In the sports of baseball and softball, a batted ball is a pitch that has been contacted by the batter's bat. Batted balls are either fair or foul, and can be classified by their trajectory such as "ground ball" or "fly ball".
Fair or foul
_(cropped).jpg)
On the playing field, two straight lines (each known as a foul line) are drawn from the corner of home plate; one past first base and one past third base. The foul lines extend all the way to the outer limit of the outfield, typically a wall or fence, and perpendicularly up the wall or fence.[1]: 147 The entire area between foul lines, including the foul lines themselves, is considered fair territory;[1]: 147 anything not in fair territory is considered foul territory.[1]: 149
In general, batted balls are judged by whey they land (first contact the ground) or are first touched by a player. That is, a batted ball landing in fair territory or first touched by a player in fair territory is fair, while a batted ball landing in foul territory or first touched by a player in foul territory is foul. However, batted balls in the infield (not yet at or beyond first base or third base) are judged on either where the are first touched by a player or where they come to rest.[1]: 147 For example, if a batted ball in the infield first lands in foul territory but then rolls into fair territory and is touched there or comes to rest there, it is fair. Likewise, if a batted ball in the infield first lands in fair territory but then rolls into foul territory and is touched there or comes to rest there, it is foul.
That a batted ball hit into the ground has to pass first base or third base in fair territory to be considered fair originated in response to "fair-foul" hitting of the 1860s and 1870s.[2] Batters would intentionally hit the ball into the ground in fair territory near home plate, at an angle that would send it into foul territory away from the fielders, allowing the batter to reach first base successfully.[2] Dickey Pearce, a well-known and respected player of the era, is credited with inventing the tactic.[2]
Effect
Fielders can attempt to make an out by catching any ball hit in the air, fair or foul, as long as it is still in play.[1]: 39 Balls that leave the field of play, such as by going into spectator areas or the dugouts, are out of play. For balls on the ground, fielders can attempt to make an out on fair balls only.
A batted ball that clears the outfield fence in fair territory is a home run.[1]: 22 Since 1931, whether such a batted ball is fair or foul is judged on its position when it leaves the field (that is, where it is as it passes over the outfield fence or wall).[3] Previously, the ball had to be "fair when last seen" to be ruled a home run.[4]
A foul ball normally counts as a strike unless the batter already has had two strikes assessed against them, in which case the count does not change. Treating foul balls as strikes was adopted by the National League in 1901 and the American League in 1903.[3] There are specific rules for foul tips and foul bunts, which are described below. In slow-pitch softball, a foul ball always counts as a strike, even when the batter already has two strikes.[5]
Trajectories
.jpg)
Fly ball
A fly ball is a batted ball hit in an arcing manner.[1]: 147 Fielders attempt to catch fly balls on their descent, and an out is recorded if the ball is caught before it hits the ground.[6] A fly ball that do not travel far, deemed an "infield fly", has special consideration as outlined below.
Line drive
A line drive is a batted ball hit into the air that travels with a relatively flat trajectory ("on a line").[citation needed] Batters generally have a higher batting average on line drives, as line drives are typically hit harder than fly balls or ground balls and the flatter trajectory makes them harder to catch.[7]
Ground ball
A ground ball (or grounder) is a batted ball that is hit at a low enough trajectory that it hits the ground a short distance after being hit and "rolls or bounces close the ground."[1]: 149 Ground balls are distinct from line drives and fly balls that hit the ground and bounce afterwards; the distinction is that ground balls are hit towards the ground, while fly balls and line drives are hit away from the ground and only hit the ground as an end result.[citation needed]
Bunt
A bunt is a special type of batted ball. Bunts occur when pitched balls are "intentionally met with the bat" rather than being swung at.[1]: 145
Special cases
The following have special rules considerations.
Infield fly
A specific rule applies to infielders attempting to catch some fly balls: the infield fly rule, which has specific context. If (and only if) there are less than two outs and there are baserunners on first base and second base (or the bases are loaded) a fly ball "which can be caught by an infielder with ordinary effort" results in the batter being called out, regardless of if the ball is caught.[1]: 149 This rule is in place to prevent infielders from intentionally not catching the ball and being able to record multiple outs via a force play.[8] An infield fly is verbally declare by an umpire, whose decision "should be made immediately".[1]: 149 If a batted ball declared to be an infield fly is left untouched and it comes to rest (or is first touched) in foul territory before passing first base or third base, it is treated the same as any other foul ball (that is, the batter is not automatically out).[1]: 149–150 The infield fly rule was adopted in 1895.[3]
Foul tip
By rule, a foul tip is "a batted ball that goes sharp and direct from the bat to the catcher's hands and is legally caught."[1]: 149 A foul tip is considered to be the same as a regular strike, thus a foul tip (that is caught per the definition) with two strikes already against the batter results in a strikeout.[9] This provision has been part of baseball rules since 1895.[3]
Foul bunt
Unlike other types of batted balls, for which a third strike is not assessed when a foul ball is hit with two strikes in the count, a third strike is assessed to the batter when a two-strike bunt goes foul, resulting in a strikeout.[1]: 41 This rule originated as early as 1894 in response to batters intentionally bunting pitches foul in order to tire the pitcher, also impacting pace of play.[10]
Safety concerns
Batted balls, especially line drives, can be dangerous to players and spectators. In 2007, first base coach Mike Coolbaugh was killed when a line drive hit him in the head during a minor league game.[11] In 2019, a fan at a Houston Astros game required hospitalization after being hit with a foul line drive.[12] In a 2021 minor league game, pitcher Tyler Zombro was hit in the head by a 104 mph (167 km/h) line drive, fracturing his skull and causing him to have a seizure.[13]
See also
References
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n "Official Baseball Rules" (PDF). Major League Baseball. 2019. Retrieved October 8, 2022 – via MLB.com.
- ^ a b c McKenna, Brian. "Dickey Pearce". SABR. Retrieved October 9, 2022.
- ^ a b c d "Baseball Rule Changes". Baseball Almanac. Retrieved October 9, 2022.
- ^ "Babe Ruth Gained Four". The Kansas City Star. January 25, 1921. p. 12. Retrieved October 9, 2022 – via newspapers.com.
- ^ "Official Rules of Softball Slow Pitch" (PDF). World Baseball Softball Confederation. March 2022. p. 57. Retrieved October 9, 2022.
- ^ "What is a Flyout". Major League Baseball. Retrieved 6 February 2020.
- ^ James, Bill. "What I Have Learned About Fly Balls and Such". billjamesonline.com. Retrieved 6 February 2020.
- ^ "In Defense of Baseball's Infield Fly Rule". The Atlantic. 12 October 2012. Retrieved 6 February 2020.
- ^ "What is a Foul Tip?". Major League Baseball. Retrieved 7 February 2020.
- ^ Snyder, Matt. "History of Two-Strike Bunt Rule a Reminder Pace of Play Issues are Over a Century Old". CBS Sports. Retrieved 6 February 2020.
- ^ "Coolbaugh, 35, Dies After Being Struck by Ball". ESPN. 23 July 2007. Retrieved 6 February 2020.
- ^ Rieken, Kristie (30 May 2019). "Child Hit by Line Drive at Astros Game, Taken to Hospital". Associated Press. Retrieved 6 February 2020.
- ^ "Pitcher Tyler Zombro's remarkable recovery after being hit by a line drive". ESPN.com. August 26, 2021. Retrieved April 21, 2022.