Bat-and-ball games

:"Bat-and-ball redirects here. See also Bat & Ball railway station and Bat & Ball Inn, Clanfield."

Bat-and-ball games (sometimes named safe haven games, to avoid confusion with the club-games like golf and hockey) are field games played by opposing teams. The two teams alternate between being "at bat" and "fielding". Each team has an equal number of turns in each role, the game typically (though not always) being untimed.

A player on the "fielding" team puts the ball in play, with a restricted throw, the restriction depending on the game, while a player on the "at bat" team attempts to strike the thrown ball. The player uses a bat, which is a club whose shape is dictated by the rules of the game, hence the name for this type of game.

If the ball is struck with the bat, then the player becomes a runner, trying to advance to a marked "safe haven". As long as the runner maintains contact with this marker, the runner is safe from the other team and is in a position to score points (only the team "at bat" may score). Leaving the safe area places the runner in danger of being "put out". When enough players, are "put out" the teams switch roles.

There may be multiple runners, and the goal of each runner is to ultimately reach a particular specially designated safe haven, with the movement between "safe havens" being restricted by the rules of the game.

Cricket and baseball are the most globally popular bat and ball games.

Examples

Examples of bat-and-ball games are:

*Baseball - four bases
*British baseball - four posts
*Cricket - two wickets
*Lapta - two salos (bases)
*Bat-and-Trap
*The Massachusetts Game - four bases
*Oina -
*One (Two, Three, or Four) Old Cat - variable
*Over-the-line - qv
*Pesäpallo - four bases
*Punchball - four bases
*Rounders - four bases or posts
*Scrub baseball - four bases (not a team game "per se")
*Softball - four bases
*Stickball - variable
*Stool ball - two stools
*Town ball - variable
*Vigoro - two wickets

These games do not use a "bat" instead the ball is kicked, otherwise their rules are very similar to baseball. The biggest difference is that a large (35 cm) soft ball is used.
*Kickball - four bases, sometimes called soccer baseball
*Matball - kickball with gym mats for bases

External links

* [http://www.retrosheet.org/Protoball/ Project Protoball]