OLYMPIA, Wash. — Missing 21 years of postseason baseball may have left some Seattle Mariners fans paying a little less attention to the game.
Here's a crash course on baseball 101 for those who need a refresher on the rules and terminology before the Mariners play the Houston Astros on Tuesday.
People probably know three strikes means a strike out, three outs end an inning and every game lasts nine innings - unless there’s a tie, taking the game into extra innings.
But to help explain some of the lesser known rules or strategies, Olympia High School coach Derek Weldon has some advice.
“You have to put down your phone and watch the game,” Weldon said, “There’s so many things going on, so many nuances of the game.”
Weldon, who led the Olympia Bears to the 4A State Championship this past spring, said viewers should expect the Mariners to bunt in the Astros series.
A bunt is when a batter hits a ball softly, on purpose, to move his teammate up a base, closer to scoring.
“If it’s the fifth inning, it’s 0-0 and the Mariners have runners on first and second, no outs,” said Weldon, “JP (Crawford) is going to bunt.”
He said bunts are more common in the post-season when a team is more likely to play for one run to win the game.
There was a time when you’d only know the score, or number of outs, because the announcer told you, but now the on-screen graphics make it easy to know how many runners are on base, how many balls and strikes the batter has and even how many pitches the current pitcher has thrown.
Speaking of pitching, most pitchers throw different kinds of pitches, some fast, some slower, some that curve, others that sink, all to keep batters off-balance and guessing.
Olympia High School senior Sax Matson throws three pitches: a fastball, curveball, and a change-up. His change-up can be about 10 miles an hour slower than his fastball. It’s all in how he holds and throws the ball.
“Having my finger pads off of it kills the spin, which is where I lose the velocity,” said Matson, who has verbally committed to pitch for the University of Southern California next year.
Coach Weldon said fans should not let all the rules intimidate anyone from watching baseball in October.
“Enjoy it. Enjoy the energy, the sounds, the commentary,” said Weldon, “Sit back and enjoy it.”