How Baseball Scoring Works
Baseball is the rare major sport with no clock. A game ends when the innings are complete, however long that takes.
Scoring a run
A run scores when a player touches first, second, third and home plate in order without being put out. One swing can therefore score up to four — a grand slam, with the bases loaded.
The structure of a game
- Nine innings, each split into a top and a bottom half.
- A half-inning ends after three outs.
- The home team bats second, and skips its final at-bat if already ahead.
Extra innings
A tie after nine innings means extra innings until one side leads at the end of a complete inning. Major League Baseball now starts each extra inning with a runner on second base to shorten them.
Frequently asked questions
The home team taking the lead in the bottom of the final inning. The game ends instantly — the losing side simply walks off the field.
Runs batted in — the number of runs that scored as a direct result of a batter's action. It is the standard measure of offensive production.