Playing and living the game of baseball since I was the age of four, the rules of the game come naturally to me. So when I hear people discussing how confusing/boring/weird baseball is, I  don’t get how someone does not understand how the game is played. I mean, once you get passed all the unwritten rules, the crazy superstitions, and the weird and non-socially-acceptable actions/behaviors of the players; baseball comes down to three simple sections to understand: outs, hits, and positions.

OUTS:

• Simple, three strikes and you are out.
• If a ball is hit in the air and a fielder catches the ball before the ball hits the ground, the batter is out.
• If a batter hits the ball onto the ground and a fielder throws the ball to first base before the batter gets to first base, he is out.
• The previous rule applies to a runner as well if there is not an open base behind him.
• If there is a runner on second or third with no other runner on base, the runner must be tagged with the ball to be called out.

HITS:

• Four balls, the batter is given a free base
• If a batter puts the ball in play and no fielder catches it, he is safe.
• If the batter reaches the base before the throw does, the batter is safe.
• If a runner evades a tag or returns to his base (if there is not another runner occupying it), the runner is safe.

POSITIONS:

• The pitcher is the one who stands in the middle and throws to home plate every pitch.
• The catcher catches every pitch.
• The first baseman controls the first base area and receives throws from the other fielders.
• Second base area is controlled by the second baseman, who is to the right of the base, and the shortstop, who is  to the left of second base.
• The third baseman controls third base area.
• The outfield is broken into three positions: the left-fielder, the center-fielder, and the right-fielder.

Baseball is a simple game, don’t make it harder than it should be.