baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding t ...

softball Softball is a game similar to baseball played with a larger ball on a smaller field. Softball is played competitively at club levels, the college level, and the professional level. The game was first created in 1887 in Chicago by George Hanc ...

, and similar games, an inning is the basic unit of play, consisting of two halves or frames, the "top" (first half) and the "bottom" (second half). In each half, one team bats until three outs are made, with the other team playing defense. A full baseball game is typically scheduled for nine innings, while softball games consist of seven innings; although this may be shortened due to weather or extended if the score is tied at the end of the scheduled innings. The use of the term ''inning'' in baseball and softball contrasts with

cricket Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of eleven players on a field at the centre of which is a pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two bails balanced on three stumps. The batting side scores runs by st ...

and rounders, in which the term is '' innings'' in both singular and plural.

Gameplay

Each half-inning formally starts when the umpire calls "Play" or "Play ball". A full inning consists of six outs, three for each team; and, in

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (A ...

and most other adult leagues, a regulation game consists of nine innings. The

visiting team A road game or away game is a sports game where the specified team is not the host and must travel to another venue. Most professional teams represent cities or towns and amateur sports teams often represent academic institutions. Each team ...

bats in the first half-inning, the ''top'' of the inning, derived from the position of the visiting team at the top line of a baseball

line score A box score is a chart used in baseball to present data about player achievement in a particular game. An abbreviated version of the box score, duplicated from the field scoreboard, is the line score. The Baseball Hall of Fame credits Henry Chadw ...

. The home team's half of an inning is the ''bottom'' of the inning, and the break between halves of an inning is the ''middle'' of the inning. If the home team is leading after the top half of the final scheduled inning, or scores to take the lead in the bottom of the final scheduled inning, the game immediately ends in a home victory. In most leagues, if the score is tied after the final scheduled inning, the game goes into extra innings until an inning ends with one team ahead of the other. In Japanese baseball, however, games end if tied after 12 innings (or, in postseason play in

Nippon Professional Baseball or NPB is the highest level of baseball in Japan. Locally, it is often called , meaning ''Professional Baseball''. Outside Japan, it is often just referred to as "Japanese baseball". The roots of the league can be traced back to the formation ...

, 15 innings). For the 2011 and 2012 NPB season, a game also ended in a tie if a regular-season game has reached its 3-hour, 30-minute time limit, and both teams are tied. As in the case of the ninth inning, a home team which scores to take a lead in any extra inning automatically wins, and the inning (and the game) is considered complete at that moment regardless of the number of outs. This is commonly referred to as a " walk-off" situation since the last play results in the teams walking off the field because the game is over. However, road teams can't earn a "walk-off" victory by scoring the go-ahead run in extra innings, unlike in

ice hockey Ice hockey (or simply hockey) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an ice skating rink with lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. In ice hockey, two opposing teams use ice ...

where the team (either home or away) scoring first in overtime automatically wins. A baseball game can be shorter than scheduled innings if it is interrupted by rain (or other bad weather). Such a game is said to be rained out, and is often preceded by a rain delay, a pause in the game during which the umpires will try to determine if the weather will allow the game to continue. If so, the game will simply be delayed until the rain stops, and then play will resume. If not, the umpires will announce a ''rainout'' and play will be suspended for the day. The game may have to be replayed in its entirety at a later date, but under certain circumstances, a game shortened because of rain can count as an official game, and the team that was ahead at the time the game was called will be awarded the win. See the article on

rainout (sports) Rainout, washout, rain delay, and rain stopped play are terms regarding an outdoor event, generally a sporting event, delayed or canceled due to rain, or the threat of rain. It is not to be confused with a type of out in baseball, though a baseba ...

for further details.

Professional baseball Professional baseball is organized baseball in which players are selected for their talents and are paid to play for a specific team or club system. It is played in leagues and associated farm teams throughout the world. Modern professiona ...

games as well as college baseball games are scheduled for nine innings.

Softball Softball is a game similar to baseball played with a larger ball on a smaller field. Softball is played competitively at club levels, the college level, and the professional level. The game was first created in 1887 in Chicago by George Hanc ...

games and high school baseball games are scheduled for seven innings, as are some minor league baseball doubleheaders. Major League doubleheaders comprised scheduled 7 inning games during the 2020 and 2021 seasons due to the COVID pandemic, but returned to 9 innings in 2022. College games may be shortened to seven innings if one team's score is ahead by a minimum of ten runs. Little League games are scheduled for six innings and may be shortened further (auto-forfeit) if a team has an overwhelming scoring lead.

Terminology

Ending a half-inning is referred to as "retiring the side". A half-inning in which all batters are put out without taking a base is referred to as a "one-two-three inning". The number of innings a

pitcher In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throws ("pitches") the baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of retiring a batter, who attempts to either make contact with the pitched ball or dr ...

is in a game is measured by the

innings pitched In baseball, innings pitched (IP) are the number of innings a pitcher has completed, measured by the number of batters and baserunners that are put out while the pitcher is on the pitching mound in a game. Three outs made is equal to one inning ...

statistic. In US English, baseball terminology is sometimes found in non-sports usage in a tense situation: "it's the bottom of the ninth nning (sometimes adding, "with two outs"), meaning "there isn't much time to turn things around here".

Gameplay

Terminology

References

See also