pnv@homxa.UUCP (P.VERMA) (10/25/85)
In Cricket, a team can allow its opponent to "follow-on" under certain conditions. Translated into Baseball, what it would mean is the following: If the visiting team is leading the home team by at least x runs (pick your own x) at the end of the eighth inning, the visitors have an option of letting the home team continue batting into the ninth inning. If the home team during their ninth inning, makes up the difference thereby making it necessary for the visitors to bat again, they will get their chance. On the other hand, if the home team fails to score any runs in the ninth, the game is over. How does this apply to Baseball? Any comments? A Cricket fan who settled for Baseball
franka@mmintl.UUCP (Frank Adams) (10/30/85)
In article <1152@homxa.UUCP> pnv@homxa.UUCP (P.VERMA) writes: >In Cricket, a team can allow its opponent to "follow-on" under certain >conditions. Translated into Baseball, what it would mean is the following: > >If the visiting team is leading the home team by at least x runs (pick your >own x) at the end of the eighth inning, the visitors have an option of >letting the home team continue batting into the ninth inning. If the home >team during their ninth inning, makes up the difference thereby making it >necessary for the visitors to bat again, they will get their chance. On the >other hand, if the home team fails to score any runs in the ninth, the game >is over. > >How does this apply to Baseball? Any comments? This rule is present only because cricket is played under a time limit. If the game is not over when the time limit is reached, no one wins. Since baseball has no such limit, the rule is not generally applicable. The one case where the rule might be applied is when rain in impending. Say the visitors are leading by 5 runs at the end of the fourth, and a downpour is imminent. They might prefer to forgo their at bat in the fifth, hoping to make the game official before it starts raining. (A recent change in the rules made such a game (a five-inning rainout) suspended instead of complete, but the principle still applies.) Frank Adams ihpn4!philabs!pwa-b!mmintl!franka Multimate International 52 Oakland Ave North E. Hartford, CT 06108