10 Baseball Fun Facts That Every Baseball Player Should Know

Want to know about the most unbelievable baseball fun facts?

Baseball is a sport with many complicated rules in the book. Despite being the former national pastime of Americans, many people don’t know about the mechanics of the greatest game ever created. This has a lot to do with the special considerations in the written rules.

Most people enjoy learning about the rules, but what’s more enjoyable is learning about the unwritten rules of baseball. There are tons of rules that even some players don’t know about but do, regardless. Some rules are even too unbelievable that you can’t help but wonder if they’re real.

To add to that, there are even some plays that go down in history that are also too unbelievable to be real. Read on to learn about the most unbelievable and fun rules and plays that baseball has to offer.

1. Jimmy Piersall’s 100th Home Run

Among the weirdest plays to go down in history was Jimmy Piersall’s 100th home run. The eccentric baseball star had a great life ahead of him even after his baseball career ended. His quirky playstyle got him a spot in the hearts of the fans for bringing a refreshing show whenever he was in the field.

His playstyle even inspired the book and movie “Fear Strikes Out”. It tackled the side of him that most fans didn’t know about, his life battling his bipolar disorder.

His eccentricity was most obvious when he hit his 100th home run. He ran the bases in the correct order, but he ran them facing backward. While this got many cheers from the fans, Mets manager Casey Stengel wasn’t happy and gave him a pink slip after the game.

2. No-Hitter's Club

There’s an unwritten rule in baseball that has to do with a pitcher that’s coming close to getting a perfect game. If no one can hit their pitches, you don’t talk about how no one can hit their pitches.

This is because baseball players believe that it’s a jinx to talk about it. Even major league baseball players do what they can to avoid talking about it when a teammate is close to having a no-hitter.

3. A Hit for a Hit

There are moments in the game where the pitcher will hit the batter. It doesn’t matter if it’s an accident, the opposing team gets to have a free hit on their batters, too. This isn’t in the official rulebook, though, but baseball players still follow through if they can.

Officials take care to keep a close eye on the players once one of them gets hit. This makes it a fun challenge for players to make it look like an accident as best as they can.

Baseball catchers know about this rule, too. This allows them to relax their stance when someone gets hit. Read more here learn more about the baseball catcher stances.

4. Don Baylor’s World Series Teams

Throughout his career, Don Baylor took part in the World Series 3 times in a row. This is an impressive record even if it was for 3 different teams. This places it among the most inspiring baseball fun facts for aspiring superstars.

Don Baylor was a great athlete and an even better baseball player. This made him a valuable commodity during the drafts. He took the Boston Red Sox to the World Series in 1986 and the Oakland Athletics, too, in 1988.

Neither team didn’t win, though. His team, the Minnesota Twins, only won in 1987. He didn’t play in the field much that year, though.

5. Catchers Can’t Block Plates

A new rule in baseball is that catchers can’t block the different bases anymore. You’d think it was to keep things fair, but the real reason makes more sense.

Before they put the rule in place, catchers would block the plates no matter what. This often meant that the runner and the catcher would get heavy injuries. These injuries grew as games went on, prompting officials to make the ruling official.

6. The 51-Minute Game

Baseball games last about 3 hours on average. This caused players and viewers alike to become surprised when the New York Giants defeated the Philadelphia Phillies in 51 minutes, making it the fastest game in baseball’s history.

The Giants had a 6-point lead against the Phillies, who only had 1 point to their name. This caused many fans to question whether they got their money’s worth for their tickets in the Polo Grounds.

7. The 8-Hour Game

The longest game recorded in Major League Baseball was when the Chicago White Sox went against the Milwaukee Brewers. The game lasted for 8 hours and 6 minutes before the White Sox beat the Brewers.

The game started in the morning and ended well into the night. Only dedicated fans remained in the stadium when the game ended.

8. Pitchers Must Wipe Their Hands Before Grabbing the Ball

This is another unwritten rule in baseball. The pitcher must wipe his hands on his shirt before he grabs the ball. The action must also be noticeable enough for everyone to see.

This was because old baseballs were soft and often fell apart. Wiping their hands removed enough of the moisture that can damage the ball.

Baseball players today do it to have a better grip on the ball. They often lick their fingers, too, to have enough moisture to put some twist on the ball.

9. Clarence Blethen and His False Teeth

Clarence Blethen wore false teeth throughout his career. In one game, he thought taking out his false teeth would make him more intimidating. He then placed his teeth in his back pocket for safekeeping.

When he was running the bases, he forgot about his fake teeth in his pocket. This caused them to dig into his flesh when he slid into the base. He’s now known as the only man to injure himself by biting himself in the buttocks.

10. Hotdogs are the Snacks that Define Baseball

There are only a few snacks that are tasty and portable enough for viewers to eat during a game. The hotdog is a popular and delicious treat, making it the snack that defines baseball.

In 2014 alone, fans consumed over 21,357,316 hotdogs and 5,508,887 sausages during the Major League season. With the new condiments present today, they will remain the kings of the ballpark.

Check Out These 10 Baseball Fun Facts Today

Baseball is a game with many quirky plays in its history. There are also things that most people don’t know about. Read this list of baseball fun facts to help you fill in the gaps in your knowledge!

Want to learn more about baseball? Check out our other posts here and read about more interesting facts today!