How well do you know baseball?
Baseball has been called America's pastime for over a century. Six questions, from easy to hard, with explanations.
Did you know?
- The distance from the pitcher's mound to home plate is 60 feet, 6 inches (18.4 m). The unusual measurement was set in 1893 and has not changed since.
- The National Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, New York, opened in 1939. Its first class of inductees in 1936 included Babe Ruth and Ty Cobb.
- An MLB baseball has 108 double stitches on its leather cover, all sewn by hand. The raised seams help pitchers throw curveballs and other breaking pitches.
America's pastime
Baseball developed in the United States in the mid-1800s from earlier bat-and-ball games. By the late 19th century, professional leagues had formed, and the sport became known as 'America's national pastime'. Today Major League Baseball's 30 teams play a long season, and the sport is also hugely popular in countries such as Japan, the Dominican Republic, South Korea and Venezuela.
How the game works
Two teams of nine players take turns batting and fielding. The pitcher throws the ball toward home plate, and the batter tries to hit it and run around the bases. A run scores when a player returns to home plate. The team with more runs after nine innings wins.
A long season
MLB teams play 162 regular-season games from spring to early autumn, more than in any other major American sport. The long season rewards consistency, and statistics play a central role in how fans and teams evaluate players.
Breaking barriers
For decades, Black players were excluded from the major leagues and played in the Negro Leagues, which produced many great stars. Jackie Robinson's debut with the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1947 began integrating the major leagues and became a landmark moment in American history.
Statistics and strategy
Baseball has always been a numbers-heavy sport, with batting averages and earned run averages. In recent decades, teams have used advanced analytics, a movement popularized in the book and film 'Moneyball', to find undervalued players and make strategic decisions.
Ballpark culture
Each ballpark has a unique shape and character, unlike fields in many other sports. Fans enjoy hot dogs, peanuts and traditions such as singing during the seventh-inning stretch, and summer evenings at the ballpark are a classic American experience.
Baseball around the world
Baseball is one of the most popular sports in Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, Cuba and the Dominican Republic. Many MLB stars come from Latin America and Asia, and the World Baseball Classic, first held in 2006, brings national teams together for an international tournament that draws huge audiences.