first base; if the ball is caught before it touches the ground, the batter is out. A batted ball is called a fly ball if it was hit in a way causing the fielder to catch it on its descent, or a line drive if it was hit directly at the fielder. A batted ball which is not hit into the air, and which touches the ground within the infield before it can be caught, is called a ground ball.
Additionally, the defending players can throw the ball to first base in an effort to "throw the runner out"; if the ball is caught by a fielder touching the base before the runner touches the base, the runner is out. As a baserunner, the objective is to advance to and touch each base in order, usually through a series of plays, and finally touch home plate. The defending team, in the meantime, tries to tag any runner with the ball at a time when the runner is not touching any base. If they do this, the baserunner is out and must leave the field. After the fielding team has put out three players on the team at bat, the team in the field and the team at bat switch places.
The bases are places of safety, and a runner touching a base cannot be tagged out. Only one runner may occupy a base at a time. If first base is occupied when a batter hits the ball, that runner is required to advance to the next base. This displaced runner may in turn displace other runners if the subsequent bases are occupied. The defending team may also record an out by throwing the ball to the next base before such a displaced baserunner reaches it. This is known as a force out.
A baserunner who successfully touches home plate scores a run. In an enclosed field, a fair ball hit over the fence is normally an automatic home run, which entitles the batter and all runners to touch all the bases and score. If all three bases are occupied (bases loaded) and the batter hits a home run, it is called a grand slam and four runs are scored. The team with the most runs at the end of the game is the winner.
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