Unwritten rules of baseball

The rules of baseball, both written and unwritten, have evolved over time, with customs changing across generations, clubs, competition levels, and countries. The official rules have ensured the sport’s continuity over the decades. Baseball’s unofficial conventions, traditions, and rules of etiquette—often referred to as “The Code”—have helped foster a common love of and respect for the sport among people of widely different ethnic, cultural, or religious backgrounds who play the sport in the United States and beyond. The game has changed a lot since 1845, when the New York Knickerbocker Base Ball Club formulated a set of rules for the sport, yet many of the rules and traditions remain. Learn all about some of the most prominent unwritten rules and conventions of America’s national pastime.

While batting

• Do not show up the pitcher: This includes prolonged or excessive home-run celebrations or being unnecessarily slow while rounding the bases, glaring at the pitcher, or making demonstrative gestures toward the mound.
• Keep bat flips and tosses safe and nonconfrontational: Tossing the bat toward one’s own dugout or open territory after hitting a home run is considered marginally acceptable; directing it toward an opponent, umpire, or opposing bench is not.
• Do not swing at a 3–0 pitch, try to steal a base, or otherwise increase your score late in a blowout: While reducing attacking play late in the game was traditionally seen as a sign of respect, the potential for comebacks has made this convention more ambiguous.
• Do not bunt solely to break up a no-hitter: This convention is usually applied during later innings or when the game is no longer realistically competitive. Batters are generally not criticized for bunting during a close game or in an early inning.
• Do not look backward to steal the catcher’s signs or location: Looking directly back at the catcher from the batter’s box to see the signs for the pitcher is considered unsportsmanlike and might lead to the batter getting plunked (hit by a pitch).
• Do not cross in front of the catcher or umpire when heading to the batter’s box: Crossing behind the umpire and catcher is considered a form of respect for the game, the opposing team, and the officials.
• Do not try to distract fielders by shouting or making exaggerated movements: Shouting at an opposing player attempting a catch is thought to be unsportsmanlike.

While pitching

• Do not express disappointment or anger over fielding errors: A pitcher is expected to maintain emotional control and not glare, shout, or gesture at the teammate who made the error.
• If relieved in the middle of an inning, remain in the dugout until it ends: The departing pitcher is expected to watch the replacement pitcher close the inning.
• Rules for when to plunk an opponent: “Plunking,” in which a pitcher intentionally hits an opposing batter with the ball, is considered acceptable under very specific circumstances. These include:

  • Retaliation for a teammate getting intentionally hit by a pitch
  • Responding to unsportsmanlike or dangerous play by an opponent, such as a dangerous slide, sign peeking, or excessive home-run celebrations
• Rules for how to plunk an opponent: Players have developed unspoken conventions and methods to minimize the danger of plunking, such as:

  • Aiming at a batter’s back, thigh, or arm
  • Not aiming at a batter’s head, as it is considered dangerous play and will almost always result in the pitcher being ejected from the game

While catching or fielding

• Do not fake possession merely to provoke a dangerous slide or collision: Pretending to have caught the ball solely to trick a runner into an unnecessary emergency slide or collision is poor safety practice and is regarded as unsportsmanlike.
• The center fielder has priority over the corner outfielders: When two outfielders can make the same catch, the left or right fielder ordinarily yields to the center fielder.
• Do not mention or draw attention to a no-hitter in progress: This superstition often causes the fielding team to avoid saying the words no-hitter or perfect game and often leaves the pitcher isolated in the dugout.
• Do not cross or tread on the pitcher’s mound: The mound is unofficially considered the pitcher’s workspace and territory.