Extra Innings - Other Methods

Other Methods

International Softball Federation member clubs will use an extra innings rule that starts immediately after regulation, as each team begins extra innings with a player on second base (the last player to be put out). This increases the odds that teams will score and ensures a faster resolution. There is a drawback, though, in that the home team has a big advantage in going second. Should the visiting team fail to score, all the home team must do to win is, for example, get a successful bunt and sacrifice fly to score the winning run.

For International Baseball Federation (IBAF) games, which has also been adopted by European leagues Division de Honor (Spain), Italian Baseball League, and Honkball Hoofdklasse (Netherlands), the 10th inning is played as normal, and the 11th inning begins with the game in a "reboot":

• The coach selects where in the batting order to start the inning.
• The batter immediately preceding the designated leadoff man is placed on first base, and the next preceding batter is placed on second base. The game proceeds as normal.

In subsequent innings, the batting order is not "rebooted", but the two players preceding the player scheduled to lead off the inning are placed on second and first.

Starting in 2009, the IBAF-sanctioned World Baseball Classic tiebreaker rule goes in effect in the 13th inning, with no "reboot". As it turned out, the rule was never actually used because no game in that tournament lasted longer than 11 innings.

Other methods include:

• Putting runners on second and third (those who made the last two outs of the past inning) and an 0-2 count on the batter with no outs, or
• Having bases loaded (runners being the last three outs of the past inning), with a 1-1 count on the batter and no outs.