1-
History & Object of the Game
2- The Essentials
(Offense & Defense, Scoring, etc.)
3- Field
Diagram & Positions
4- Glossary of Baseball Terms
Glossary
At-bat:
A players turn batting while
his team is on offense.
Ball:
Pitch that travels outside the strike
zone that the hitter does not
swing at.
Bunt:
A soft hit produced by holding the
bat in a stationary position over
home plate.
Count:
Term used to describe a batters
balls and strikes during an at-bat.
The number of balls is first, followed
by the number of strikes. Three
and two is three balls and two
strikes.
Double-play:
A play in which the defense records
two outs.
Error:
Charged to a defensive player for
mistakes that should have resulted
in an out.
Fair:
A ball that, when hit, lands between
the two foul lines and stays in bounds
past first or third base. A home run
is also a fair ball.
Fly ball:
Ball hit with a high, arcing trajectory.
Fly out:
If a ball is caught by one of the
nine fielders before it bounces, the
batter is out. Base runners must tag-up
during a fly-out.
Force
out: After a batter hits the ball,
he must advance to 1st base. The defense
can get him out by throwing the fielded
ball to 1st base before the runner
reaches the base. Additionally, other
base runners must advance if they
are forced by a base runner behind
them.
Foul:
Ball hit outside the two foul lines.
A ball hit behind the batter is a
foul tip. Results in a
strike. When a batter hits a foul
ball with two strikes, the count
remains the same and at bat continues,
because a foul cannot cause a strikeout.
Ground
ball: Ball hit with a low trajectory.
Ground-rule
double: A ball that bounces in
fair territory and travels over the
outfield fence. The batter is awarded
2nd base, and all other runners on
base advance two bases.
Hit: A
batted ball that allows a batter to
safely reach base. A single (advances
to 1st base), double (advances to
2nd base), triple (advances to 3rd
base), and home run are all
types of hits. A balls trajectory
is usually a ground ball, line-drive,
or fly ball.
Hit and
run: Base runner advances to the
next base during the pitch, knowing
that the batter is swinging at the
pitch.
Home run:
Fair ball hit over the outfield fence
between the two foul poles. Batter
and any runners on base are awarded
home plate and each scores a run.
Lead off:
Base runners attempt to gain an advantage
when the pitcher is pitching the ball
by starting several yards in the direction
of the next base.
Line
drive: Ball hit with a trajectory
almost parallel to the ground.
Out: The
defense must create three outs,
by strikeout, force-out,
fly-out, or tag-out,
before they can switch to offense.
Pick off:
Pitcher throws the ball to a base
to catch a base runner that has a
big lead off.
Run: Scored
when an offensive player safely tags
home plate.
Sacrifice:
A batter strategically hits the ball
into an out situation to advance or
score a runner. Usually a sacrifice
bunt or sacrifice fly.
Safe:
Called when a player reaches a base
without getting tagged out or
avoids a force out.
Stolen
base: A play during which a runner
advances a base while the pitcher
is pitching.
Strike:
A ball that a batter swings at and
misses, hits foul, or fails to swing
at that crosses the strike zone.
A batter strikes out after
three strikes.
Strike
out: Occurs during an at-bat when
a batter accumulates three strikes,
at which the at-bat ends and the player
is called out.
Strike
zone: The area above home plate
between a batters knees and
his armpits.
Tag out:
A base runner that is not on a base
when he is tagged by a player with
the ball is out.
Tag up:
A player waits for a fly ball to be
caught before advancing to the next
base or else the defense can throw
the ball to the base that the runner
was on before he can return to it
and record another out.
Triple
play: A play during which the
defense records three outs.
Walk:
Four balls from a pitcher results
in the batter receiving a walk,
and the batter automatically advances
to 1st base. Players on successive
bases who are forced to
advance may move to the next base.
Also called base on balls.
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