An inning
consists of each team having one turn in the field and one turn to hit,
with the visiting team batting before the home team. A standard game
lasts nine innings, although some leagues (such as high school baseball
and Little League)
play fewer. Most high school games last seven innings, and Little
League has six innings. A single game between two teams during NCAA
competition is nine innings. A doubleheader in NCAA competition may be
two seven inning games, two nine inning games, or one nine inning game
and one seven inning game between the same teams. The team with the most
runs at the end of the game wins. If the home team is ahead when the
middle of the last inning is reached, it is declared the winner, and the
last half-inning is not played. If the home team is trailing or tied in
the last scheduled inning (or in an extra inning, see below) and they
score to take the lead, the game ends as soon as the winning run touches
home plate; however, if the last batter hits a home run to win the
game, he and any runners on base are all permitted to score.
If both teams have scored the same number of runs at the end of a regular-length game, a tie is avoided by the addition of extra innings. As many innings as necessary are played until one team has the lead at the end of an inning. Thus, the home team always has a chance to respond if the visiting team scores in the top half of the inning; this gives the home team a small tactical advantage. In theory, a baseball game could go on forever; in practice, however, they eventually end. In addition to that rule, a game might theoretically end if both the home and away team were to run out of players to substitute (see Substitutions, below). In Major League Baseball, the longest game played was a 26-inning affair between the Brooklyn Robins and Boston Braves on May 1, 1920. The game, called on account of darkness, ended in a 1-1 tie. Two minor-league teams, the Pawtucket Red Sox and Rochester Red Wings, played a 33-inning game in 1981.
In Major League Baseball, games end with tie scores only in rare cases when conditions make it impossible to continue play. A tie game does not count as a game in the standings - a 2008 rule change made all tie games suspended unless and until not needed for the sake of determining playoff teams, and no longer replayed; however, though undecided, and not factored in the championship standings and the playoff reckoning, a tie game goes on the record and player and team statistics from are counted. Inclement weather may also shorten games, but at least five innings must be played for the game to be considered official; four-and-a-half innings are enough if the home team is ahead. Previously, curfews and the absence of adequate lighting caused more ties and shortened games - now, games interrupted from ending in such circumstances are, at least initially, suspended. Also, with more modern playing surfaces better able to handle light rains, the process for calling or shortening a game due to weather has changed; it is more common than in the past to delay a game as much as two hours before a cancellation; also, a delay usually does not occur anymore until the rain is moderate-heavy and/or there is standing water on some part of the playing field.
In Japan's Nippon Professional Baseball, if the score remains tied after nine innings, up to three extra innings may be played before the game is called a tie. Some youth or amateur leagues will end a game early if one team is ahead by ten or more runs, a practice officially known as the "runs ahead rule" (sometimes referred to as a "mercy rule" or "slaughter rule"). Rarely, a game can also be won or lost by forfeit.
There is a short break between each half-inning during which the new defensive team takes the field and the pitcher warms up. An existing pitcher is permitted five warm-up pitches and a new pitcher is permitted eight warm-up pitches. The starting pitcher is permitted eight warm-up pitches to begin the game. Traditionally, the break between the top half and the bottom half of the seventh inning is known as the seventh-inning stretch. During the "stretch," fans in the United States often sing the chorus of Take Me Out to the Ball Game. However, since the September 11, 2001 attacks, God Bless America has often been added to it, especially at games in New York City and Washington D.C, as well as during the All-Star Game and the postseason. In Baltimore it has been a tradition since the 1970s and is a tradition in Atlanta to play "Thank God I'm A Country Boy" after "Take Me Out To The Ballgame" during the seventh inning stretch. At Boston's Fenway Park, a tradition has brought the singing of Sweet Caroline in the middle of the eighth inning.
If both teams have scored the same number of runs at the end of a regular-length game, a tie is avoided by the addition of extra innings. As many innings as necessary are played until one team has the lead at the end of an inning. Thus, the home team always has a chance to respond if the visiting team scores in the top half of the inning; this gives the home team a small tactical advantage. In theory, a baseball game could go on forever; in practice, however, they eventually end. In addition to that rule, a game might theoretically end if both the home and away team were to run out of players to substitute (see Substitutions, below). In Major League Baseball, the longest game played was a 26-inning affair between the Brooklyn Robins and Boston Braves on May 1, 1920. The game, called on account of darkness, ended in a 1-1 tie. Two minor-league teams, the Pawtucket Red Sox and Rochester Red Wings, played a 33-inning game in 1981.
In Major League Baseball, games end with tie scores only in rare cases when conditions make it impossible to continue play. A tie game does not count as a game in the standings - a 2008 rule change made all tie games suspended unless and until not needed for the sake of determining playoff teams, and no longer replayed; however, though undecided, and not factored in the championship standings and the playoff reckoning, a tie game goes on the record and player and team statistics from are counted. Inclement weather may also shorten games, but at least five innings must be played for the game to be considered official; four-and-a-half innings are enough if the home team is ahead. Previously, curfews and the absence of adequate lighting caused more ties and shortened games - now, games interrupted from ending in such circumstances are, at least initially, suspended. Also, with more modern playing surfaces better able to handle light rains, the process for calling or shortening a game due to weather has changed; it is more common than in the past to delay a game as much as two hours before a cancellation; also, a delay usually does not occur anymore until the rain is moderate-heavy and/or there is standing water on some part of the playing field.
In Japan's Nippon Professional Baseball, if the score remains tied after nine innings, up to three extra innings may be played before the game is called a tie. Some youth or amateur leagues will end a game early if one team is ahead by ten or more runs, a practice officially known as the "runs ahead rule" (sometimes referred to as a "mercy rule" or "slaughter rule"). Rarely, a game can also be won or lost by forfeit.
There is a short break between each half-inning during which the new defensive team takes the field and the pitcher warms up. An existing pitcher is permitted five warm-up pitches and a new pitcher is permitted eight warm-up pitches. The starting pitcher is permitted eight warm-up pitches to begin the game. Traditionally, the break between the top half and the bottom half of the seventh inning is known as the seventh-inning stretch. During the "stretch," fans in the United States often sing the chorus of Take Me Out to the Ball Game. However, since the September 11, 2001 attacks, God Bless America has often been added to it, especially at games in New York City and Washington D.C, as well as during the All-Star Game and the postseason. In Baltimore it has been a tradition since the 1970s and is a tradition in Atlanta to play "Thank God I'm A Country Boy" after "Take Me Out To The Ballgame" during the seventh inning stretch. At Boston's Fenway Park, a tradition has brought the singing of Sweet Caroline in the middle of the eighth inning.