| Baseball has stood the test of time. It kept evolving with new ideas and minor amendments frequently to be the greatest pastime of American citizens today. The rules evolved from original knickerbockers rules in 1845, to be the National League rules in 1877. Since then, major modifications and additions to rules have brought baseball to this level.
From the basic rules in 1845, the first change came about in 1857. In1857 the game which was originally won by one side scoring 21 runs was changed to be a nine inning session, the highest scoring side was announced as the winner. By 1858, it was decided that the baserunner need no longer to touch each base in order. Strikes were introduced and it was also decided that a batter would be pronounced out on the batted ball, whether foul or fair, if it is caught on in air or following one bounce.
1863, brought upon many regulations to the game of baseball. The bat size was regulated and the pitcher box was pronounced to be twelve feet by four feet. The home base and pitcher box was made essential to be marked. During his delivery the pitcher is not permitted to take a step and has to pitch with feet on the ground. And a rule was announced that no runs to a base can be made for a foul ball. Just one year after that in 1864 the out given on fair bounds was removed and fly catches of fair balls was adopted. Now every base runner was advised to touch every base in making the course. Henry Chadwick’s scoring system was also introduced in this year. By 1865 it included batting averages.
In 1867, the pitchers box was made into a six foot square and the pitchers were allowed to move inside this box. The batter was also given the opportunity to call for a high or low pitch. And by 1872 the ball weight and size was regulated and up to today it has remained the same. Changes were made to the Official Major League Rules from approximately 1877 to and beyond 1975. With rules being introduced in 1877 as to the hitter being exempted from the time of bat if he walked, the home plates was also placed in angles created by the fork of the first and third base lines, to the new rules in 1975 like suspension for three days made mandatory if a batter were to hit a fair ball with a filled, doctored or flat-surfaced bat.
This is the bare brief of now and then in baseball, and has a vast list to where this came from. But it is these regular changes that made baseball to be what it is today.
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