Infielder

Baseball teams take turns, one "out" in the field and one "in" at bat. The nine fielding positions are commonly grouped as three outfielders, four infielders, and "the battery" (two). Meanwhile the team in at bat sends nine batters to home plate one by one in fixed batting order. The nine fielding positions are universal in high-level competitive baseball, and the actual positions taken on the field are exceptionally stable. Teams differ, and pla... more

Baseball teams take turns, one "out" in the field and one "in" at bat. The nine fielding positions are commonly grouped as three outfielders, four infielders, and "the battery" (two). Meanwhile the team in at bat sends nine batters to home plate one by one in fixed batting order. The nine fielding positions are universal in high-level competitive baseball, and the actual positions taken on the field are exceptionally stable. Teams differ, and players shift, at most several steps for tactical purposes. This contrasts with the fielding positions in cricket and some "football" games where, even within a single team, positions vary so much from time to time that they have different names. What varies in baseball is how people think and write about the game, occasionally using infielders to mean a different group of positions. In writing, such a departure from the standard grouping should be explained. In the standard arrangement of a baseball team in the field, three players are in the... less