Extra innings

Extra innings is the extension of a baseball or softball game in order to break a tie. Ordinarily, a baseball game consists of nine regulation innings (in softball and high school baseball games there are typically seven innings; in Little League Baseball, six), each of which is divided into halves: the visiting team bats first, after which the home team takes its turn at bat. However, if the score remains tied at the end of the regulation number of complete innings, the rules provide that "play shall continue until

The visiting team has scored more total runs than the home team at the end of a completed inning, or The home team scores the winning run in an uncompleted inning." (Since the home team bats second, condition (2) does not allow the visiting team to score more runs before the end of the inning, unless the game is called before the inning ends). Most of the rules of the game, including the batting order, availability of substitute players and pitchers, etc., remain intact in extra innings, although occasionally leagues and tournaments will place runners on base to start extra innings in order to speed up the game. Managers must display caution to avoid exhausting all their substitute players during regular innings, in case the game reaches extensive extra innings. The rules call for a forfeiture if a team is unable to field a full team of nine players.