Children's baseball
| Type: | ball game, running game |
| Number of players: | 10-20 |
| Location: | larger playing field |
| Equipment: | ball, base markers |
| Duration: | 20 minutes or more |
| Preparation: | mark the bases |
Children's baseball is a variant of Baseball specifically designed for children. Two teams with 5 to 10 players each (10 to 20 total) are required.
Equipment
- ball (with roughly the size of a volleyball)
- base markers (ropes, mattresses, ...)
Preparation
In one of the corners of the playing field the start/finish is marked. Along the borders of the playing field, the bases (depending on the size of the field, about 4 to 8 of them) are marked.
Procedure
The two teams are decided to be either the shooter (or throwers) or the catcher (in baseball, those are called batting team and fielding team). The shooters are gathering behind the start, while the catcher spread on the playing field.
The first shooter takes the ball and throws it as far as possible into the playing field. The catchers have to return the ball as quickly as possible to the start. Of course, they may also shoot the ball. The ball has to be laid down behind the start by a member of the catchers, just throwing it there is not valid.
As long as the ball has not been returned, the shooter may run from base to base around the field. As soon as the ball is returned by the catchers, the shooter must either be standing on a base (and not move away from it until the next ball is thrown), or have returned to the start/finish. Once he finishes, he earns a point for his team; if he finished in the same turn he starts, he gets two points ("home run").
After a predefined time or a predefined number of ball shots, the two teams change position (shooters become catchers and vice versa). The group that has most points in the end wins the game.
Similar games
- A game quite similar is Brennball where the ball has not to be returned to the Home-Base, but to the so-called "Brenner".
