Baseball: rules at-a-glance

Diamond, nine innings, three strikes you're out. The rules of youth baseball in five minutes.

Field/court setup

Diamond infield. 60-foot bases at Little League ages, 90-foot bases at HS. Pitcher's mound at 46 feet (LL Minors), 50 feet (LL Majors), 60 feet 6 inches (HS+). Outfield grass beyond infield.

Game length

6 innings at LL Minors and Majors. 7 innings at Junior League and HS. Each team bats once per inning. Inning ends when the team batting records 3 outs. Time limits often apply at the youth level (most leagues use a 1h45m to 2h30m time limit).

Scoring basics

— A run scores when a player touches all four bases (1st, 2nd, 3rd, home) without being put out.
— Each plate appearance ends in either a hit, walk, hit-by-pitch, strikeout, or batted-ball out.
— Three strikes is a strikeout. Four balls is a walk. Foul balls count as strikes only up to two strikes.
— Run-rule: if one team is up by 10 or more after 4 innings (or 15 after 3), the game ends early.

Calls you'll see

— Strike, ball, foul: pitch location and contact result, called by home plate ump.
— Out at the base: runner tagged or forced out at a base.
— Safe: runner reached base without being put out.
— Infield fly: pop-up that an infielder could catch with ordinary effort, with runners on 1st and 2nd or bases loaded, less than 2 outs. Batter is automatically out.
— Balk: pitcher's illegal motion when there are runners on base. Each baserunner advances one base.
— Interference: offensive player physically interferes with a defensive play.
— Obstruction: defensive player without the ball blocks a runner.

Three things parents most often get wrong

— Tie goes to the runner. Not a real rule. The runner has to beat the throw, period. Umpires usually rule on bang-bang plays in the runner's favor as a practical matter, but it's a judgment call, not a rule.
— Dropped third strike: if the catcher doesn't catch the third strike cleanly with first base open or with two outs, the batter can run to first. Many parents don't realize the play is live.
— Pitch counts are the rule, not a guideline. Little League posts daily max pitches and required rest days by age. Coaches who ignore them violate the rule.

A few specifics worth knowing.

Pitching rules at the youth level. Little League sets pitch counts by age. 8-10 year olds: 50 pitches/day. 11-12 year olds: 75-85/day. 13-14: 95/day. After 51-65 pitches, four calendar days of rest are required before pitching again. These are rules, not suggestions, and they exist because the elbow at this age can’t take repeated overload. See the body hub on youth pitcher arm care.

Bat regulations matter. Little League and youth tournaments require USA-stamped bats (under USABat standard) for ages 12 and below. High school requires BBCOR-certified bats. Wrong bat means the kid is called out and the at-bat doesn’t count. Check the league rule before buying.

Mercy rule. If one team is up by 10 or more after 4 complete innings (or 15 after 3), the game ends early. This exists to keep things from getting ugly and to keep the league running on schedule.

Substitution rules. Vary by league. Most rec leagues require continuous batting (every kid in the lineup, every inning) and free defensive substitution. Travel leagues often follow more standard NCAA-style substitution rules.

Time limits. Most youth leagues use a 1h45m to 2h30m time limit. No new inning starts after the time limit expires.

Last updated April 2026.