Baseball For Dummies

Introduction 1

Part I: Getting Started with Baseball 5

Chapter 1: The Lowdown on Baseball 7

Chapter 2: Suiting Up: Equipment 15

Chapter 3: Tackling the Rules of Baseball 31

Part II: Taking Your Swings — Playing Offense 43

Chapter 4: Preparing to Swing the Lumber: Life in the Batter’s Box 45

Chapter 5: Hitting Like a Major Leaguer 61

Chapter 6: The Science of Baserunning 83

Part III: The Ball in Play — Playing Defense 107

Chapter 7: Knowing the Players and Plays 109

Chapter 8: Winning the Arms’ Race: Pitching Like a Major Leaguer 123

Chapter 9: Behind the Plate: The Catcher 145

Chapter 10: Playing Infield 159

Chapter 11: Playing the Outfield: Where Fly Balls Go to Die 183

Part IV: From Little League to the Major Leagues — Organized Baseball 193

Chapter 12: T-Ball to College Baseball and Everything in Between 195

Chapter 13: The Majors, the Minors, and Other Leagues 205

Chapter 14: The Rest of the Field: Managers and Coaches 223

Chapter 15: Identifying the Rest of the Cast of Characters in the Ballpark 231

Chapter 16: Measuring Performance: Calculating Baseball’s Statistics 241

Chapter 17: Going All the Way: MLB Postseason Play and the World Series 249

Part V: The View from the Stands — A Spectator’s Guide 255

Chapter 18: Following the Bouncing Baseball 257

Chapter 19: Tackling Baseball’s Steroid Controversy 281

Chapter 20: Keeping Up Online, on the Air, and on the Newsstand 289

Chapter 21: Playing Fantasy Baseball 301

Part VI: The Part of Tens 311

Chapter 22: Joe Morgan’s Top Ten Toughest Pitchers He Batted Against 313

Chapter 23: Joe Morgan’s Ten Smartest Players 319

Appendix: Baseball Speak: A Glossary 325

Index 347