Editing Baseball (section)

=== Uniqueness of parks ===
{{Further|Ballpark}}
[[File:Fenway Park - Oct 5th, 2021 - ALCS Wild Card.jpg|thumb|left|[[Fenway Park]], home of the [[Boston Red Sox]]. The [[Green Monster]] is visible beyond the playing field on the left.]]

Unlike those of most sports, baseball playing fields can vary significantly in size and shape. While the dimensions of the infield are specifically regulated, the only constraint on outfield size and shape for professional teams, following the rules of MLB and [[Minor League Baseball]], is that fields built or remodeled since June 1, 1958, must have a minimum distance of {{convert|325|ft|m|0}} from home plate to the fences in left and right field and {{convert|400|ft|m|0}} to center.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://mlb.mlb.com/mlb/downloads/y2008/official_rules/01_objectives_of_the_game.pdf|title=Official Rules/1.00—Objectives of the Game. (Rule 1.04a)|access-date=February 2, 2009|publisher=Major League Baseball|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090205011325/http://mlb.mlb.com/mlb/downloads/y2008/official_rules/01_objectives_of_the_game.pdf|archive-date=February 5, 2009|url-status=live}}</ref> Major league teams often skirt even this rule. For example, at [[Daikin Park]], which became the home of the [[Houston Astros]] in 2000, the [[Crawford Boxes]] in left field are only {{convert|315|ft|m|0}} from home plate.<ref>{{cite news |author=Nightengale, Bob|date=August 20, 2008|url=https://www.usatoday.com/sports/baseball/2008-08-20-bestseats-minutemaid_N.htm|title=No. 8: Out in Left Field in Houston's Crawford Boxes|access-date=February 17, 2009|work=USA Today}}</ref> There are no rules at all that address the height of fences or other structures at the edge of the outfield. The most famously idiosyncratic outfield boundary is the left-field wall at Boston's [[Fenway Park]], in use since 1912: the [[Green Monster]] is {{convert|310|ft|m|0}} from home plate down the line and {{convert|37|ft|m|0}} tall.<ref>Powers (2003), p. 85.</ref>

Similarly, there are no regulations at all concerning the dimensions of foul territory. Thus a foul fly ball may be entirely out of play in a park with little space between the foul lines and the stands, but a foulout in a park with more expansive foul ground.<ref>Powers (2003), p. 219.</ref> A fence in foul territory that is close to the outfield line will tend to direct balls that strike it back toward the fielders, while one that is farther away may actually prompt more collisions, as outfielders run full speed to field balls deep in the corner. These variations can make the difference between a double and a triple or [[inside-the-park home run]].<ref>Puhalla, Krans, and Goatley (2003), p. 198; {{cite news|author=Shaikin, Bill|date=May 27, 2006|url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2006-may-27-sp-angels27-story.html|title=Guerrero Becomes Mr. Inside|access-date=February 17, 2009|work=[[Los Angeles Times]]}}</ref> The surface of the field is also unregulated. While the adjacent image shows a traditional field surfacing arrangement (and the one used by virtually all MLB teams with naturally surfaced fields), teams are free to decide what areas will be grassed or bare.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://mlb.mlb.com/mlb/downloads/y2008/official_rules/01_objectives_of_the_game.pdf|title=Official Rules/1.00—Objectives of the Game. (Rule 1.04)|access-date=February 2, 2009|publisher=Major League Baseball|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090205011325/http://mlb.mlb.com/mlb/downloads/y2008/official_rules/01_objectives_of_the_game.pdf|archive-date=February 5, 2009|url-status=live}}</ref> Some fields—including several in MLB—use [[artificial turf]]. Surface variations can have a significant effect on how ground balls behave and are fielded as well as on baserunning. Similarly, the presence of a roof (seven major league teams play in stadiums with permanent or retractable roofs) can greatly affect how fly balls are played.<ref>{{cite news|author=Shaikin, Bill|date=October 8, 2002|url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2002-oct-08-sp-angnote8-story.html|title=No Fly Ball Routine in Dome|access-date=February 17, 2009|work=Los Angeles Times}}</ref> While football and soccer players deal with similar variations of field surface and stadium covering, the size and shape of their fields are much more standardized. The area out-of-bounds on a football or soccer field does not affect play the way foul territory in baseball does, so variations in that regard are largely insignificant.<ref>Puhalla, Krans, and Goatley (2003), p. 207.</ref>

[[File:Red Sox Yankees Game Boston July 2012.jpg|thumb|A [[New York Yankees]] batter ([[Andruw Jones]]) and a [[Boston Red Sox]] catcher at [[Fenway Park]]]]

These physical variations create a distinctive set of playing conditions at each ballpark. Other local factors, such as altitude and climate, can also significantly affect play. A given stadium may acquire a reputation as a pitcher's park or a hitter's park, if one or the other discipline notably benefits from its unique mix of elements. The most exceptional park in this regard is [[Coors Field]], home of the [[Colorado Rockies]]. Its high altitude—{{convert|5282|ft|m|0}} above sea level—is partly responsible for giving it the strongest hitter's park effect in the major leagues due to the low air pressure.<ref>Keri (2007), pp. 295–301.</ref> [[Wrigley Field]], home of the Chicago Cubs, is known for its fickle disposition: a pitcher's park when the strong winds off [[Lake Michigan]] are blowing in, it becomes more of a hitter's park when they are blowing out.<ref>{{cite web|author=Gilbert, Steve|date=September 30, 2008|url=http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20080930&content_id=3575106|title=Wrigley's Winds Don't Rattle Lowe|access-date=February 17, 2009|publisher=Major League Baseball|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081201003317/http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20080930&content_id=3575106&vkey=ps2008news&fext=.jsp&c_id=mlb|archive-date=December 1, 2008|url-status=dead}}</ref> The absence of a standardized field affects not only how particular games play out, but the nature of team rosters and players' statistical records. For example, hitting a fly ball {{convert|330|ft|m|-1}} into right field might result in an easy catch on the [[warning track]] at one park, and a home run at another. A team that plays in a park with a relatively short right field, such as the [[New York Yankees]], will tend to stock its roster with left-handed [[pull hitter]]s, who can best exploit it. On the individual level, a player who spends most of his career with a team that plays in a hitter's park will gain an advantage in batting statistics over time—even more so if his talents are especially suited to the park.<ref>{{cite news|author=Sheinin, Dave|date=March 26, 2008|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/03/24/AR2008032402798.html|title=After Move, a Breaking In Process|access-date=February 17, 2009|newspaper=[[The Washington Post]]}} See also Powers (2003), p. 85.</ref>