When you play baseball, you compete against a team of other players to score points by hitting the ball thrown by the pitcher to locations in the field out of reach of defensive players. The game is played in a series of innings, with each inning being completed when one team gets three outs. The batting team advances around the bases after each successful hit and is out when the defense throws the ball to the batter before he can touch a base.
The batting team sends its players up to bat in a prearranged order, called the lineup. Once the players in the lineup have gotten three outs, the teams switch places and the defensive team takes over at home plate while the other players on the batting team take their turns at bat.
Once the batting team has a player on each of the three bases, it is said to have loaded the bases. A runner can be forced out if he is caught stealing a base, attempting to run to a base without touching it first, or hindering a fielder from making a play on the ball. The batting team can also force outs by hitting the ball in fair territory beyond the playing field (for a home run), or when the catcher fumbles the ball and it is touched by the defense before being caught.
In addition to the fielders, players on a baseball team are divided into infielders and outfielders. Outfielders are located in the outfield, a grassy area in the center of the diamond. Infielders are the players that are on the ground in front of home plate, and they are positioned between the pitcher and the catcher. Pitchers are positioned in the dugout, or bullpen, behind the batter’s mound.
A batter can get on base in several ways, but the most common way is to draw a walk, which means that the umpire gives him four pitches that are outside of the strike zone and doesn’t call any strikes. A batter can also be forced out if he hits the ball and fails to make contact with it, or if he swings at the ball and misses it.
In an effort to speed up the game, Commissioner Rob Manfred instituted a set of relatively minor adjustments that nibbled a few minutes and seconds off here and there, such as limitations on warm-up throws, in-game conferences, and pitching changes. However, he failed to address the biggest drag on the clock: pitchers and batters futzing around between deliveries. As a result, the average MLB game now lasts over three hours. That figure is up from what it was when Babe Ruth was playing, and it is a stark contrast to the two-hour games that were typical in the 1920s.