Bat-and-ball games
The action starts when a player on the fielding team (the "bowler" or "pitcher")[5] puts the ball in play with a delivery whose restriction depends on 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.
[14][15] If the ball is struck into the field, then the batter may become a runner trying to reach a safe haven or "base"/"ground".
[20] In many forms of early American baseball (townball, roundball), a single out ended the inning.
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.
[23][24] Some variations of bat-and-ball games do not feature bats, with batters instead using parts of their bodies to hit 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.
[25][26] 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)[27] and then America.
Predecessors of baseball were brought to America during 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.
[30][31] 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.
[33][34] Baseball then began to spread throughout the Pacific Rim and the Americas, supported by the contemporary westward expansion of the United States.
[35][36] Over time, several variations of baseball appeared, with some being informal (kickball),[37] others becoming professional sports in their own right (softball),[38] and some even taking root overseas (pesäpallo).
This helped to cement cricket as part of the national culture of several countries that later won their independence from the British.
[45] 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.
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 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.
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.
Using the legs: Using the hands: Involving throwing: Batter: catching batted ball in flight, fail to hit 3 good pitches Batter: foul in third strike Fielding team: point for dimish offensive player, penalty point
