Sportsmanship
Standards of sportsmanship differ. In cricket, the standard of sportsmanship has historically been considered so high that the phrase 'it's just not cricket' was coined in the 19th Century to describe unfair or underhanded behavior in any walk of life. In the last few decades though, cricket has become increasingly fast-paced and competitive, increasing the use of appealing and sledging, although players are still expected to abide by the umpires' rulings without argument, and for the most part they do. Even in the modern game fielders are known to signal to the umpire that a boundary was hit, despite what could have been a spectacular save (though this may well be that they will be found out by the TV umpire anyway) and also signal if they did not take a catch even if it appeared that they did. In addition to this, some cricket batsmen have been known to "walk" when they think they are out even if the umpire does not declare them out. This is considered a very high level of sportsmanship, as a batsman can easily take advantage of incorrect umpiring decisions but with the introduction of the decision review system this has become more difficult if the system is in use.
In baseball, a player correcting an umpire's call to his own team's detriment is unheard of, at least at the professional level. Individual responsibility and vigilance are part of the game's tradition. It is the umpire's responsibility to make the right call, and matters of judgment are final. Similarly, when a runner misses a base or leaves too early on a caught fly ball, the umpire keeps silent, as it is the fielder's responsibility to know where the runners are and to make an appeal. When a fielder pretends not to know where the ball is (the "hidden ball trick"), the umpire keeps silent, as it is the runner's responsibility to know where the ball is.
| Analogous concepts and similar terms | ||
|---|---|---|
| Term | Cricket | Baseball |
| each team's batting turn | an innings (either singular or plural) | a half-inning or side; innings is a plural term |
| player who delivers the ball to start play | a bowler, who bowls | a pitcher, who pitches |
| player who strikes at the ball | batsman (The term batter is used in women's cricket, however) | batter (The word batsman is often used, however, in the phrase "hit batsman.") |
| distance between above two players | 22 yards (66 feet) or 20.1 metres (approx. 58 ft or 17.7 m between the bowler and batsman at delivery) | 60 feet 6 inches or 18.4 m (approx. 58 ft or 17.7 m between pitcher and batter at delivery) |
| fielder behind the player batting | wicket-keeper (or "keeper" for short) | catcher |
| batting order | flexible | predetermined |
| player's batting turn | (batting) innings, knock | plate appearance, at-bat, ups |
| batting stance | (a.k.a. guard) bat held vertically, with the handle upwards, and the bottom edge on the ground | bat held cocked in the air behind the head |
| hitting the ball | shot or stroke | hit - also shot, stroke, knock, etc. |
| carrying bat after striking | batsman carries bat while running and uses it as an extension of his body | batter drops bat after hitting and while running |
| edge of the field | boundary (or boundary rope) | fence, wall |
| scoring over the boundary or fence | runs are scored if the ball touches or lands over the boundary; six runs (six) if on the full, four runs (four) if on the bounce or along the ground. | home run if on the fly (and fair) - one, two, three, or four runs depending on the number of runners on base; automatic double if on the bounce from fair territory - batter and any runners on base may advance only two bases; thus, only a maximum of two runs may be scored |
| Hits inside the field result in... | zero to four runs (or more in unusual circumstances such as misfields, overthrows, lost balls or a ball striking a piece of the fielding team's equipment such as hats, helmets etc. which is an automatic five run penalty) | runners advancing, with possibility of one or more runners reaching home for a run. |
| hitting the ball in a specific area | placement | place hitting |
| hitting the ball high into the air, liable to being caught | skyer (or skier), spooning it up, "scooping the ball", "flier" | fly ball, pop fly, popup, "skying it" |
| catching the ball in flight | catch | fly out or catch (see in flight) |
| dismissing a batsman/batter | a wicket | an out |
| dismissal types | run out, caught, bowled, leg before wicket, stumped, hit wicket, handled the ball, hit the ball twice, obstructing the field, timed out (the last four are very rare) | tag out, fly out, force out, strike out, interference (similar to obstructing the field in cricket, but more common) |
| dismissal procedure | appeal to an umpire – an out cannot be given without an appeal from the fielding side, unless the batsman leaves the field on his own (Law 27). | automatic – most outs are called immediately by umpires; some potential outs require an appeal play to be called. |
| curving deliveries | leg breaks, off breaks, leg cutters and off cutters change direction after bouncing; if before bouncing, the away swing or outswinger curves away from batter, the in swing or inswinger curves toward batter | breaking balls curve in the air; the curveball/slider/cut fastball away from the pitching-hand side, the sinker, splitter, and forkball unexpectedly dip downwards (as can a curveball; see 12–6 curveball), the rare screwball bends toward pitching-hand side, as will the increasingly common circle change, and the unpredictable knuckleball which can literally move in any direction, and often can cork screw |
| a delivery not in a good hitting zone | wide | ball |
| fielding miscue | misfield | error |
| central/inner playing arena | wicket, pitch or strip | infield or diamond |
| sides of the field | Assuming a right-handed batsman, the "Off side" is the side to his right, while the side to his left is called the "Leg side" (as that is the side closest to the batsman's legs) or sometimes the "On side". Reverse for a left-handed batsman. | "Left field" is always to the batter's left and "right field" is always to the batter's right (when facing the pitcher), regardless of the side of the plate he hits from. The term "opposite field" in baseball is equivalent to "off side", as it is the side of the baseball field in front of the batter as he faces the pitcher. |
| substitution | injured players can be replaced for fielding and running, not bowling, batting or keeping wicket (Law 2) | players can be replaced in lineup for any reason; once removed they cannot return (except in certain youth leagues such as Little League which allow a "courtesy runner" for a pitcher, some recreational leagues and exhibition games, and in special rules such as designated hitter); baseball substitution rule was originally also only in case of injury; unlike cricket, the replacement could also bat |
| delivery toward the head | "bouncer", "beamer" or sometimes "beamball" - umpire may warn or eject the bowler | "beanball" - umpire may warn or eject the pitcher |
| Words used in both sports, possibly with different meanings | ||
| a ball | any legal delivery by the bowler | a legal delivery not entering the strike zone nor swung at by the batter. If a batter receives four balls during one plate appearance, he is awarded a base on balls. |
| drive | powerfully hit ball from the face of the bat, usually with the bat positioned vertically or close to vertically | powerfully hit ball (could be a hit, or caught for an out) |
| infield | the area of the field less than 30 yards (27 m) from the pitch (basically oval in shape, marked by a restriction line in limited- overs cricket) | the area of the field inside the grass line and immediately near the "diamond"; the "diamond" is the area inside the baselines, which are straight lines either drawn between bases (home plate to first - third to home plate) or imaginary (first to second and second to third); the "diamond" is thus a square 90 feet (27 m) on a side but is called such because of how it appears as seen from home plate. |
| inning(s) | an innings is a period of batting, it can refer to that of a whole team, or an individual player | an inning is one period of batting for each team (3 outs per half-inning) |
| lineup | the "batting lineup" means the players who are regarded as strong batsmen. a "strong or long batting lineup" might mean 7 or 8 recognised batsmen. | the players playing in a given game |
| out | a batsman is "given out" by an umpire when he is dismissed via a number of different ways. "outs" is never used. | batters can be "out"; when there are three "outs" the inning is over; the term "retired" is also used. |
| outfield | the area of the field more than 30 yards (27 m) from the pitch | the fair-territory area outside the grass line |
| pinch hitter | batsman promoted up the batting order to score runs quickly in a one-day game (deliberately borrowed from the baseball term) | substitute for another batter |
| pitch |
|
the act of throwing the ball toward the batter |
| retire | a batsman can decide to stop batting partway through their innings, or "retire" (this is usually due to injury, in which case they have "retired hurt") | to retire a batter means to get the batter out; when three outs are completed, ending the batting team's turn in an inning, the team on the field is said to have "retired the side" |
| pull | an aggressive shot hit with a horizontal bat towards the legside boundary, typically played to a short delivery | similarly, to hit a pitch towards the side of the field closer to the hitter (left field for a right-handed hitter and vice versa) |
| run | unit of scoring, achieved by the batsmen changing ends in one movement | unit of scoring, achieved by batter visiting all four bases in succession, in up to four movements |
| single | stroke which scores one run | hit which allows the batter to advance to first base. It can score one run or more if runners are on base. A lone run in an inning can be called a "singleton". |
| walk | to leave the field when out without waiting for the umpire's decision | slang for a base on balls: to advance to first base after receiving four balls |
Read more about this topic: Comparison Of Cricket And Baseball