BASEBALL

SUBMITTED BY: LARA S. MENDOZA

HISTORY OF BASEBALL
Baseball was introduced in the Philippines by the Americans. The first baseball game in the
Philippines was played in September 1898 weeks after the Battle of Manila, a match between Astor
Battery led by George Wetlaufer and a regiment from the American Army. From 1898 to 1900,
baseball clubs were established by local Filipinos. The sport’s introduction aided the American
colonial government’s assimilation efforts. General Otis planned to eliminate local cockfighting
through the introduction of the sport. A baseball league composing of six clubs was established.
Then, Governor General William Howard Taft encouraged baseball in the archipelago. Baseball grew
to be a popular sport in the country. Arlie Pond was instrumental to the growth of baseball in the
country. Baseball’s popularity saw a decline from 1898 to 1923 because of claims of neglect by the
Department of Public Instruction. Prior to 1898, sporting officials claimed that the department,
through the Bureau of Education, had supported baseball in the country with the goal of eliminating
cockfighting in the country. Teachers who were brought from the United States to the country had no
experience in baseball and even in basic athletics. The Philippine Amateur Athletic Federation favored
over its outdoor counterpart. In 1923, Manila League was the only flourishing league in the country.
EQUIPMENT THAT ARE USED
PLAYING BASEBALL
> Batting Helmet- is worn by a batter to protect his/her head and the ear facing the pitcher from
the ball.
> Baseball cap- all players wear a hat to shade their eyes from the sun.
> Catcher’s helmet- catchers wear a helmet with face mask similar to a hockey goalkeeper mask
to protect both their head and face.
> Uniform- all players, coaches and managers wear shirts and pants. Each team has a uniform
dress of a specific color and design.
> Sliding shorts- players sometimes wear padded support shorts to protect the player’s thighs
when he/she slides into the bases.
> Baseball cleats- these are baseball specific shoes made of rubber or metal that players ear for
better traction.
> Bat- baseball bat is a round, solid wooden or hollow aluminium bat.
> Ball- the ball used in baseball is called a baseball. Layers of yarn or string is rolled on a cork
sphere and a leather coat is stitched over it to make a baseball.
> Gloves- players wear leather gloves to protect their palms. A webbed “pocket” between the
thumb and first finger helps the fielder to catch the ball easily.
> Catcher’s mitt- catchers wear leather mitts with connected finger pockets that are much wider
and better padded than a normal fielders glove.
> First baseman’s mitt- wear leather mitts that are longer and wider than a standard fielder’s
glove.
> Batting gloves- batsman wear gloves on one or both hands for additional grip and to avoid
shock when they strike the ball.
PLAYING AREA
The infield (also called diamond) is a 27.4m square and is graded so that the baselines and home
plate are level. The infield and outfield, including the boundary lines, are fair territory and all
other areas are foul territory. The minimum distance from home base to the nearest fence,
stand or other obstruction on fair territory is 76.2m. The pitcher’s plate is 10 inches above the
level of home late. The degree of slope from a point 6 inches in front of the pitcher’s plate to a
point 6 feet toward home plate is 1 inch to 1 foot and is uniform. It is preferred that the line
from home base through the pitcher’s plate to second base runs east-southwest.
How many umpires are there in baseball
There are FOUR UMPIRES
> A regular-season contest will have four umpires: one behind home plate and one stationed
near each of the other three bases. Each umpire makes “out” or “safe” decisions at his
designated base, and calling balls and strikes on each pitch that is thrown.
NUMBERS OF PLAYERS
NINE PLAYERS
> Baseball, game played with a bat, a ball, and gloves between two teams of nine players each
on a field with four white bases laid in a diamond.
ROLES OF PLAYERS`
Baseball is a bat-and-ball game played between two opposing teams who take turns batting and
fielding. Within the game there are positions in which each participating player can play in.
there are nine fielding positions in baseball. Each position conventionally has a associated
number, for use in scorekeeping by the official scorer: 1 (pitcher), 2 (catcher), 3 (first baseman),
4 (second baseman),5 (third baseman), 6 (shortstop), 7 (left fielder), 8 (center field), and 9 (right
fielder). Collectively, these positions are usually grouped into three groups: the outfield (left
field, center field, and right field), the infield (first base, second base, third base, and shortstop),
and the battery (pitcher and catcher). Traditionally, players within each group will often be more
able to exchange positions easily (that is, a second baseman can usually play shortstop well, and
a center fielder can also be expected to play right field); however, the pitcher and catcher are
highly specialized positions and rarely will players at other positions play there.
PARTS OF THE PITCH
In baseball, there are two legal pitching positions: the windup, and the set. Colloquially, the set
is often referred to as “the stretch”, although this term actually only refers to one part ot the
pitching motion when pitching from the set.
RULES OF BASEBALL
> Baseball has two teams of 9 players.
> The fielding teams positions are made up of a pitcher, catcher, first baseman, second baseman,
shortstop, third baseman, and three outfielders at left field, center field and right field.
> Games last for 9 innings of which both teams get to bat once. If the game is a tie after 9 innings
then an extra inning will be added until a winner is found. If the team batting second in the 9th
inning are already ahead in points, then they do not need to complete their batting inning.
> Once a batting order is picked, then it cannot be changed throughout the game. Substitutes are
permitted, however, they must bat in the order of the previous player whom they replaced.
> If the batter manages to hit the ball from the pitcher, they must make an effort to at least get to
first base. They can then run to as many bases as they wish before being tagged out. Each base
must be touched with some part of the batters body when running past.
> A batter gets up to three strikes before getting out. A strike is deemed when a batter swings
for a ball misses it. The batter can leave the ball but, it it’s within a certain area (called the ‘strike
zone’), then a strike will also be given. If four balls miss the strike zone and batter does not swing
their bat, they can walk to first base.
> When on base, the batter can run to the next base at any point.
> Players can be dismissed by either a ‘strike out’ (referring a batsman missing the ball three
times), ‘force out’ (when a player fails to make the base before the defensive player), ‘fly out’
(when the ball is hit in the air and caught without it bouncing), and ‘tag outs’ (where a defensive
player with the ball tags batsman with the ball all whilst they are running).
ROLES OF EACH UMPIRES OR
REFEREE NEEDED
> Rule on base and strikes
> Fair/foul rulings on both base lines to the bag
> Game management
> Maintain the official lineup
> Manage substitutions
> Manage batting order infractions
> Balks and illegal pitches
> Interference/obstruction and malicious contact at home
> Running lane violation
> Overthrows out of play
> Batted ball hits batter
> Infield fly
> All play at home plate
> Putting the ball in play