3 Simple Steps for How to Play Baseball

Baseball is a popular sport that is very simple to learn and fun to play. Whether you’re on the batting team or in the field, you rely on team spirit to win so it’s a great game for building friendships. These steps will quickly get you on track.

• You play baseball on a field part of which is a large square or "diamond" marked out with a "home plate" on one corner.
• On each of the remaining three corners, there are three bases known as "first", "second" and "third".
• Two teams of nine players take turns to bat and to field with the aim of scoring the highest number of innings.

• A pitcher in the centre of the diamond throws the ball to the batter who stands on the home plate.
• The batter aims to strike the ball hard and run as far around the diamond as they can before the ball is fielded by the opposing team.
• The hitter is "out" if a fielder catches the ball or they throw it to a team mate manning the base the batter is running to. If a team mate at base catches the ball before the batter reaches them, they’re out.
• If you’re on bat, you don’t have to do a home run in order to stay in the game. You can choose to wait at first, second or third base if you can’t make it to the next base before the ball is fielded.
• A second hitter then comes up to face the pitcher. Previous hitters waiting on any base can continue their run if the new player "at the plate" hits the ball.
• A hitter who makes it all the way around the diamond back to the home plate scores a point, and the team with the most points after nine innings wins.

Baseball is a challenging game of skill and strategy and you need to work tightly with your team mates to win. Fielders have to be well positioned and the pitcher must try to get the hitter to miss. If you’re the hitter, your team members are relying on you to strike the ball in a way that maximises you and your team’s chances of scoring an inning. Baseball isn’t a snap to play but it’s an easy game to learn and play!