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Baseball

Often referred to as America's national pastime, baseball made its debut as an official Olympic sport on July 26, 1992, in Barcelona, Spain. Before 1992, baseball had often been seen in various exhibition and demonstration games throughout modern Olympic history.

In time, baseball became so popular that it was scheduled to become an official sport at the 1940 Olympic Games in Japan. However, due to World War II, the Games were canceled and baseball was overlooked as an official Olympic sport for the next 52 years. The Olympic Committee formally decided baseball would be an official sport in 1992.

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Scoring
Each baseball game has nine innings, with three "outs" per side in each inning. Three strikes equal an out and four "balls" (pitches outside the strike zone that are not swung at by the batter) result in a walk. Teams score a run when a batter safely reaches all four bases.

One notable change to the traditional baseball rules is that the game ends if the home team leads by 10 or more runs after six-and-a-half innings or if the visitors lead by the same margin after seven innings.

Competition
In what might be referred to quite literally as a World Series, qualifying baseball teams from around the globe battle each other in a round-robin style competition. The top four teams advance to the semifinals. Of these four teams, the top two compete for the gold and silver medals. The other two teams play for the bronze.

News, History, and Fast Facts

More sports


Archery

Badminton

Baseball

Basketball

Boxing

Canoeing & Kayaking

Cycling

Diving

Equestrian

Fencing

Field Hockey

Gymnastics

Judo

Paralympics

Pentathlon

Rowing

Sailing

Shooting

Soccer

Softball

Swimming

Synchronized Swimming

Table Tennis

Taekwondo

Team Handball

Tennis

Track & Field

Triathlon

Volleyball

Water Polo

Weightlifting

Wrestling

General Sports Links
Olympians will compete in dozens of sports this summer. Even though Gateway to the Summer Games can't feature them all, you can learn about each and every one by visiting the sites listed below.


Portions of the above text were excerpted from Share the Olympic Dream--Volume II.
© 2001 by Griffin Publishing Group/United States Olympic Committee.

For information on purchasing Griffin materials, please visit the Griffin Publishing Group Web site at http://www.griffinpublishing.com.

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