Baseball, Softball Games For 12 People Or Less

I usually don’t play baseball or softball too much. However, last weekend, a friend invited me to the park to hit some softballs. I was extremely bored, so I quickly agreed.

As a kid I was never really into the sport of baseball. I thought that the game was too slow and boring. I was more in to basketball or football, where the ball is moving quickly and there is constantly something going on. Another thing about baseball that I never liked is that it takes so many people to play a good game. If you are playing basketball in the playground you can do just fine with 4 people or even 2. Backyard football can be played just fine with 3 or more people as well. But coming up with 18 people to play a game of baseball is just way too much. Well, last weekend I learned a couple of games that can be played with 12 people or less.

A great way to play with 12 people is that you split up in to 4 teams of 3 people. 1 team is up to bat and the other teams share the field. You play 2 outs instead of three, since your batting team is so small. Also, if all of your players on are base then you have to take an out to send up a batter.

Another game that you can play if you have less than 12 people is that you split in to 2 teams. One team is up to bat. The batting team doesn’t run the bases since there are not enough players to field. Instead you just use ghost runners. The fielding team will cover only the left side of the field. If the batter hits the ball in the infield and the fielders cover it without errors, it is an out. If the infielders make an error, it is a single. If the batter hits a ground ball that makes it to shallow outfield, it is a single. If the outfielder makes error fielding the ball, it is a double. Lastly, if the ball makes it to deep outfield, it is a double. If the deep outfielder errors, then it is a triple.

I really don’t know what these versions of the game are called, but they were pretty fun to play. On a warm spring day, it sure was fun to be outside and hitting some softballs, even though it isn’t one of my favorite sports to play. Either way, it was great to be with friends and also to make new friend on the field. I look forward to playing some more and maybe one day, I will enjoy and appreciate the “All-American” sport a little more than I do now.