Baseball Game (2)

After a baseball practice in the morning, on 14 May evening, we watched a local baseball match in the same field that we used in the morning. The match started at 6 pm, but we already arrived there at 5.40 pm. The game is a Finnish baseball game or Pesäpallo, which is regarded as a national sport in Finland because of its popularity. Pesäpallo is a combination of traditional ball-batting team games and North American baseball.

Pesäpallo and baseball actually have quite many things in common. For example, there are two teams consist of nine players per team. One team tries to score by hitting the ball and running through the bases (three bases plus one home base), the other team tries to defend by catching the ball and putting the runners out.  The game takes place over nine innings and the team with the higher score wins the game. Furthermore, according to game's governing board, the Pesapalloliitto, players are allowed to use approved equipment such as helmets, gloves, and bats to aid in play.

The most important difference between Pesäpallo and baseball is that the ball is pitched vertically which makes it easier to hit and control the power and direction of the ball. This gives a more variety to the game compared to the regular baseball. The fielding team is forced to counter the batter's choices with defensive schemes. Furthermore, unlike in baseball, the manager has an important role to lead his team's offense by giving signals to the players using a multicolored fan. The defensive team is directed by the manager's orders and hand signals by the fielders.