Inning
Inbaseball,softball,andsimilar games,aninningis the basic unit of play, consisting of two halves orframes,[1]the "top" (first half) and the "bottom" (second half). In each half, one team bats until threeoutsare made, with the other team playing defense.[2]A full baseball game is typically scheduled for nine innings, while softball games consist of seven innings, although this may be shortened due to weather or extended if the score is tied at the end of the scheduled innings. The use of the terminningin baseball and softball contrasts withcricketandrounders,in which the term isinningsin both singular and plural.
Gameplay[edit]
Each half-inning formally starts when theumpirecalls "Play" or "Play ball". A full inning consists of six outs, three for each team, and, inMajor League Baseballand most other adult leagues, a regulation game consists of nine innings. Thevisiting teambats in the first half-inning, the top of the inning, derived from the position of the visiting team at the top line of a baseballline score.Thehome team's half of an inning is the bottom of the inning, and the break between halves of an inning is the middle of the inning. If the home team is leading after the top half of the final scheduled inning, or scores to take the lead in the bottom of the final scheduled inning, the game immediately ends in a home victory.
In most leagues, if the score is tied after the final scheduled inning, the game goes intoextra inningsuntil an inning ends with one team ahead of the other. InJapanese baseball,however, games end if tied after twelve innings (or, in postseason play inNippon Professional Baseball,fifteen innings). For the 2011 and 2012 NPB season, a game also ended in a tie if a regular-season game has reached its 3-hour, 30-minute time limit, and both teams are tied. As in the case of the ninth inning, a home team which scores to take a lead in any extra inning automatically wins, and the inning (and the game) is considered complete at that moment regardless of the number of outs. This is commonly referred to as a "walk-off"situation since the last play results in the teams walking off the field because the game is over. However, road teams cannot earn a" walk-off "victory by scoring the go-ahead run in extra innings, unlike inice hockeywhere the team (either home or away) scoring first in overtime automatically wins.
A baseball game can be shorter than scheduled innings if it is interrupted by rain (or other bad weather). Such a game is said to berained out,and is often preceded by a rain delay, a pause in the game during which the umpires will try to determine if the weather will allow the game to continue. If so, the game will simply be delayed until the rain stops, and then play will resume. If not, the umpires will announce arainoutand play will be suspended for the day. The game may have to be replayed in its entirety at a later date, but under certain circumstances, a game shortened because of rain can count as an official game, and the team that was ahead at the time the game was called will be awarded the win.[3]
Professional baseballgames[4]as well as college baseball games are scheduled for nine innings.[5]Softballgames[6][7]and high school baseball games[8]are scheduled for seven innings, as are some minor league baseball doubleheaders.[9]Major League doubleheaders comprised scheduled seven inning games during the 2020 and 2021 seasons due to the COVID pandemic, but returned to nine innings in 2022.[10]College games may be shortened to seven innings if one team's score is ahead by a minimum of ten runs, or as part of a doubleheader.[5]Little Leaguegames are scheduled for six innings and may be shortened further (auto-forfeit) if a team has an overwhelming scoring lead.[11]
Terminology[edit]
Ending a half-inning is referred to as "retiring the side". A half-inning in which all batters are put out without taking a base is referred to as a "one-two-three inning". The number of innings apitcheris in a game is measured by theinnings pitchedstatistic.
InUS English,baseball terminology is sometimes found in non-sports usage in a tense situation: "it's the bottom of the ninth [inning]" (sometimes adding, "with two outs" ), meaning "there isn't much time to turn things around here".
References[edit]
- ^Dickson, Paul (2009).The Dickson Baseball Dictionary.W. W. Norton & Company.
- ^"Rule 4.01 to 4.02; 4.00—Starting and Ending a Game"(PDF).Major League Baseball.RetrievedAugust 7,2017.
- ^Baseball Explained by Phillip Mahony, McFarland Books, 2014. SeebaseballexplainedArchived2014-08-13 at theWayback Machine
- ^MLB Official Rules(PDF).Office of the Commissioner of Baseball. 2017. p. 84.ISBN978-0-9961140-4-2.Retrieved13 February2018.
- ^abNCAA Baseball Rules(PDF).NCAA: The National Collegiate Athletic Association. 2015–2016. p. 36.Retrieved13 February2018.
- ^World Baseball Softball Confederation(2017). "1.2.1 Regulation Game".2018 – 2021 FAST PITCH SOFTBALL PLAYING RULES(PDF).p. 4.Retrieved24 June2019.
- ^NCAA Softball Rules.Indianapolis, Indiana: The National Collegiate Athletic Association. 2016–2017. p. 18.
- ^"NFHS Baseball Rules Book"(PDF).2017.Retrieved13 February2018.
- ^"Minor Leagues On-the-Field".Minor League Baseball.Retrieved13 February2018.
- ^"MLB Finalizes Rule Changes for 2022 Regular Season & Beyond".SI.Sports Illustrated. March 24, 2022.RetrievedNovember 21,2022.
MLB will be going back to full nine-inning doubleheaders - unlike the seven innings format the league employed during the 2020 season.
- ^"Official Rules of Little League-Level Baseball".Baseball Rules Academy.Retrieved13 February2018.
