How many innings are in baseball?

A standard baseball game is played over nine innings. Each inning is divided into two halves, allowing both teams an opportunity to bat and score runs.

Understanding the Structure of an Inning

Each of the nine innings in a baseball game follows a consistent structure to ensure fair play and balanced opportunities for both teams.

• Top Half: The visiting team bats first, attempting to score runs against the home team's defense. This half continues until the defensive team records three outs.
• Bottom Half: After the visiting team has had its turn, the home team then comes to bat, trying to score runs against the visiting team's defense. This half also concludes once the defensive team records three outs.

An inning is considered complete when both teams have had their turn at bat and three outs have been recorded against each side.

Extra Innings: Breaking a Tie

While nine innings constitute a standard game, baseball has a mechanism for resolving ties. If the score is tied after the completion of the ninth inning, the game enters what are known as extra innings.

• Extra innings are played in the same top-and-bottom half format as regular innings.
• The game continues with additional innings until one team holds a lead at the end of a full inning.
• There is no limit to the number of extra innings that can be played, though recent rule changes in some leagues have introduced measures like placing a runner on second base to speed up the game.
  • For more details on rules, refer to official baseball resources like the MLB Glossary on Extra Innings.

Variations and Exceptions to the Nine-Inning Rule

Although nine innings are standard for professional baseball, there are several common exceptions where a game might be shorter or longer:

1. Seven-Inning Games: In some leagues, particularly in doubleheaders (two games played on the same day), collegiate, high school, or youth baseball, games may be shortened to seven innings to manage player fatigue and schedule constraints.
2. Mercy Rule (or Run Rule): Many amateur and youth leagues, and even some professional minor leagues, employ a "mercy rule." If one team achieves a significant lead (e.g., 10 runs) after a certain number of innings (e.g., five or seven), the game may be called early to prevent further disparity and ensure player safety.
3. Rain-Shortened Games: Weather conditions can lead to games being shortened. In professional baseball, a game is typically considered "official" if at least five innings (or 4.5 innings if the home team is leading) have been completed before play is halted due to weather.

Key Aspects of Baseball Innings