A park or a ground with a grown-up

Baseball and softball at home

Throwing, catching and hitting off a tee in a park or yard; pitching and the full game at a club.

2 cards at home 5 for a park or court 3 for the club

What should we practise today?

Tell us where you are and who is playing. You get one card and the reason.

Where are you?

Who is playing?

Start a session

New to baseball and softball? The game in a minute

Read this once before the first card.

The game in short: Two teams take turns to bat and to field. A pitcher throws the ball to the batter, who tries to hit it into the field and then run round four bases: first, second, third and back to home. Softball uses a bigger ball pitched underarm on a smaller field; baseball is pitched overarm.
How a team scores: A runner who gets all the way round the bases back to home scores a run. The team with more runs at the end wins.
How the fielding team gets outs: By catching a hit ball before it bounces; by getting the ball to a base before the runner who must run there; by touching a runner with the ball between bases (a tag); or when the batter misses three good pitches (three strikes). After three outs the teams swap.
How long a game is: In an inning each team bats once. Baseball has 9 innings and softball 7; children's games are often shorter. Baseball5 is a quick street version where the ball is hit with the hand, no bat.
Rules children break first: After a hit, drop the bat on the ground; never throw it.
Only the batter holds a bat, and nobody stands within a bat swing.
A runner must touch every base, and runs straight through first base instead of stopping on it.
At home you play the parts: Throwing, catching, hitting off a tee and running through first base. Pitching and the full game are learnt at a club.

Words you will hear (25, in plain language)

Batter: The player trying to hit the ball.
Pitcher: The fielder who throws the ball to the batter; each throw is a pitch.
Catcher: The fielder crouching behind home who catches the pitches, in a helmet, mask and pads.
Fielder: A player on the team in the field, trying to get batters and runners out.
Bases: The four corners the runners must reach in order. A cone or a flat shoe can be a base.
Home spot: Where the batter stands, and the last base a runner reaches to score.
Strike: A pitch the batter misses, or a good pitch they do not swing at. Three strikes and the batter is out.
Strike zone: The space over home plate between the batter's armpits and knees, where a good pitch must pass.
Inning: The part of a game in which each team bats once.
Tee: A stand that holds the ball still for the batter to hit.
Glove: The padded leather glove fielders catch with.
Ground ball: A hit that rolls or bounces along the ground.
Fly ball: A hit that goes high in the air.
Ready position: Feet apart, knees bent, weight on the front of the feet, hands in front.
Long barrier: Fielding a hard ground ball with one knee down, so the leg is a wall behind the glove.
Crossover step: To run sideways fast, one foot crosses over the other.
Drop step: To run back, one foot steps back and the body turns to run at an angle.
Relay: Passing the ball on in two throws, through a player in the middle, to get it in from far away.
Tag: Touching a runner with the ball (or the glove holding it) to get them out.
Bunt: Holding the bat still in front to tap the ball a short way.
Windmill: The softball pitch, the arm making a full circle.
Side-on: Standing with a shoulder, not the chest, toward where you aim.
Follow-through: The arm or bat keeps moving toward the target after the throw or the hit.
Double ear-flap helmet: A batting helmet that covers both ears.
Baseball5: A five-a-side street version where the ball is hit with the hand.

Try it, nothing to buy

Mark the space once. Every card starts from it.

A suggested first ten sessions (optional)

The cards, level by level

Nobody is late. A beginner of any age starts at Basic.

Basic 4 cards · show· hide The child throws overhand with a step, catches with two hands, hits off a tee and runs through first base. At this age, fun and many sports come before intense training.

Move on when the child meets the self-checks on b1 to b3.

Intermediate 4 cards · show· hide Fielding ground balls and fly balls, a better swing, catching and throwing to a base, simple positions and pitching basics with a coach. Plenty of repetitions and 2 or 3 positions each.

Move on when the child can field and throw to first in a small game.

Advanced 2 cards · show· hide Against faster, trickier play, decisions made before the ball arrives: what the pitcher will throw, relays to cut the ball off, when to run, and coping with a bad run of form.

Teaching this at home

More space and a second person. A grown-up can run every card.

You do not need to know the sport. Each card tells you where to stand, what to say and what to look at. Pick one thing to say in a session and say only that. The first week looks messy; that is normal. End every session on one that works.

Cards marked At a club are taught by a coach. They tell you what the coach teaches, what is safe at home, and what to ask the club before your child joins.

How to warm up before playing is at workonfitness.com. The rules of the game are at sportsmaze.com.