Rules of America's Pastime!

    In the United States, there has consistently been four major sports- Basketball, Football, Hockey, and Baseball. Of these four, baseball is the oldest, and commonly referred to as "America's pastime". I grew up watching the Chicago Cubs for as long as I can remember, and this sport has, and always will, have a special place in my heart. Here are the biggest rules when it comes to baseball:

1. Each game consists of two teams of nine players- pitcher, catcher, first base, second base, third base, shortstop, right field, centerfield, and left field. 
2. Each game consists of 9 innings, each team batting once (every half inning). If tied after the 9th inning, the game goes into "extra innings" until someone wins. If home team is already winning, there is no need to play the bottom half of the 9th inning. 
3. Once the batting order is created, it cannot be changed throughout the game. Substitutes (pinch hitters) are allowed, but they must be in the same order as before. 
4. If you hit the ball, try to get on base. You can try for as many bases as you want before being tagged or thrown out. Each base must be touched by a part of your body to count. 
5. There is no limit on how many pitches you can face in one at-bat; however, you can only have 3 strikes before it is an out. 4 balls outside of the strike zone is a walk. If you hit foul balls, the first two count as strikes; any fouls after 2 strikes don't count. 
6. Batter can run to next base at any time, which is called stealing.
7. One run is equal to one score. Whoever has the most runs at the end of 9 innings is the winner.
8. There are four major ways to get "out"- strike out (3 strikes thrown before getting on base), force out/ground out (runner not at base before fielder with the ball is at the base), fly out (ball is hit in the air and caught), and tag out (runner is tagged by fielder with the ball on way to the base).

    Hopefully knowing these rules make this game more enjoyable for you. Baseball has changed over the last few years, but at it's core, it's still the game that your great grandparents grew up with. Some people consider baseball a dying sport, but I feel that, with the right people behind it and the new generations to come of players, it can go back to being what it was in it's prime.