Baseball

Baseball, written by Sean Kirchner. Focus question. How has the history of baseball shaped the sport we know today?

《棒球》，肖恩·柯希纳 著 思考问题 棒球的发展史如何塑造了我们如今熟知的这项运动呢？

everybody's game. Do you have a bat, a ball, a glove, four bases, and an open field? Then you can play baseball. People have been playing different versions of baseball for hundreds of years. In early America, the colonists played games that were similar to the sport we know as baseball today. Some of these games were called stool ball, town ball, and rounders. Although many of the rules for these games were alike, some were different. In 1845, a New York group called the Knickerbockers decided to write down new guidelines for baseball. They wanted to change some of the rules and establish a formal code for others. Many of these rules became the basis for the game that we play today.

这是一项人人都能玩的运动 你有球棒、棒球、手套、四个垒包和一片开阔场地吗？ 那你就可以打棒球啦 数百年来，人们玩过各种各样不同形式的棒球 在早期美洲，殖民者玩的游戏就和我们现在知道的棒球十分相似 这些游戏有的叫做凳球、城镇球和圆场球 虽然这些游戏的大部分规则都差不多，但也有部分规则不一样 1845年，纽约一个叫尼克博克的团体决定为棒球写下新的规则 他们想要修改部分规则，给其余规则定下正式的统一规范 这些规则里的大部分，都成了我们如今所玩棒球的基础

The world loves baseball. Today in North America, baseball remains a favorite sport. Professional players compete on 30 major league baseball, MLB, teams. They play in hopes of winning their championship each year, the World Series. Just under the MLB teams are 240 professional minor league teams. These leagues give players a chance to develop their athletic skills in hopes of making it to the major leagues. Baseball is also popular in the rest of the world. The sport is played in over 100 countries, and millions of fans enjoy watching it worldwide.

全世界都热爱棒球 如今在北美洲，棒球依旧是最受人们喜爱的运动 职业球员在30支美国职业棒球大联盟（简称MLB）球队中角逐 他们每年全力比拼，都希望能拿下联盟最高冠军——世界大赛的冠军 MLB之下共有240支职业小联盟球队 这些联盟给了球员锻炼提升球技的机会，帮助他们冲击大联盟 棒球在世界其他地区也非常受欢迎 全世界有超过100个国家的人打棒球，数百万球迷都喜爱观看棒球比赛

Baseball rules The baseball playing field is sometimes called a diamond because of its shape. It has a pitcher's mound, four bases, an infield, and an outfield. Baseball games are divided into nine innings. An inning is a basic unit of play that is divided into two halves. The first half is called the top of the inning, and the second half is called the bottom. A baseball game has two teams. Each team has nine players. While one team plays in the field, members of the other team take turns hitting the ball with the bat. The batting team stays up to bat until the fielding team gets three batters out.

棒球规则 棒球场因为形状的缘故，有时也被叫做钻石场 场上设有投手丘、四个垒包、内野和外野 棒球比赛一共分为九局 一局是比赛的基本单位，分成两个半局 前半个局叫上半局，后半个局叫下半局 一场棒球比赛有两支参赛队伍 每支队伍有九名球员 一支队伍在场地上防守时，另一队的成员会轮流上场挥棒击球 进攻的击球队伍会一直击球，直到防守队让三名击球手出局为止

The visiting team bats first at the top of an inning and the home team bats at the bottom. When a batter hits the ball, he or she runs to first base. If the ball reaches the outfield, the runner may try to run to second base, third base, and finally to home plate. The fielding team tries to get the ball and tag the runner or the base for an out before he or she reaches the base. If the runner makes it to home plate, the team scores a run. If a ball is hit over the outfield fence or wall and is in fair territory, it is a home run. The batter then runs around all of the bases until he or she crosses home plate and scores. The team that scores the most runs is the winner.

客场队伍先在上半局击球，主场队伍在下半局击球 击球手击出球后，就会向一垒跑去 如果球被打到了外野，跑垒员可以尝试继续冲向二垒、三垒，最后跑回本垒 防守队会努力拿到球，在跑垒员到达垒包前触杀跑垒员或是封杀垒包，让他出局 如果跑垒员成功冲回本垒，他的队伍就得到一分 如果击球手把球打在界内区域，还飞过了外野的围栏或围墙，就是本垒打 之后击球手可以跑过所有垒包，冲过本垒完成得分 得分最多的队伍就是获胜方

A look back. Long ago, African Americans were not allowed to play in the major baseball leagues with white players. African Americans didn't have a league, but they played on small black teams. Rube Foster wanted to change things. A former pitcher on a black team, Foster started the Negro National League. In the years that followed, more Negro Leagues were established. The Negro Leagues included many talented athletes. Over time, white major league teams began to ask Negro League players to join their teams. As a result, fans lost interest in the Negro leagues, and they began to fade out.

回望历史 很久以前，非裔美国人不被允许和白人球员一同参加棒球大联盟 非裔美国人没有属于自己的联盟，只能在小型黑人球队打球 鲁布·福斯特想要改变这种现状 曾经是黑人球队投手的福斯特，创办了黑人国家联盟 在那之后，更多黑人棒球联盟陆续成立 黑人联盟里涌现了许多天赋出众的运动员 久而久之，白人棒球大联盟开始邀请黑人联盟的球员加入自己的队伍 因此，球迷渐渐对黑人联盟失去了兴趣，黑人联盟也慢慢退出了历史舞台