Unlike traditional versions of poker, 3's, 4's and 9's hold special value because of their significance in the rules of baseball - three strikes, three outs, four balls, and nine innings.
Play of the hand, including betting rounds, is the same as seven-card stud, with the added provisions that:[1] As poker author Irwin Steig noted, Baseball is a form of stud "scorned by purists and avoided by those whose tastes run to more peaceful games ... [it] is the choice of dealers who want sparkling action and big pots.
"[1] With a reasonably large number of players, it typically takes four of a kind of more to win a Baseball hand, and going for straights and flushes is usually futile.
[2] When Baseball is played high-low, perfect lows (equating to 6 4 3 2 A) become common and anything less in that direction is likely to lose.
[5] Football is an alternative version of Baseball Poker where 3's and 6's are wild and an additional card is drawn if a player is dealt a 2.