Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game is live when the umpire signals to the pitcher either verbally or by pointing, indicating that the ball is now in play. A player on the fielding team, called the pitcher, throws a ball that a player on the batting team tries to hit with a bat. The objective of the offensive team is to hit the ball into the field of play, away from the other team's players, allowing its players to run the bases, having them advance counter-clockwise around four bases to score what are called "runs". The objective of the defensive team is to prevent batters from becoming runners, and to prevent runners' advance around the bases. A run is scored when a runner legally advances around the bases in order and touches home plate.
In baseball, a home run is scored when the ball is hit in such a way that the batter is able to circle the bases and reach home plate safely in one play without any errors being committed by the defensive team. A home run is usually achieved by hitting the ball over the outfield fence between the foul poles without the ball touching the field. Far less common is the "inside-the-park" home run where the batter reaches home safely while the baseball is in play on the field.
Torii Kedar Hunter is an American former professional baseball center fielder and right fielder. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Minnesota Twins, Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, and Detroit Tigers from 1997 through 2015. Hunter was a five-time All-Star, won nine consecutive Gold Glove Awards as a center fielder, and was a two-time Silver Slugger Award winner.
The Silver Slugger Award is awarded annually to the best offensive player at each position in both the American League and the National League, as determined by the coaches and managers of Major League Baseball. These voters consider several offensive categories in selecting the winners, including batting average, slugging percentage, and on-base percentage, in addition to "coaches' and managers' general impressions of a player's overall offensive value". Managers and coaches are not permitted to vote for players on their own team. The Silver Slugger was first awarded in 1980 and is given by Hillerich & Bradsby, the manufacturer of Louisville Slugger bats. The award is a bat-shaped trophy, 3 feet (91 cm) tall, engraved with the names of each of the winners from the league and plated with sterling silver.
Moisés Rojas-Alou Beltré is a Dominican-American former outfielder in Major League Baseball who played for 17 seasons in the National League. In 1,942 career games, Alou had a batting average of .303 with 2,134 hits, 421 doubles, 332 home runs, and 1,287 runs batted in.
In baseball, an inside-the-park home run is a play where a batter hits a home run without hitting the ball out of the field of play. It is also known as an "inside-the-parker", "in-the-park home run", or "in-the-park homer".
Endy de Jesus Chávez, is a Venezuelan former professional baseball outfielder, who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Kansas City Royals, Montreal Expos/Washington Nationals, Philadelphia Phillies, New York Mets, Seattle Mariners, Texas Rangers, and Baltimore Orioles. Chávez is the older brother of Ender Chávez.
The rules of baseball differ slightly from league to league, but in general share the same basic game play.
A baseball field, also called a ball field or baseball diamond, is the field upon which the game of baseball is played. The term can also be used as a metonym for a baseball park. The term sandlot is sometimes used, although this usually refers to less organized venues for activities like sandlot ball.
In baseball, interference occurs in situations in which a person illegally changes the course of play from what is expected. Interference might be committed by players on the offense, players not currently in the game, catchers, umpires, or spectators. Each type of interference is covered differently by the rules.
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 characterized as a fly ball, pop-up, line drive, or ground ball.
A ground rule double is a baseball rule that awards two bases from the time of pitch to all baserunners including the batter-runner, as a result of the ball leaving play after being hit fairly and leaving the field under a condition of the ground rules in effect at the field where the game is being played. An automatic double is the term used to refer to a fairly hit ball leaving the field in circumstances that do not merit a home run, such as when the ball's first bounce was within the field. The automatic double is quite often mistakenly called a ground rule double.
The 2006 Minnesota Twins Season was the Minnesota Twin's 46th season playing in the Twin Cities and their 106th season in the American League. They were managed by Ron Gardenhire and played their home games in the Metrodome.
The 2002 Major League Baseball All-Star Game was the 73rd playing of the midsummer classic between the all-stars of the American League (AL) and National League (NL), the two leagues that make up Major League Baseball. The game was held on July 9, 2002 at Miller Park, now named American Family Field, in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, the home of the Milwaukee Brewers of the NL. The game controversially ended with a 7–7 tie due to both teams running out of available pitchers. Beginning the next year, home field advantage in the World Series would be awarded to the winning league to prevent ties.
Hunter Andrew Pence, nicknamed "The Reverend", is an American former professional baseball right fielder and designated hitter. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Houston Astros, Philadelphia Phillies, San Francisco Giants, and Texas Rangers. In the 2004 Major League Baseball Draft he was drafted in the second round by the Astros. Pence made his major league debut in 2007. He is a four time All-Star and was a member of the 2012 and 2014 World Series championship teams with the Giants.
The infield shift in baseball is a defensive realignment from the standard positions to blanket one side of the field or another. Used primarily against left-handed batters, it is designed to protect against base hits pulled hard into the gaps between the fielders on one side. Originally called the Williams shift, it has periodically been referred to as the Boudreau shift or Ortiz shift since then. After shifts became very effective in reducing base hits by Major League Baseball (MLB) batters, MLB and the Major League Baseball Players Association (MLBPA) agreed to potentially begin restricting shifts starting in the 2023 season.
Peter Christopher Bourjos is an American former professional baseball center fielder who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim / Los Angeles Angels, St. Louis Cardinals, Philadelphia Phillies, Tampa Bay Rays, and Atlanta Braves.
The 2013 Detroit Tigers season was the team's 113th season. They finished 93–69, first place in the American League (AL) Central Division. During the season, the Tigers finished one game ahead of the second place Cleveland Indians. They became the first Tigers team to win three consecutive titles since the 1907, 1908 and 1909 won three consecutive American League pennants. The Tigers defeated the Oakland Athletics in five games in the American League Division Series and advanced to the ALCS for the third straight season, the first time a Major League team has done so since the New York Yankees advanced to four straight from 1998 to 2001. They lost the American League Championship Series to the Boston Red Sox, four games to two. Manager Jim Leyland announced his retirement following the American League Championship Series.
Eddie Manuel Rosario, Jr. is a Puerto Rican professional baseball left fielder for the Atlanta Braves of Major League Baseball (MLB). Rosario was selected by the Minnesota Twins in the fourth round of the 2010 MLB draft. He has previously played in MLB for the Twins and Cleveland Indians.
