170-424: 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 team , called the pitcher , throws a ball that a player on the batting team , called the batter , tries to hit with a bat . The objective of the offensive team (batting team)
340-423: A sacrifice fly . In order to increase the chance of advancing a batter to first base via a walk, the manager will sometimes signal a batter who is ahead in the count (i.e., has more balls than strikes) to take , or not swing at, the next pitch. The batter's potential reward of reaching base (via a walk) exceeds the disadvantage if the next pitch is a strike. The evolution of baseball from older bat-and-ball games
510-429: A second baseman to the right of second base, a shortstop to the left of second base, and a third baseman to the right of third base. The basic outfield positions are left fielder , center fielder , and right fielder . With the exception of the catcher, all fielders are required to be in fair territory when the pitch is delivered. A neutral umpire sets up behind the catcher. Other umpires will be distributed around
680-574: A backup catcher, and two or three other reserve players. The manager , or head coach, oversees the team's major strategic decisions, such as establishing the starting rotation, setting the lineup, or batting order, before each game, and making substitutions during games—in particular, bringing in relief pitchers. Managers are typically assisted by two or more coaches ; they may have specialized responsibilities, such as working with players on hitting, fielding, pitching, or strength and conditioning. At most levels of organized play, two coaches are stationed on
850-447: A ball that results in the team's third out, even if it is recorded against a teammate. On rare occasions, a batter may be at the plate when, without the batter's hitting the ball, a third out is recorded against a teammate—for instance, a runner getting caught stealing (tagged out attempting to steal a base). A batter with this sort of incomplete plate appearance starts off the team's next turn batting; any balls or strikes recorded against
1020-450: A base at any given time; the same applies for other runners if they are on a base that a teammate is forced to advance to. If a ball hit into play rolls foul before passing through the infield, it becomes dead and any runners must return to the base they occupied when the play began. If the ball is hit in the air and caught before it lands, the batter has flied out and any runners on base may attempt to advance only if they tag up (contact
1190-445: A base, the runner is "safe" from the fielding team and in a position to score runs. Leaving a safe haven places the runner in danger of being put out (eliminated). The teams switch roles when the fielding team 'puts out'/'gets out' enough of the batting team's players, which varies by game. In modern baseball, the fielders put three players out . In cricket, they "dismiss" all players but one, though in some forms of cricket, there
1360-661: A bicycle around the island of Taiwan is popular in Taiwanese culture. Golf was introduced during the Japanese colonial period, with the first golf club opening in 1919. Professionally, Lu Liang-Huan won the French Open in 1971, for the first Taiwanese victory on the European Tour . In 1982, Chen Tze-chung first professional golfer from Taiwan to earn a PGA Tour card and is the first Taiwanese golfer to win on
1530-402: A certain rate , which essentially imposes a time limit of sorts on these types of games. In some bat-and-ball sports, there are team penalties designed to ensure the game goes at a faster pace. For example, in various formats of cricket, there are over rate penalties which kick in if a team has bowled too few deliveries within an allotted amount of time, while in some baseball leagues, there
1700-469: A cricket match than dozens of baseball games combined, and while a T10 cricket match generally ends in 90 minutes, a Test cricket batter may bat for hours over several consecutive days. Overall, most bat-and-ball games can be categorized as being baseball-like or cricket-like, with many of them following the same basic outline: This list may not apply to all bat-and-ball games, but covers certain features common to many of them: In cricket and baseball,
1870-601: A favorable foundation for sports in Taiwan. When the Kuomintang -led government took back Taiwan from Japan in 1949 and started the national-wide martial law , freedom was restricted and life was strictly regulated under the party-state system. The economy was severely damaged by World War II and the Chinese Civil War , and many sports clubs were dissolved due to the sensitive political environment. Although
SECTION 10
#17327655085332040-588: A following in much of the world was a factor, more important was MLB's reluctance to allow its players to participate during the major league season. MLB initiated the World Baseball Classic , scheduled to precede its season, partly as a replacement, high-profile international tournament. The inaugural Classic , held in March 2006, was the first tournament involving national teams to feature a significant number of MLB participants. The Baseball World Cup
2210-415: A football or soccer field does not affect play the way foul territory in baseball does, so variations in that regard are largely insignificant. These physical variations create a distinctive set of playing conditions at each ballpark. Other local factors, such as altitude and climate, can also significantly affect play. A given stadium may acquire a reputation as a pitcher's park or a hitter's park, if one or
2380-434: A game, involves an individual, one-on-one contest: "the pitcher and the batter in a battle of wits". Pitcher, batter, and fielder all act essentially independent of each other. While coaching staffs can signal pitcher or batter to pursue certain tactics, the execution of the play itself is a series of solitary acts. If the batter hits a line drive, the outfielder is solely responsible for deciding to try to catch it or play it on
2550-681: A history of success at the Asian level. Football is run by the Chinese Taipei Football Association (CTFA), which in turn runs the national teams for men and women and several domestic competitions. The top league of football, the Taiwan Football Premier League (former Intercity Football League ), is relatively semi-professional and dominated by two teams, Tatung F.C. from Taipei and Taipower F.C. from Kaohsiung . As an incentive,
2720-487: A home run at another. A team that plays in a park with a relatively short right field, such as the New York Yankees , will tend to stock its roster with left-handed pull hitters , who can best exploit it. On the individual level, a player who spends most of his career with a team that plays in a hitter's park will gain an advantage in batting statistics over time—even more so if his talents are especially suited to
2890-770: A large (35 cm) soft ball. Using the legs: Using the hands: Involving throwing: Sports in Taiwan#Baseball In Taiwan , some of the most popular sports include baseball , basketball , badminton , football , softball , table tennis , tennis , and volleyball . Martial arts such as tai chi and taekwondo are also practiced by many people. International-known athletes include Jeremy Lin , Tai Tzu-ying , Kuo Hsing-chun , Yu Chang , Chien-Ming Wang , Lin Yun-ju , Yang Chuan-kwang , Chou Tien-chen , Hsieh Su-wei , and Yani Tseng among others. Due to political reasons and pressures from
3060-493: A lead , the pitcher may attempt a pickoff , a quick throw to a fielder covering the base to keep the runner's lead in check or, optimally, effect a tag out. Pickoff attempts, however, are subject to rules that severely restrict the pitcher's movements before and during the pickoff attempt. Violation of any one of these rules could result in the umpire calling a balk against the pitcher, which permits any runners on base to advance one base with impunity. If an attempted stolen base
3230-593: A mature and successful combat sport in Taiwan. Taiwanese competitors regularly participate in taekwondo tournaments from Asian Games to the Olympics . The first two Olympic gold medals won by Taiwanese athletes belong to the sport. In the 2004 Olympics , Chen Shih-hsin and Chu Mu-yen won gold medals in the women's flyweight event and the men's flyweight event, respectively. Subsequent taekwondo competitors have strengthened Taiwan's taekwondo culture. Taiwanese tennis players have achieved notable results and rankings in
3400-719: A nationwide archery association was founded in 1973. Since the 1980s, The Chinese Taipei Archery Association started to aim at medals in international competitions. In 1999, the Chinese Taipei archery team won gold at the World Archery Championships in women's compound team event. In 2002, Yuan Shu-chi became the first Taiwanese gold medalist in archery at the Asian Games by defeating two South Korean archers in women's individual event. Two years later, Taiwanese archery teams won Olympic medals for
3570-699: A number of competitions between clubs from different countries. Other competitions between national teams, such as the Baseball World Cup and the Olympic baseball tournament , were administered by the International Baseball Federation (IBAF) from its formation in 1938 until its 2013 merger with the International Softball Federation to create the current joint governing body for both sports,
SECTION 20
#17327655085333740-407: A park with little space between the foul lines and the stands, but a foulout in a park with more expansive foul ground. A fence in foul territory that is close to the outfield line will tend to direct balls that strike it back toward the fielders, while one that is farther away may actually prompt more collisions, as outfielders run full speed to field balls deep in the corner. These variations can make
3910-543: A permanent fixture of the post-season. Regular-season interleague play was introduced in 1997 and the second-highest attendance mark for a full season was set. In 2000, the National and American Leagues were dissolved as legal entities. While their identities were maintained for scheduling purposes (and the designated hitter distinction), the regulations and other functions—such as player discipline and umpire supervision—they had administered separately were consolidated under
4080-426: A pitcher's park when the strong winds off Lake Michigan are blowing in, it becomes more of a hitter's park when they are blowing out. The absence of a standardized field affects not only how particular games play out, but the nature of team rosters and players' statistical records. For example, hitting a fly ball 330 feet (100 m) into right field might result in an easy catch on the warning track at one park, and
4250-409: A player has been removed for a substitute, that player may not reenter the game. Children's games often have more lenient rules, such as Little League rules, which allow players to be substituted back into the same game. If the designated hitter (DH) rule is in effect, each team has a tenth player whose sole responsibility is to bat (and run). The DH takes the place of another player—almost invariably
4420-479: A run. The team in the field attempts to prevent runs from scoring by recording outs , which remove opposing players from offensive action until their next turn at bat comes up again. When three outs are recorded, the teams switch roles for the next half-inning. If the score of the game is tied after nine innings, extra innings are played to resolve the contest. Many amateur games, particularly unorganized ones, involve different numbers of players and innings. The game
4590-400: A runner legally advances around the bases in order and touches home plate (the place where the player started as a batter). The initial objective of the batting team is to have a player reach first base safely ; this generally occurs either when the batter hits the ball and reaches first base before an opponent retrieves the ball and touches the base, or when the pitcher persists in throwing
4760-476: A score of 7–0. This historic game and the rise of television made the popularity of baseball skyrocket, and baseball eventually became Taiwan's national sport. After martial law, many athletes flew abroad seeking better training and opportunities. To retain talented athletes, prosper the sports industry, and foster future athletes, the government invested in many short-term and mid-term plans. The " National Sports Development Mid-term Plan " proposed in 1989 proposed
4930-440: A significant effect on how ground balls behave and are fielded as well as on baserunning. Similarly, the presence of a roof (seven major league teams play in stadiums with permanent or retractable roofs) can greatly affect how fly balls are played. While football and soccer players deal with similar variations of field surface and stadium covering, the size and shape of their fields are much more standardized. The area out-of-bounds on
5100-408: A skillful contact hitter , the runner takes off with the pitch, drawing the shortstop or second baseman over to second base, creating a gap in the infield for the batter to poke the ball through. The sacrifice bunt , calls for the batter to focus on making soft contact with the ball, so that it rolls a short distance into the infield, allowing the runner to advance into scoring position as the batter
5270-435: A sufficiently long batting turn; in these circumstances, a rain rule is applied such that any runs scored by the first-batting team are usually devalued. Here are some terms or concepts common to many bat-and-ball games: In the field, there may be: Bat-and-ball games can be played with modified rules in unorthodox places, such as in the street or the backyard. Oftentimes, players are forbidden or penalized for hitting
Baseball - Misplaced Pages Continue
5440-421: A team that holds the lead killing the clock rather than competing aggressively against the opposing team. In contrast, baseball has no clock, thus a team cannot win without getting the last batter out and rallies are not constrained by time. At almost any turn in any baseball game, the most advantageous strategy is some form of aggressive strategy. Whereas, in the case of multi-day Test and first-class cricket ,
5610-425: Is a limit on the number of deliveries (scoring opportunities) that each team can have, such that the fielding team can become the batting team without getting anyone out. In many forms of early American baseball ( townball , roundball), a single out ended the inning. Some games permit multiple runners and some have multiple bases to run in sequence. Batting may occur, and running begin (and potentially end), at one of
5780-417: Is a pitch clock that penalizes batters and pitchers for taking too much time between pitches. Bat-and-ball games are played until: Ties can be dealt with in several ways: When one of the teams is not leading and only they have completed all of their allotted batting turns, this allows the other team to win automatically by surpassing the number of runs scored by the first team. In cricket, this situation
5950-432: Is a club whose dimensions and other aspects are governed by the rules of the game. If the ball is not fairly delivered to the batter (i.e. not thrown within his reach), then penalties generally occur that help the batting team score. The batter generally has an obligation to hit certain balls that are delivered within his reach (i.e. balls aimed at a designated area, known as the strike zone or wicket ), and must hit
6120-520: Is an LPGA Tour tournament since 2011, and the Taiwan Masters and Yeangder Tournament Players Championship are part of the Asian Tour since 2000 and 2010 respectively. Previously, European Tour 's BMW Asian Open was held in Taiwan in 2001 and 2002. Marathon races are held in many places in Taiwan each year. Many marathoners from all over the world participate in these races. Notably,
6290-401: Is anticipated, the catcher may call for a pitchout , a ball thrown deliberately off the plate, allowing the catcher to catch it while standing and throw quickly to a base. Facing a batter with a strong tendency to hit to one side of the field, the fielding team may employ a shift , with most or all of the fielders moving to the left or right of their usual positions. With a runner on third base,
6460-440: Is awarded a base on balls or walk, a free advance to first base. (A batter may also freely advance to first base if the batter's body or uniform is struck by a pitch outside the strike zone, provided the batter does not swing and attempts to avoid being hit.) Crucial to determining balls and strikes is the umpire's judgment as to whether a pitch has passed through the strike zone , a conceptual area above home plate extending from
6630-423: Is called a grand slam . A player who reaches base due to a fielding mistake is not credited with a hit—instead, the responsible fielder is charged with an error . Any runners already on base may attempt to advance on batted balls that land, or contact the ground, in fair territory, before or after the ball lands. A runner on first base must attempt to advance if a ball lands in play, as only one runner may occupy
6800-414: Is called. While the team at bat is trying to score runs, the team in the field is attempting to record outs. In addition to the strikeout and flyout, common ways a member of the batting team may be put out include the ground out , force out , and tag out . These occur either when a runner is forced to advance to a base, and a fielder with possession of the ball reaches that base before the runner does, or
6970-567: Is difficult to trace with precision. Consensus once held that today's baseball is a North American development from the older game rounders , popular among children in Great Britain and Ireland . American baseball historian David Block suggests that the game originated in England ; recently uncovered historical evidence supports this position. Block argues that rounders and early baseball were actually regional variants of each other, and that
Baseball - Misplaced Pages Continue
7140-411: Is one), or if the batter-runner otherwise safely circles all the bases, it is a home run : the batter and any runners on base may all freely circle the bases, each scoring a run. This is the most desirable result for the batter. The ultimate and most desirable result possible for a batter would be to hit a home run while all three bases are occupied or "loaded", thus scoring four runs on a single hit. This
7310-511: Is played every 3 years. At the domestic level, baseball tends to be played in leagues with 2 major divisions, with the playoffs being contested in a best-of-seven format. T20 leagues in cricket tend to have 6 to 8 teams and follow the Page playoff system (two semi-finals, with an additional match played to determine which team enters the second semi-final, followed by a final). Notable bat-and-ball games include: Gilli Danda (which
7480-405: Is played on a field whose primary boundaries, the foul lines, extend forward from home plate at 45-degree angles. The 90-degree area within the foul lines is referred to as fair territory; the 270-degree area outside them is foul territory. The part of the field enclosed by the bases and several yards beyond them is the infield ; the area farther beyond the infield is the outfield . In the middle of
7650-405: Is referred to as a " run chase ", with the "target" of the batting team being the number of runs scored by the other team plus one. In baseball, the home team can be considered to be chasing, with the aim of scoring the " walk-off " (winning) runs, when they are not leading anytime after the eighth inning , as a regulation game sees the trailing team bat at least nine times and the teams alternating
7820-400: Is related to several other traditional games in other parts of the world) is a South Asian game with similarities to baseball and cricket. The aim of the game is for the batter to knock a stick on the ground up into the air using a stick held in the hand, and then to hit the airborne stick as far as possible. The batter is out if the stick is caught by a player on the other team before it touches
7990-492: Is relatively simple to play, many Taiwanese also enjoy playing badminton as a recreational sport or as an extra-curricular activity. Over the years, badminton has gained popularity with the general public. In international tournaments after 2000, Cheng Wen-hsing paired with Chien Yu-chin in women's doubles and singles shuttler Cheng Shao-chieh rose on the world stage. The younger generation of Taiwanese badminton players such as Chou Tien-chen and world No. 1 Tai Tzu-ying in
8160-529: Is still primarily funded and strategized by the government under the Sports Administration in the Ministry of Education . Baseball is one of the country's most popular spectator sports. It is commonly considered the national sport in Taiwan. Baseball was first introduced during Japanese rule . Taiwan already had its first baseball team in 1906, during the period of Japanese rule. Only
8330-531: Is the second most popular sport in Taiwan. In 1954, the Chinese Taipei Basketball Association (CTBA) was founded as a non-governmental organization that works closely with the government to regulate the basketball industry in Taiwan. In 1993, four individual basketball teams formed the very first professional basketball league in Taiwan called the "Chinese Basketball Association", but the association only lasted 5 years before it
8500-473: Is thrown out at first. A batter, particularly one who is a fast runner, may also attempt to bunt for a hit. A sacrifice bunt employed with a runner on third base, aimed at bringing that runner home, is known as a squeeze play . With a runner on third and fewer than two outs, a batter may instead concentrate on hitting a fly ball that, even if it is caught, will be deep enough to allow the runner to tag up and score—a successful batter, in this case, gets credit for
8670-753: Is to assimilate the Taiwanese, improve their physical ability and health and sanitary, and upright the ideas. In the book "Taiwan’s Tradition", Tōhō Takayoshi described Han Chinese's physical appearance in Taiwan at the time as "rich people have a body like pigs, while laborers have a body like mantises." To promote sports in Taiwan, the Japanese leader in Taiwan encouraged the establishment of different sports clubs, including martial arts , equestrian , shooting , bicycle , tennis , badminton , soccer , bowling , and gymnastics . As school enrollment rates got higher and sports competition became popular, sports became universal from students to social classes, establishing
SECTION 50
#17327655085338840-402: 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 (referred to as the fielding team) is to prevent batters from becoming runners , and to prevent runners advancing around the bases . A run is scored when
9010-608: The 2019 Toray Pan Pacific Open , beating Hsieh and her sister Hsieh Yu-chieh in the final, to record their 14th WTA tournament together. It is the second-highest number of tournament wins for a pair of sisters after the Williams sisters . Latisha Chan has won four Grand Slam titles. She won the doubles title at the 2017 US Open with Martina Hingis , and the mixed doubles at the 2018 and 2019 French Open and 2019 Wimbledon Championships , all with Ivan Dodig . She became joint No. 1 in doubles with Hingis in 2017, and returned to
9180-692: The Asian Football Confederation runs the AFC President's Cup continental club competition for countries where football is relatively undeveloped, and these two clubs often take turns representing Taiwan in it. There are many amateur football clubs run by foreign expatriates within Taiwan, but they run their own amateur competitions. An example is 100 Pacers F.C. in Kaohsiung . At youth level, there are Highschool Football League , National Youth Cup , and football program in
9350-624: The BWF World Tour helped spur interest in the sport and contributed to the surge in popularity. In 2021, badminton duo Lee Yang and Wang Chi-lin won gold medal at the Tokyo Olympics . They won gold again at the 2024 Paris Olympics , the first pair in badminton history to win the doubles for men twice. The Tour de Taiwan is a road cycling race held since 1978 and has been part of the UCI Asia Tour since 2005. Riding
9520-545: The British Empire , cricket slowly emerged as the game of choice for the colonizers to spread their culture and values among the colonized. Some of the colonized people adapted to playing cricket in order to win the favor of the British, while in other cases, colonized peoples played cricket as a way of beating the British at their own sports, and thus proving themselves as equals. This helped to cement cricket as part of
9690-699: The Japanese Baseball Hall of Fame in 1995 after his retirement. After World War II in 1945, baseball remained popular in Taiwan. In 1968, Red Leaves from the remote mountainous area in Taitung County defeated the visiting all-star little-league team from Japan, touching off a "little-league baseball craze" in Taiwan. The following year, Golden Dragon little-league baseball team [ zh ] , an all-star team, participated in Little League World Series for
9860-586: The National High School Games . Chinese Taipei has sent national teams to the Under-19 World Lacrosse Championships . Rugby union has had some presence in Taiwan for most of the post war period. The national sevens team has been particularly successful. Taiwan also has a strong women's softball team. The Chinese Taipei women's national softball team is currently ranked no.3 in the world based on
10030-610: The New Taipei City Wan Jin Shi Marathon and Taipei Marathon are two World Athletics Label Road Races in Taiwan, being categorized as a Silver Label and Bronze Label Road Race respectively. Taiwan has a long history of strong international presence in table tennis . Chen Pao-pei was a gold medalist in the women's singles at the Asian Table Tennis Championships in 1953 and gold medalist with Chiang Tsai-yun in
10200-597: The People's Republic of China , the organisations or national teams from Taiwan have been competing as Chinese Taipei in international sporting events, such as the Olympic Games . The Treaty of Tientsin opened up the Taiwanese border to the western countries, and many missionaries came to Taiwan for missionary, medical, and education work. The missionaries promoted the education of intelligence, morality, and physical, and started to include physical education class in
10370-778: The West League and East League . The World Baseball Classic , organized by the World Baseball Softball Confederation , is the major international competition of the sport and attracts the top national teams from around the world. Baseball was played at the Olympic Games from 1992 to 2008, and was reinstated on a one-off basis in 2020. A baseball game is played between two teams, each usually composed of nine players, that take turns playing offense (batting and baserunning) and defense (pitching and fielding). A pair of turns, one at bat and one in
SECTION 60
#173276550853310540-458: The World Baseball Softball Confederation (WBSC). Women's baseball is played on an organized amateur basis in numerous countries. After being admitted to the Olympics as a medal sport beginning with the 1992 Games , baseball was dropped from the 2012 Summer Olympic Games at the 2005 International Olympic Committee meeting . It remained part of the 2008 Games . While the sport's lack of
10710-454: The ball , the bat , and the glove or mitt : Protective helmets are also standard equipment for all batters. At the beginning of each half-inning, the nine players of the fielding team arrange themselves around the field. One of them, the pitcher , stands on the pitcher's mound. The pitcher begins the pitching delivery with one foot on the rubber, pushing off it to gain velocity when throwing toward home plate. Another fielding team player,
10880-408: The catcher , squats on the far side of home plate, facing the pitcher. The rest of the fielding team faces home plate, typically arranged as four infielders—who set up along or within a few yards outside the imaginary lines (basepaths) between first, second, and third base—and three outfielders. In the standard arrangement , there is a first baseman positioned several steps to the left of first base,
11050-527: The colonial era by English immigrants who played games similar to rounders ; at the time, cricket was significantly more popular in the United States, since it was one of the main sports throughout the British Empire. However, the main format of cricket was first-class cricket , in which games lasted multiple days; baseball by comparison was a game that lasted less than two hours. Because of
11220-468: The free agency system . Significant work stoppages occurred in 1981 and 1994 , the latter forcing the cancellation of the World Series for the first time in 90 years. Attendance had been growing steadily since the mid-1970s and in 1994, before the stoppage, the majors were setting their all-time record for per-game attendance. After play resumed in 1995, non-division-winning wild card teams became
11390-773: The national sport of the United States , though in modern times is considered less popular than other sports , such as American football . In addition to North America , baseball spread throughout the rest of the Americas and the Asia–Pacific in the 19th and 20th centuries, and is now considered the most popular sport in parts of Central and South America , the Caribbean , and East Asia , particularly in Japan , South Korea , and Taiwan . In Major League Baseball (MLB),
11560-408: The slider . Pitchers have different repertoires of pitches they are skillful at throwing. Conventionally, before each pitch, the catcher signals the pitcher what type of pitch to throw, as well as its general vertical or horizontal location. If there is disagreement on the selection, the pitcher may shake off the sign and the catcher will call for a different pitch. With a runner on base and taking
11730-421: The wicket for an hour or much more. There is no statistical equivalent in cricket for the fielding error and thus less emphasis on personal responsibility in this area of play. Unlike those of most sports, baseball playing fields can vary significantly in size and shape. While the dimensions of the infield are specifically regulated, the only constraint on outfield size and shape for professional teams, following
11900-488: The 1957 women's doubles and women's team events. Li Kou-tin won the men's singles at the 1958 Asian Games . More recently, Chuang Chih-yuan won the ITTF Pro Tour Grand Finals in 2002. In 2003 he was ranked world No. 3, and he has remained in or near the top ten for over 15 years. With Chen Chien-an he won the men's doubles in 2013 at the 52nd World Table Tennis Championships . Chen Chien-an won
12070-625: The 2008 World Junior Table Tennis Championships in singles. Playing for Taiwan Chen Jing won a bronze medal at the 1996 Olympic Games and a silver medal at the 2000 Olympic Games. Seventeen-year-old Lin Yun-Ju upset both reigning world champion Ma Long and world ranked No. 3 Fan Zhendong to win the 2019 men's singles in the T2 Diamond Series in Malaysia. Taekwondo was introduced to Taiwan in 1966 for military training and has become
12240-595: The 21st century. In 2004, Lu Yen-hsun was the first player from Taiwan to break into the Top 100 of the ATP rankings . Jimmy Wang followed him in 2006, reaching No. 85. Lu peaked at No. 33 in 2010. The same year, he reached the quarterfinal of Wimbledon . Lu holds the record for the most titles in the ATP Challenger Tour , with 29 wins. Hsieh Su-wei is Taiwan's most successful player, having been ranked inside
12410-553: The DH rule, including MLB, Japan's Pacific League , and Caribbean professional leagues, along with major American amateur organizations. The Central League in Japan does not have the rule and high-level minor league clubs connected to National League teams are not required to field a DH. In leagues that apply the designated hitter rule, a typical team has nine offensive regulars (including the DH), five starting pitchers, seven or eight relievers,
12580-727: The Gotham Club. While there are reports that the New York Knickerbockers played games in 1845, the contest long recognized as the first officially recorded baseball game in U.S. history took place on June 19, 1846, in Hoboken, New Jersey : the "New York Nine" defeated the Knickerbockers, 23–1, in four innings. With the Knickerbocker code as the basis, the rules of modern baseball continued to evolve over
12750-640: The Japanese played baseball initially, but gradually more and more Taiwanese players joined. In 1931, the Kagi Agricultural and Forestry School (now National Chiayi University ) baseball team won second place in the 17th Japanese High School Baseball Championship (Summer Koshien), which shocked the whole of Japan. Since then, a number of Taiwanese baseball players have joined Japanese professional baseball teams. A notable example is, Shosei Go (Wú Chāngzhēng), nicknamed "The Human Locomotive", whose mastery of both pitching and batting won him election to
12920-567: The PGA Tour with a win at the 1987 Los Angeles Open . After a period of decline, Golf has become increasingly popular in Taiwan. Yani Tseng (曾雅妮) was the 2008 LPGA Rookie of the Year. She is the youngest player to win five major golf championships—either men's majors or women's majors —and is ranked number 1 in the Women's World Golf Rankings in 2011–2012. The Fubon LPGA Taiwan Championship
13090-568: The United States and Canada was founded in 1878 in Cuba, which maintains a rich baseball tradition. The Dominican Republic held its first islandwide championship tournament in 1912. Professional baseball tournaments and leagues began to form in other countries between the world wars, including the Netherlands (formed in 1922), Australia (1934), Japan (1936), Mexico (1937), and Puerto Rico (1938). The Japanese major leagues have long been considered
13260-925: The United States. While baseball is widely played in Canada and many minor league teams have been based in the country, the American major leagues did not include a Canadian club until 1969, when the Montreal Expos joined the National League as an expansion team. In 1977, the expansion Toronto Blue Jays joined the American League. In 1847, American soldiers played what may have been the first baseball game in Mexico at Parque Los Berros in Xalapa , Veracruz . The first formal baseball league outside of
13430-764: The WBSC Rankings. The team recently won bronze medal at the 2022 World Games . Starting from 2004, the Chinese Taipei Volleyball Association hosts the Enterprise Volleyball League every year. It is a men's amateur volleyball league. In total 4 teams participated in the 2008 season. The Chinese Taipei women's national volleyball team is the women's national volleyball team of Republic of China (Taiwan). (See Chinese Taipei for team naming issue) Controlled by Chinese Taipei Volleyball Association, it represents
13600-444: The attacking team's players to force them off the field ("get them out") when they are not in safe zones, and thus prevent them from further scoring. The best known modern bat-and-ball games are cricket and baseball , with common roots in the 18th-century games played in England . The teams alternate between "batting" (offensive role), sometimes called "in at bat" or simply in , and "fielding" (defensive role), also called "out in
13770-499: The average MLB game had gone from being two hours long to about three hours long, so the two sports now had formats that were of a comparable duration. Later on, the T10 format of cricket, in which games last less than two hours, emerged at a domestic level, with leagues being started for it in several major cricket-playing countries. There is a great deal of variation among bat-and-ball games; for example, more runs are generally scored in
13940-484: The average major league game has increased steadily through the years. At the turn of the 20th century, games typically took an hour and a half to play. In the 1920s, they averaged just less than two hours, which eventually ballooned to 2:38 in 1960. By 1997, the average American League game lasted 2:57 (National League games were about 10 minutes shorter—pitchers at the plate making for quicker outs than designated hitters). In 2004, Major League Baseball declared that its goal
14110-474: The ball out of the batter's reach . Players on the batting team who reach first base without being called " out " can attempt to advance to subsequent bases as a runner, either immediately or during teammates' turns batting. The fielding team tries to prevent runs by using the ball to get batters or runners "out", which forces them out of the field of play. The pitcher can get the batter out by throwing three pitches which result in strikes , while fielders can get
14280-457: The ball being treated or roughed-up with foreign substances, resulted in a ball that traveled farther when hit. The rise of the legendary player Babe Ruth , the first great power hitter of the new era, helped permanently alter the nature of the game. In the late 1920s and early 1930s, St. Louis Cardinals general manager Branch Rickey invested in several minor league clubs and developed the first modern farm system . A new Negro National League
14450-537: The ball out of the field into an area where it would be hard to reach, and play may be modified so as to ensure all players have an opportunity to participate, such as in Kwik cricket . At the international level, the World Baseball Classic is the premier baseball tournament. For cricket, the ODI World Cup , ICC T20 World Cup , and ICC World Test Championship are the premier tournaments. The Pesäpallo World Cup
14620-456: The ball so that it is not caught by a fielder before it touches the ground. The most desirable outcome for the batter is generally to hit the ball out of the field, as this results in automatically scoring runs; however, in certain bat-and-ball games, this can result in a penalty against the batter. If the ball is struck into the field, then the batter may become a runner trying to reach a safe haven or "base"/" ground ". While in contact with
14790-636: The ball; these variations may also give the batter possession of the ball at the start of each play, eliminating the defensive team's role in starting the action. A prominent example of this is Baseball5 , one of the main sporting disciplines governed by the World Baseball Softball Confederation along with baseball and softball . The history of baseball's formation and rise in popularity took place in England (potentially influenced by or descended from games played in continental Europe ) and then America. Predecessors of baseball were brought to America during
14960-439: The base they occupied when the play began, as or after the ball is caught). Runners may also attempt to advance to the next base while the pitcher is in the process of delivering the ball to home plate; a successful effort is a stolen base . A pitch that is not hit into the field of play is called either a strike or a ball. A batter against whom three strikes are recorded strikes out . A batter against whom four balls are recorded
15130-412: The baseball in a certain manner, and by throwing it at a certain speed, pitchers can cause the baseball to break to either side, or downward, as it approaches the batter, thus creating differing pitches that can be selected. Among the resulting wide variety of pitches that may be thrown, the four basic types are the fastball , the changeup (or off-speed pitch), and two breaking balls —the curveball and
15300-513: The bases. The movement between those "safe havens" is governed by the rules of the particular sport. The game ends when the losing team has completed the maximum number of innings (batting/scoring turns), which may range from 1 (as in limited-overs cricket ) to 9 (as in baseball) or more. Ties are generally broken (if at all) by allowing each team to have an additional turn to score. Some variations of bat-and-ball games do not feature bats, with batters instead using parts of their bodies to hit
15470-542: The basketball industry in Taiwan to a new peak. While teams in both leagues were dedicated to recruiting the best local players, they were both eyeing and investing in recruiting foreign players. In 2022, renowned NBA star Dwight Howard was recruited by the team Taoyuan Leopards within T1 League , marking history in Taiwan's basketball. Internationally, the Chinese Taipei men's national basketball team won
15640-432: The batter (such as Schlagball ), but may (like baseball) restrict batters from hitting the ball behind themselves or too far to the side; see foul territory . Bat-and-ball sports can be modified to be played in an indoor court. For example, indoor cricket takes place in a 30 by 12 metres (98 ft × 39 ft) facility, while Baseball5 is played on a 21 metres (69 ft)-square field. In baseball-like games,
15810-429: The batter out by catching a batted ball before it touches the ground, and can get a runner out by tagging them with the ball while the runner is not touching a base. The opposing teams switch back and forth between batting and fielding; the batting team's turn to bat is over once the fielding team records three outs. One turn batting for each team constitutes an inning . A game is usually composed of nine innings, and
15980-454: The batter the previous inning are erased. A runner may circle the bases only once per plate appearance and thus can score at most a single run per batting turn. Once a player has completed a plate appearance, that player may not bat again until the eight other members of the player's team have all taken their turn at bat in the batting order . The batting order is set before the game begins, and may not be altered except for substitutions . Once
16150-435: The batting, with the home team always batting last. In addition to the number of runs a team won by over their opponents, other factors which are relevant to determining which team wins, such as the number of outs or legal deliveries that were remaining in the batting team's turn (if they won/there was a limit on either resource), can be included with the statement of the result. The result may also mention how many more times
16320-450: The bottom, or second half, of every inning. The goal of the game is to score more points ( runs ) than the other team. The players on the team at bat attempt to score runs by touching all four bases, in order, set at the corners of the square-shaped baseball diamond . A player bats at home plate and must attempt to safely reach a base before proceeding, counterclockwise , from first base, to second base, third base, and back home to score
16490-413: The bounce and for succeeding or failing. The statistical precision of baseball is both facilitated by this isolation and reinforces it. Cricket is more similar to baseball than many other team sports in this regard: while the individual focus in cricket is mitigated by the importance of the batting partnership and the practicalities of tandem running, it is enhanced by the fact that a batsman may occupy
16660-569: The championship in that inaugural effort. Within 20 years, Taiwan has won 17 championships as of 1991. For big league baseball, Taiwan began entering the Big League World Series held by Little League Baseball at Fort Lauderdale, Florida , in 1974, and won 13 championships within 18 years (until 1991). The professional baseball league is the Chinese Professional Baseball League (CPBL), and
16830-401: The country in international competitions and friendly matchesfter 16 years since 1990, Chinese Taipei women's national volleyball team re-entered FIVB Women's World Championship in 2006. To everyone's surprise, the 23-ranked team gained their first-ever victory over the host Japan (7th) on the opening day, followed by defeated South Korea (8th), Poland (9th), Kenya (11th), and Costa Rica (33rd) in
17000-641: The country; thus, several professional cricket players switched to playing baseball, and cricket faded away in America. Baseball then began to spread throughout the Pacific Rim and the Americas, supported by the contemporary westward expansion of the United States. Over time, several variations of baseball appeared, with some being informal ( kickball ), others becoming professional sports in their own right ( softball ), and some even taking root overseas ( pesäpallo ). In other countries that were part of
17170-452: The defensive team deliver the ball to the batter, is not crucial. These games use the foot or hand to hit the ball, and make it significantly easier to hit the ball overall, either by placing significant restrictions on the way the defensive team delivers the ball to the batter, or by giving the batter possession of the ball at the start of each play. Otherwise their rules may be similar or even identical to baseball or cricket. The first two use
17340-471: The difference between a double and a triple or inside-the-park home run . The surface of the field is also unregulated. While the adjacent image shows a traditional field surfacing arrangement (and the one used by virtually all MLB teams with naturally surfaced fields), teams are free to decide what areas will be grassed or bare. Some fields—including several in MLB—use artificial turf . Surface variations can have
17510-623: The early 1830s, there were reports of a variety of uncodified bat-and-ball games recognizable as early forms of baseball being played around North America. The first officially recorded baseball game in North America was played in Beachville, Ontario , Canada, on June 4, 1838. In 1845, Alexander Cartwright , a member of New York City's Knickerbocker Club , led the codification of the so-called Knickerbocker Rules , which in turn were based on rules developed in 1837 by William R. Wheaton of
17680-415: The effect of shortening 2023 regular season games by 24 minutes on average. Although baseball is a team sport, individual players are often placed under scrutiny and pressure. While rewarding, it has sometimes been described as "ruthless" due to the pressure on the individual player. In 1915, a baseball instructional manual pointed out that every single pitch, of which there are often more than two hundred in
17850-427: The field as well. Play starts with a member of the batting team, the batter, standing in either of the two batter's boxes next to home plate, holding a bat. The batter waits for the pitcher to throw a pitch (the ball) toward home plate, and attempts to hit the ball with the bat. The catcher catches pitches that the batter does not hit—as a result of either electing not to swing or failing to connect—and returns them to
18020-475: The field to confer with players during a game. Any baseball game involves one or more umpires , who make rulings on the outcome of each play. At a minimum, one umpire will stand behind the catcher, to have a good view of the strike zone, and call balls and strikes. Additional umpires may be stationed near the other bases, thus making it easier to judge plays such as attempted force outs and tag outs. In MLB, four umpires are used for each game, one near each base. In
18190-466: The field when the team is at bat: the first base coach and third base coach, who occupy designated coaches' boxes, just outside the foul lines. These coaches assist in the direction of baserunners, when the ball is in play, and relay tactical signals from the manager to batters and runners, during pauses in play. In contrast to many other team sports, baseball managers and coaches generally wear their team's uniforms; coaches must be in uniform to be allowed on
18360-400: The field" or out . Only the batting team may score, but teams have equal opportunities in both roles. The game is counted rather than timed. The action starts when a player on the fielding team (the "bowler" or "pitcher") puts the ball in play with a delivery whose restriction depends on the game. A player on the batting team attempts to strike the delivered ball, commonly with a "bat", which
18530-479: The field, by each team constitutes an inning . A game consists of nine innings (seven innings at the high school level and in doubleheaders in college, Minor League Baseball and, since the 2020 season , Major League Baseball ; and six innings at the Little League level). One team—customarily the visiting team—bats in the top, or first half, of every inning. The other team—customarily the home team—bats in
18700-409: The field, returning to their team's dugout or bench. A runner may be stranded on base when a third out is recorded against another player on the team. Stranded runners do not benefit the team in its next turn at bat as every half-inning begins with the bases empty. An individual player's turn batting or plate appearance is complete when the player reaches base, hits a home run, makes an out, or hits
18870-630: The fielders (also known as "position players") operate in a standard set of baseball positions because it is generally possible to cover most of the field by spacing the fielders out in certain ways. By contrast, the significantly larger cricket field has many possible cricket fielding positions , with the 11 fielders occupying the slips cordon behind the batter, or other areas of the field. T20 cricket and baseball both last about 3 hours, while other forms of cricket can last either multiple days or less than three hours . Informal bat-and-ball games may take place in shorter periods of time, and in general,
19040-643: The first British baseball champions winning the 1890 National League of Baseball of Great Britain . The 2020 National Champions were the London Mets . Other European countries have seen professional leagues; the most successful, other than the Dutch league , is the Italian league , founded in 1948. In 2004, Australia won a surprise silver medal at the Olympic Games . The Confédération Européene de Baseball (European Baseball Confederation), founded in 1953, organizes
19210-537: The first round. However, after a good start of five consecutive victories, the team could not continue their impressing form and eventually took the 12th placeIn December, the same squad attended the 2006 Asian Games held in Doha, Qatar. Although the team lost to South Korea and China in the preliminary round, they later beat Kazakhstan and Thailand and won the bronze medal, the first ever medal in women's volleyball at Asian Games. The sport spread in Taiwan for recreation when
19380-519: The first time and won the championship, which launched the "golden age" of Taiwan's " three youth level baseball [ zh ] " program comprising the little league, senior league, and big league. With regard to little league baseball, Taiwan has won 15 championships from 1969 to 1991. For senior league baseball, Taiwan joined in Senior League World Series held by Little League Baseball at Gary, Indiana in 1972, and won
19550-515: The first time at the 2004 Summer Olympics . In 2019, the Chinese Enterprise Archery League was launched. Taiwanese competitors regularly participate in archery tournaments, occasionally winning medals in major sport events. The Taiwanese archery team is one of the top teams in the world. One of the best results came out when the team won both the women's recurve and compound team events, and Lei Chien-ying clinched
19720-409: The game at a later date. In cricket, however, which is generally played to only one or two batting turns per team, a match may not be callable for the simple reason that only one of the teams has had the chance to score so far. However, cricket matches that are interrupted by rain can still be considered completable so long as there is enough time left in the match to allow the second-batting team to face
19890-552: The game in the public eye. The first crack in the unwritten agreement barring blacks from white-controlled professional ball occurred in 1945: Jackie Robinson was signed by the National League's Brooklyn Dodgers and began playing for their minor league team in Montreal . In 1947, Robinson broke the major leagues' color barrier when he debuted with the Dodgers. Latin-American players, largely overlooked before, also started entering
20060-605: The game's most direct antecedents are the English games of stoolball and "tut-ball". The earliest known reference to baseball is in a 1744 British publication, A Little Pretty Pocket-Book , by John Newbery . Block discovered that the first recorded game of "Bass-Ball" took place in 1749 in Surrey , and featured the Prince of Wales as a player. This early form of the game was apparently brought to Canada by English immigrants. By
20230-407: The ground. Points are earned either based on the distance the stick travels, or by the batter running to a designated area while the fielders collect the batted stick and throw it back to the hitting area to try to get the batter out. The game ends after each team has batted once, with each team batting until all of its players are out. Striking the ball with a "bat" or any type of stick, or having
20400-496: The height of fences or other structures at the edge of the outfield. The most famously idiosyncratic outfield boundary is the left-field wall at Boston's Fenway Park , in use since 1912: the Green Monster is 310 feet (94 m) from home plate down the line and 37 feet (11 m) tall. Similarly, there are no regulations at all concerning the dimensions of foul territory. Thus a foul fly ball may be entirely out of play in
20570-634: The highest level of professional baseball in the United States and Canada, teams are divided into the National League (NL) and American League (AL), each with three divisions: East, West, and Central. The MLB champion is determined by playoffs that culminate in the World Series . The top level of play is similarly split in Japan between the Central and Pacific Leagues and in Cuba between
20740-841: The highest quality professional circuits outside of the United States. After World War II, professional leagues were founded in many Latin American countries, most prominently Venezuela (1946) and the Dominican Republic (1955). Since the early 1970s, the annual Caribbean Series has matched the championship clubs from the four leading Latin American winter leagues: the Dominican Professional Baseball League , Mexican Pacific League , Puerto Rican Professional Baseball League , and Venezuelan Professional Baseball League . In Asia, South Korea (1982), Taiwan (1990) and China (2003) all have professional leagues. The English football club, Aston Villa , were
20910-491: The history of SBL. In 2022, the second professional basketball league " P. LEAGUE+ " (Plus League) was founded by a former basketball player Charles "Blackie" Chen . The following year, a third professional basketball league " T1 League " was established by the former manager of the American basketball alliance NBA in the Taiwan area Guang-Zhong Guan. The two newly established professional basketball leagues sparks competition in players and resources but were said to have pushed
21080-466: The individual title in women's recurve at the 2019 World Archery Championships . Badminton was introduced to Taiwan in late 1940s after World War II, and a nationwide badminton association was founded in 1956. The National Badminton Association of the Republic of China joined BWF in 1957, and annual Taipei Open was inaugurated in 1980. Since badminton does not require very expensive equipment and
21250-424: The infield is a raised pitcher's mound, with a rectangular rubber plate (the rubber) at its center. The outer boundary of the outfield is typically demarcated by a raised fence, which may be of any material and height. The fair territory between home plate and the outfield boundary is baseball's field of play, though significant events can take place in foul territory, as well. There are three basic tools of baseball:
21420-409: The infielders may play in , moving closer to home plate to improve the odds of throwing out the runner on a ground ball , though a sharply hit grounder is more likely to carry through a drawn-in infield. Several basic offensive tactics come into play with a runner on first base, including the fundamental choice of whether to attempt a steal of second base. The hit and run is sometimes employed, with
21590-404: The losing team batted than the winning team. In some circumstances (e.g. bad weather), a complete game may not be possible in its originally envisioned timeframe because of weather or other reasons. In baseball-like games, which generally have many innings, it is possible to call the result of a game after both teams have batted only a few of their scheduled turns, or otherwise to finish/replay
21760-697: The main playoff competition is the Taiwan Series . Taiwan has been "exporting" baseball talents to Japan and United States over the past few decades, such as Tai-Yuan Kuo (Taigen Kaku) to the Seibu Lions , Chien-Ming Wang to the New York Yankees / Washington Nationals , and Wei-Yin Chen to the Baltimore Orioles . The Chinese Taipei national baseball team and the Chinese Taipei women's national baseball team are currently second best in
21930-430: The majors in greater numbers. In 1951, two Chicago White Sox, Venezuelan-born Chico Carrasquel and black Cuban-born Minnie Miñoso , became the first Hispanic All-Stars . Integration proceeded slowly: by 1953, only six of the 16 major league teams had a black player on the roster. In 1975, the union's power—and players' salaries—began to increase greatly when the reserve clause was effectively struck down , leading to
22100-437: The manager of the batting team trying to arrange opposite-handed matchups. With a team that has the lead in the late innings, a manager may remove a starting position player—especially one whose turn at bat is not likely to come up again—for a more skillful fielder (known as a defensive substitution ). The tactical decision that precedes almost every play in a baseball game involves pitch selection. By gripping and then releasing
22270-566: The mid-18th century. This game was brought by immigrants to North America, where the modern version developed . Baseball's American origins, as well as its reputation as a source of escapism during troubled points in American history such as the American Civil War and the Great Depression , have led the sport to receive the moniker of "America's Pastime"; since the late 19th century, it has been unofficially recognized as
22440-406: The midpoint between the batter's shoulders and belt down to the hollow of the knee. Any pitch which does not pass through the strike zone is called a ball, unless the batter either swings and misses at the pitch, or hits the pitch into foul territory; an exception generally occurs if the ball is hit into foul territory when the batter already has two strikes, in which case neither a ball nor a strike
22610-510: The minor Western League , was established in 1893, and virtually all of the modern baseball rules were in place by then. The National Agreement of 1903 formalized relations both between the two major leagues and between them and the National Association of Professional Base Ball Leagues, representing most of the country's minor professional leagues . The World Series , pitting the two major league champions against each other,
22780-515: The national culture of several countries that later won their independence from the British. In 1971, the ODI (One Day International) format of cricket was first played internationally; the ODI format shortened cricket from a five-day long game ( Test cricket ) to a one-day long game. In 2003, a new format of cricket called T20 cricket emerged which was designed to last only about three hours. By this time,
22950-628: The next half-century. The game then went on to spread throughout the Pacific Rim and the Americas, with Americans backing the sport as a way to spread American values. In the mid-1850s, a baseball craze hit the New York metropolitan area , and by 1856, local journals were referring to baseball as the "national pastime" or "national game". A year later, the sport's first governing body, the National Association of Base Ball Players ,
23120-549: The other discipline notably benefits from its unique mix of elements. The most exceptional park in this regard is Coors Field , home of the Colorado Rockies . Its high altitude—5,282 feet (1,610 m) above sea level—is partly responsible for giving it the strongest hitter's park effect in the major leagues due to the low air pressure. Wrigley Field , home of the Chicago Cubs, is known for its fickle disposition:
23290-401: The park. Bat-and-ball games Bat-and-ball games , or safe haven games , are field games played by two opposing teams. Action starts when the defending team throws a ball at a dedicated player of the attacking team, who tries to hit it with a bat and then run between various safe areas in the field to score runs (points). The defending team can use the ball in various ways against
23460-441: The pitcher. A batter who hits the ball into the field of play must drop the bat and begin running toward first base, at which point the player is referred to as a runner (or, until the play is over, a batter-runner ). A batter-runner who reaches first base without being put out is said to be safe and is on base. A batter-runner may choose to remain at first base or attempt to advance to second base or even beyond—however far
23630-459: The pitcher—in the batting order, but does not field. Thus, even with the DH, each team still has a batting order of nine players and a fielding arrangement of nine players. The number of players on a baseball roster, or squad , varies by league and by the level of organized play. A Major League Baseball (MLB) team has a roster of 26 players with specific roles. A typical roster features the following players: Most baseball leagues worldwide have
23800-424: The player believes can be reached safely. A player who reaches base despite proper play by the fielders has recorded a hit . A player who reaches first base safely on a hit is credited with a single . If a player makes it to second base safely as a direct result of a hit, it is a double ; third base, a triple . If the ball is hit in the air within the foul lines over the entire outfield (and outfield fence, if there
23970-410: The playing field is large (at the highest levels of each sport, the minimum distance between the two furthest ends of the field is about 400 to 500 feet (120 to 150 m) ), and is divided into an infield and outfield (based on proximity to the batting area). Cricket has the delivery and hitting of the ball done in the same area where the batters can run (the cricket pitch ), while baseball does
24140-445: The playoffs, six umpires are used: one at each base and two in the outfield along the foul lines. Many of the pre-game and in-game strategic decisions in baseball revolve around a fundamental fact: in general, right-handed batters tend to be more successful against left-handed pitchers and, to an even greater degree, left-handed batters tend to be more successful against right-handed pitchers. A manager with several left-handed batters in
24310-402: The possibility of a draw (which occurs because of the restrictions on time, which like in baseball, originally did not exist ) often encourages a team that is batting last and well behind, to bat defensively and run out the clock, giving up any faint chance at a win, to avoid an overall loss. While nine innings has been the standard since the beginning of professional baseball, the duration of
24480-535: The possibility of a team's batters getting out rapidly in succession makes it theoretically possible for certain periods of play in most bat-and-ball games to end quicker than usual, with the opposite also being possible in some cases. Both baseball and cricket can theoretically go forever, since baseball games end only after a certain number of outs and innings in cricket can be prolonged by illegal deliveries ; however, in limited overs cricket , fielding teams are penalized if they do not bowl enough legal deliveries at
24650-460: The preceding decade's average of 3:18. In 2016, the average nine-inning playoff game in Major League baseball was 3 hours and 35 minutes. This was up 10 minutes from 2015 and 21 minutes from 2014. In response to the lengthening of the game, MLB decided from the 2023 season onward to institute a pitch clock rule to penalize batters and pitchers who take too much time between pitches; this had
24820-414: The present, professional baseball in the early 20th century was lower-scoring, and pitchers were more dominant. This so-called " dead-ball era " ended in the early 1920s with several changes in rule and circumstance that were advantageous to hitters. Strict new regulations governed the ball's size, shape and composition, along with a new rule officially banning the spitball and other pitches that depended on
24990-410: The present. In addition, television became universal in Taiwan during the 1950s and the number of home TV increased drastically . The government commanded major TV stations in Taiwan to live broadcast national team competitions, which successfully drew nationwide attention to sports. In July 1968, Hong-Ye juvenile baseball team [ zh ] defeated the visiting champion team from Japan with
25160-486: The project to refocus local sports development, review athletes training programs, construct sports facilities, invest in sports science and research, and support the lifetime career of athletes. In addition, the multiple versions of the " Sports and Physical education Strategy White Paper " published since 1999 highlighted the dedication of the Taiwanese government to develop local sports and promote physical education in public. To present, sports industry development in Taiwan
25330-463: The regular lineup, who knows the team will be facing a left-handed starting pitcher, may respond by starting one or more of the right-handed backups on the team's roster. During the late innings of a game, as relief pitchers and pinch hitters are brought in, the opposing managers will often go back and forth trying to create favorable matchups with their substitutions. The manager of the fielding team trying to arrange same-handed pitcher-batter matchups and
25500-412: The rubric of MLB. In 2001, Barry Bonds established the current record of 73 home runs in a single season. There had long been suspicions that the dramatic increase in power hitting was fueled in large part by the abuse of illegal steroids (as well as by the dilution of pitching talent due to expansion), but the issue only began attracting significant media attention in 2002 and there was no penalty for
25670-628: The rules of MLB and Minor League Baseball , is that fields built or remodeled since June 1, 1958, must have a minimum distance of 325 feet (99 m) from home plate to the fences in left and right field and 400 feet (122 m) to center. Major league teams often skirt even this rule. For example, at Minute Maid Park , which became the home of the Houston Astros in 2000, the Crawford Boxes in left field are only 315 feet (96 m) from home plate. There are no rules at all that address
25840-449: The runner is touched by the ball, held in a fielder's hand, while not on a base. (The batter-runner is always forced to advance to first base, and any other runners must advance to the next base if a teammate is forced to advance to their base.) It is possible to record two outs in the course of the same play. This is called a double play . Three outs in one play, a triple play , is possible, though rare. Players put out or retired must leave
26010-445: The running in a separate area. The distance between the two batsmen's grounds in cricket (the areas that batsmen run between to score runs) is 58 feet (18 m) (though batsmen may run slightly less distance, since they are allowed to use their bats to touch their grounds), while the distance between bases in baseball is 90 feet (27 m) and in softball is 60 feet (18 m). Most bat-and-ball games have playing area in front of
26180-428: The same year, the government required government-operated enterprises and some private-sector companies to sponsor local sports teams to prosper the sports industry. Sports teams such as basketball, baseball, and tennis teams were branded by Taiwan Tobacco and Liquor Corporation , Bank of Taiwan , and other major state-owned companies, and the sponsorship model between sports teams and government-own companies lasted till
26350-474: The silver medal at the Asian Championship in 1960 and 1963 and bronze in 1973 and 1989 . The Chinese Taipei women's national basketball team won the silver medal at the 1972 Asian Basketball Championship for Women . The team won bronze at the event in 1965 , 1968 , 1970 , 1974 , 1986 , 1988 , 1999 and 2005 . Further, the women's team won silver at the 2006 Asian Games . Football
26520-450: The sports environment had a setback, Japanese colonial era left a crucial foundation in Taiwan that allowed the passion for sports to grow in this difficult time. Moreover, sports in Taiwan at the time were mainly government-driven, and the government devoted itself to developing sports in Taiwan. In 1968, the government implemented the national-wide nine-year compulsory education and enforced physical education in every public school. In
26690-585: The system. At the time, Han Chinese did not have habits of exercise, so the missionaries encouraged students to swim, play, and run after class. Sports like gymnastics, racing, high jump, and hiking were brought to the Han Chinese. As part of the Japanization and the Kōminka movement , modern physical education and sports became universal systematically in Taiwan. Through physical education, Japan's goal
26860-404: The team with the greater number of runs at the end of the game wins. Most games end after the ninth inning, but if scores are tied at that point, extra innings are usually played. Baseball has no game clock, though some competitions feature pace-of-play regulations such as the pitch clock to shorten game time. Baseball evolved from older bat-and-ball games already being played in England by
27030-618: The top 25 in singles in the WTA rankings . Hsieh has won four Grand Slam titles and a year-end championship in doubles. She won Wimbledon in 2013 and Roland Garros in 2014, as well as the 2013 WTA Tour Championships , all with Peng Shuai , and became joint No. 1 in doubles with Peng in 2014. She won her second Wimbledon doubles title at the 2019 championships with Barbora Strýcová. In 2021, she won her third Wimbledon doubles title with Elise Mertens. The sisters Chan Yung-jan (Latisha Chan) and Chan Hao-ching are doubles specialists. They won
27200-513: The use of performance-enhancing drugs before 2004. In 2007, Bonds became MLB's all-time home run leader, surpassing Hank Aaron , as total major league and minor league attendance both reached all-time highs. Despite having been called "America's national pastime", baseball is well-established in several other countries. As early as 1877, a professional league, the International Association , featured teams from both Canada and
27370-426: The vast difference in the duration of the two sports and for other reasons, such as the rising American desire to have some type of national game distinct from England's games, baseball began to grow in America, especially among some of the non-English demographics. Some attempts were made to nativize cricket in a way that would reduce its length and other perceived disadvantages relative to baseball; one example of this
27540-538: The world. Taiwan's dominance in international baseball was demonstrated when the men's team won top three medals across all levels of baseball in 2022, including the U-12 , U-15 , U-18 , U-23 , and Baseball5 competitions, the only team to do so in baseball history. Taiwan's men's baseball team , women's baseball team , and baseball5 team are world No.2 on the WBSC Rankings as of December 2022. Basketball
27710-565: Was wicket , an American variation of cricket which could be played in an afternoon. But by the time of the 1860s Civil War , baseball had begun to overtake cricket in popularity; one reason for this was that troops during the Civil War preferred to play baseball, as it did not require a specialized playing surface like the cricket pitch . After the Civil War, baseball became a much more organized sport than cricket in America, with more money and competition available to baseball players across
27880-525: Was an average game of 2:45. By 2014, though, the average MLB game took over three hours to complete. The lengthening of games is attributed to longer breaks between half-innings for television commercials, increased offense, more pitching changes, and a slower pace of play, with pitchers taking more time between each delivery, and batters stepping out of the box more frequently. Other leagues have experienced similar issues. In 2008, Nippon Professional Baseball took steps aimed at shortening games by 12 minutes from
28050-557: Was discontinued after its 2011 edition in favor of an expanded World Baseball Classic. Baseball has certain attributes that set it apart from the other popular team sports in the countries where it has a following. All of these sports use a clock, play is less individual, and the variation between playing fields is not as substantial or important. The comparison between cricket and baseball demonstrates that many of baseball's distinctive elements are shared in various ways with its cousin sports. In clock-limited sports, games often end with
28220-478: Was formed. In 1867, it barred participation by African Americans . The more formally structured National League was founded in 1876. Professional Negro leagues formed, but quickly folded. In 1887, softball , under the name of indoor baseball or indoor-outdoor, was invented as a winter version of the parent game. The National League's first successful counterpart, the American League , which evolved from
28390-694: Was inaugurated that fall. The Black Sox Scandal of the 1919 World Series led to the formation of the office of the Commissioner of Baseball . The first commissioner, Kenesaw Mountain Landis , was elected in 1920. That year also saw the founding of the Negro National League ; the first significant Negro league, it would operate until 1931. For part of the 1920s, it was joined by the Eastern Colored League . Compared with
28560-628: Was introduced to Taiwan in 1916 by the British Presbyterian missionary Edward Band, who moved to Taiwan to serve as the principal of Tainan's Chang Jung High School. The Chang Jung High School team is considered to be the first football team in Taiwan with all current teams being in some way descendent of it. Due to Japanese (long before the J. League made football popular in Japan) and American influence, football has not been as popular as baseball or basketball in Taiwan, although it has
28730-756: Was organized in 1933; four years later, it was joined by the Negro American League . The first elections to the National Baseball Hall of Fame took place in 1936. In 1939, Little League Baseball was founded in Pennsylvania. Many minor league teams disbanded when World War II led to a player shortage. Chicago Cubs owner Philip K. Wrigley led the formation of the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League to help keep
28900-435: Was resolved due to the under fulfillment of 6 teams. In 2003, the Chinese Taipei Basketball Association (CTBA) founded a semi-professional basketball league " Super Basketball League " (SBL) that continued the basketball industry in Taiwan. However, the viewership and audience for SBL had contracted throughout the year which resulted in only four teams participating in the year 2022, the lowest number of teams participating in
#532467