Unwritten rules are everywhere in our society. It does not matter if they apply to situations in our everyday life or to situations in sports. Every well behaved man knows, that you hold open a door for a girl (if you don’t do this, start with it now!).
There are serious unwritten rules like in tennis, where you do not hit straight at your opponent in case he is standing at the net or fun rules like a football team dousing their coach in Gatorade after winning a championship.
Of course there are also a lot of unwritten rules in baseball. Check out the following list, to learn about the craziest, most unnecessary and funniest unwritten rules in baseball.
FYI: The unwritten rules of baseball are in no special order. It is not like the first rule is the most important unwritten rule.
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Do not talk to the pitcher, if he has a no-hitter going
A no-hitter is defined as a completed game, in which a team that batted has not recorded a single hit. If the pitcher is having a no-hitter going on, your should not talk to him. Maybe it is some form of superstition, but you do not want to break the streak by jinxing him. Typically that rules applies in later innings.
Do not lean into a pitch to destroy a perfect game
As the batter, never try to be hit be the pitcher’s ball intentionally to destroy a perfect game/ no-hitter. This is really cheap and bad sportsmanship. Absolutely uncool!
Do not bunt to destroy a no-hitter
Goes along the first unwritten rule. If you are the batter and the other team’s pitcher is having a streak and seems to be pulling off a no-hitter, do not destroy this streak by bunting the ball. No-hitters are such a rare occurrence, so if it might happen, be generous and give the other pitcher the opportunity to pull it off in a cool manner. Does not mean you should not try to hit a home run. Just don’t bunt. Please!
No stealing or bunting when you are up or down a lot of runs
This is a respect thingy in baseball. If you are up by a lot, you do not want to embarrass the other team. If you are down by a lot, the other team will have stopped tryharding, so you do not use their “generosity” to your advantage.
If you are pitching and one of your teammates has been hit by the other team’s pitcher intentionally, you try to hit the batter
Normally nobody will tell the pitcher to do so, but sometimes it does happen (especially in lower leagues). There is also a sign. If the catcher puts down a middle finger, he is signalling you to try to hit the batter.
Why does this rule exist? I have no clue.
Do NOT pimp your home runs
Do not, I repeat, DO NOT celebrate your home runs too much or in a disrespectful manner. Nobody likes arrogant players, who love themselves just a bit too much. If you do this, the following unwritten rule will apply. The same actually also goes for pitchers that strike out a batter. Just do not showboat. Nobody likes that shit.
Throw at batters or players that pimp their home runs
Sweet revenge. This rule is pretty self-explanatory I think. At some point the pitcher is meant to take revenge on the other team. This means aiming and throwing a hard ball with roughly 100 mph at either the next batter or the pimper himself. Have you ever been hit by a fastball? I recommend to stop pimping immediately, if you have…
Do not step on the pitcher’s mound, when you enter or exit the field
Actually this rule applies all the time. The pitcher’s mound is a holy place. Never touch it if you are not the pitcher. It is just a big No-No.
Do not show up the umpire or your teammates
Just be a respectful person. These guys are just doing their jobs and without them, you couldn’t play the game. You are totally allowed to be pissed, but never be pissed at the umpire directly. You can let the umpire know that you are unhappy with his call, but make sure only he knows and not the whole crowd.
Also never do this to your teammates. Does not really create harmony in the team.
If there is a fight going on, you have to go out on the field and support your teammate
This is again self-explanatory. It is a team sport, so support your team. It is your family. NEVER sit on the bench while a fight between one of your mates and another player is going on. NEVER EVER! If you do this, you will be in big trouble with your team.
You are totally allowed to steal signs, but do not get caught doing it
Stealing signs means that you decipher special signs used by the other team to gain a tactical and strategic advantage. For example this could include the catcher telling the pitcher what kind of ball to throw. If you manage to do this, you earn a lot of respect from your teammates but also from the other team. It is actually expected that you try to steal the signs. Just do not get caught doing it.
Exception: Do not steal signs from the batter’s box
This is an exception to the rule. If you are in the batter’s box, keep your eyes forward and do not look back to the catcher in order to steal the signs. Big No-No!
Bonus: As a baserunner do not yell “MINE” or something along these lines, to irritate the fielders.
Again, this is just unfair if you do it. Yelling something to irritate the fielders and by this preventing a catch and a strike out for the batter is just plain unsportsmanlike behavior. Never ever do this. It is cheating. Win in a fair manner.
Now the questions remains, what happens if you break the unwritten rules? How do other players react? Well… check out this videos to see, why you should not break the unwritten rules of baseball.
Get home safe,
Jan