Baseball Game Rules & Inning Flow

Game Setup

Pre-Game Selection

1. Player Assignment
   • Player 1: HOME team
   • Player 2: AWAY team (VISITOR)
2. Game Initialization
   • Starting inning: 1
   • Home team score: 0
   • Away team score: 0
   • All bases empty (1st, 2nd, 3rd)
   • Outs: 0
   • Balls: 0
   • Strikes: 0

Inning Structure

Each inning consists of two half-innings:

1. TOP of inning - Away team (Player 2) bats
2. BOTTOM of inning - Home team (Player 1) bats

Half-Inning Flow (One Team Batting)

Before First Batter

• Reset outs to 0
• Reset balls to 0
• Reset strikes to 0
• Bases remain as they were (runners carry over from previous at-bats)
• Display: "TOP of Inning X - AWAY batting" OR "BOTTOM of Inning X - HOME batting"

Each At-Bat (One Batter's Turn)

Step 1: Roll Dice

• Player whose team is batting clicks "Roll Dice"
• System generates two random dice (1-6 each)
• Display: "Die 1: X, Die 2: Y"

Step 2: Look Up Outcome

• Match dice roll to outcome table
• Determine result (Hit, Walk, Out, etc.)

Step 3: Process Result Based on Outcome Type

IF OUTCOME = SINGLE:

• Batter advances to 1st base
• Runner on 1st → advances to 2nd base
• Runner on 2nd → advances to 3rd base
• Runner on 3rd → scores 1 run (add to batting team's score)
• Update display: show all runners' new positions

IF OUTCOME = DOUBLE:

• Batter advances to 2nd base
• Runner on 1st → advances to 3rd base
• Runner on 2nd → scores 1 run
• Runner on 3rd → scores 1 run
• Update display: show all runners' new positions

IF OUTCOME = TRIPLE:

• Batter advances to 3rd base
• Runner on 1st → scores 1 run
• Runner on 2nd → scores 1 run
• Runner on 3rd → scores 1 run
• Update display: show all runners' new positions

IF OUTCOME = HOME RUN:

• Batter scores 1 run
• Runner on 1st → scores 1 run
• Runner on 2nd → scores 1 run
• Runner on 3rd → scores 1 run
• Total runs scored: 1 + number of runners on base
• Clear all bases (all runners scored)
• Update display: show all bases now empty

IF OUTCOME = WALK:

• Batter advances to 1st base
• Runner on 1st → advances to 2nd base ONLY if there's a runner on 1st (forced advance)
• Runner on 2nd → advances to 3rd base ONLY if there's a runner on 2nd (forced advance)
• Runner on 3rd → scores 1 run ONLY if bases are loaded (forced advance)
• Update display: show all runners' new positions

IF OUTCOME = SACRIFICE FLY:

• Increment outs by 1
• Batter does NOT reach base
• Runner on 1st → advances to 2nd base
• Runner on 2nd → advances to 3rd base
• Runner on 3rd → scores 1 run
• Display: "Sacrifice Fly - Out (runners advance)"

IF OUTCOME = FLY OUT, GROUND OUT, or POP OUT:

• Increment outs by 1
• Runners do NOT advance (stay in same position)
• Batter does not reach base
• Display outcome name and "Out"

IF OUTCOME = STRIKE OUT:

• Increment outs by 1
• Runners do NOT advance
• Batter does not reach base
• Display: "Strike Out - Out"

Step 4: Update Score Display

• Show current inning
• Show HOME team score
• Show AWAY team score
• Show current bases (with runners or empty)
• Show outs count (0, 1, or 2)

Step 5: Check for End of Half-Inning

• If outs = 3:
  • Clear all runners from bases
  • Reset outs to 0
  • Move to next half-inning (see below)
  • Display: "End of half-inning - switching sides"
• If outs < 3:
  • Next batter steps up
  • Return to Step 1 (Roll Dice)

Half-Inning Transitions

After Top of Inning (Away team finishes batting):

• Display: "Bottom of Inning X - HOME batting"
• Prompt Player 1 to roll

After Bottom of Inning (Home team finishes batting):

• Check if more innings needed
• If Inning < 9 (or whatever max):
  • Increment inning counter
  • Display: "Top of Inning X+1 - AWAY batting"
  • Prompt Player 2 to roll
• If Inning = 9 (or max):
  • Go to End Game (see below)

Game End Conditions

End of Regulation (9 Innings)

After Bottom of Inning 9 completes:

1. Compare scores:
   • If HOME score > AWAY score: HOME team wins → Display final score and winner
   • If AWAY score > HOME score: AWAY team wins → Display final score and winner
   • If scores are tied: Continue to Extra Innings (proceed to Inning 10, 11, etc.)

Extra Innings (Inning 10+)

Extra innings follow the same rules as innings 1-9:

• Top of inning: AWAY bats
• Bottom of inning: HOME bats
• First team to score during their at-bat while ahead wins
• Continue until one team has more runs after both teams complete an inning

Game ends when:

• After Bottom of an inning, HOME score > AWAY score, OR
• After Top of an inning, AWAY score > HOME score (HOME hasn't batted yet in that inning, so game is decided)

2. Display final score, winning team, and inning in which game ended
3. Offer option to start new game

Data to Track Throughout Game

• Inning number (1-9+, continues in extra innings)
• Half-inning (Top or Bottom)
• Active batting team (Home or Away)
• HOME team score (cumulative runs)
• AWAY team score (cumulative runs)
• Outs in current half-inning (0, 1, or 2)
• Base runners (Runner on 1st, 2nd, 3rd - use generic names like "Runner A", "Runner B", etc.)
  • Each runner tracks which base they're currently on
• Current at-bat history (optional: log of each result for review)

Key Rules Summary

1. Three outs per half-inning - batting team switches when 3 outs occur
2. Runners advance based on hit type - see above for each outcome
3. Runners do NOT advance on outs (except sacrifice fly doesn't make them advance either)
4. Runs score when runner reaches home plate - happens via advancing on hits
5. Forced advances on walks - if bases loaded, runner on 3rd must score
6. Game is 9 innings - (can be configured)
7. Home team bats last - Top half = Away, Bottom half = Home (Away gets last chance to score)

Rules Confirmed

1. No ties: Game continues into extra innings if tied after 9 innings
2. Generic runner names: Use generic identifiers (Runner A, Runner B, etc.) rather than tracking individual player names
3. Sacrifice fly: Batter is out, but all other runners advance by 1 base (runner on 3rd scores)