As the baseball postseason swings ever closer to the World Series (fyi: the Fall Classic begins this coming Saturday), I thought I’d get us all in the mood by looking at some curious connections between the sport and, of all things, the number 3, which, besides being the first unique prime number, turns out really is a magic number, as well. (You should be singing the SchoolHouse Rock song now…)
I haven’t read this elsewhere, but I’m sure I’m not the only one who’s noted the following curious correlations between the two (so by all means, if you have more to add, please do so in the comments below):
3 is the number of strikes needed to record an out.
3 is the number of outs to end an inning.
3 x 3 is the number of innings in a game.
3 is the number of bases on the playing field.
3 is the number in the batting order generally occupied by the team’s best hitter.
One of, if not the, most useful of all baseball stats is a player’s batting average. The benchmark has always been .300. In fact, Mickey Mantle was often quoted as saying one of his greatest regrets was not retiring while he still had a .300 lifetime average. Yes, there’s a sizeable difference between .298 and .300.
To win a division series in the postseason, a team must win 3 of 5 games.
A baseball diamond is actually a 3 x 30-foot square.
There are 3 X 30 feet between each of the 3 bases.
Though the distance from home plate to left and right field varies, it is always some variation on 300 feet. (e.g. Fenway is 310 to left and 302 to right, Wrigley is 355 to left and 353 to right).
That’s all I’ve got for now, though I’m sure there are more. Oh, wait, I almost forgot a biggy: Guess what number Babe Ruth, the most famous (and arguably best) player in the game, wore on his uniform?
I’ll give ya 3 guesses…
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Not to quibble, but isn’t home plate considered a “base”. After all you do have to touch it to score a run. That would make it four bases, no?
posted by Dan H. on 10-17-2006 at 9:31 am
And, er, the best hitter in the lineup is number 4, not 3. Number four is the cleanup hitter, the guy who hits for the most power in the lineup.
You know, so if the first three batters get on base, you’ve got your best hitter to bring them all around.
posted by Radical Bender on 10-17-2006 at 9:57 am
Great post, David! I’m getting a bit more esoteric with my additions, but there are also:
+ 3 players in the outfield
+ 3 men usually huddled around home plate (the batter, the catcher, and the umpire)
+ After the seventh inning stretch, the home team has 3 more times at bat (if all 3 are needed)
+ 3 digits in a player’s reported batting average, and in a pitcher’s ERA (with a decimal, of course)
+ A team has to win 3 postseason series in order to be World Series champions (the divisional series, the league championship, and the World Series)
FWIW, Babe Ruth wore #3 (because he was typically the third batter in the Yankees’ order; that’s how they got their jersey numbers back then).
In fact, my favorite all-time player wore #3 as well: Dale Murphy, who was a fine as example as there ever was as to what a pro sports player should be. It’s a damn shame this two-time NL MVP is not in the Hall of Fame, and I have a 3-letter question about that: Why?
But I digress…
posted by Sandy on 10-17-2006 at 10:02 am
The #4 hitter is usually the best power hitter, true, but the #3 hitter is most often the one with the highest batting average and/or on-base percentage.
That way, even if the first two players don’t get on base, the manager has the best shot at having at least one player on-base when the #4 hitter (the big slugger) comes up to bat. Since a power hitter is more likely to drive in runs, you want to put your best percentage hitter just before him in the batting order, to give him the best opportunity to generate runs.
posted by Sandy on 10-17-2006 at 10:05 am
and actually, 3 outs represent only HALF an inning…there are 6 outs in a whole inning…
posted by Sarah K on 10-17-2006 at 10:29 am
To David’s point, let me offer a counterpoint. How about the number 4? After all…
You need 4 balls for a walk.
You need to win 4 games to win a league pennant.
You need to win 4 more games to win the World Series.
The best hitter is generally in the cleanup spot, number 4 in the lineup.
As has already been noted, there are 4 bases on the playing field.
One of the modern Holy Grails of the sport is a season batting average of .400, last achieved by Ted Williams, who hit .406 in 1941.
One of the other modern Holy Grails is Joe DiMaggio’s 56-game hitting streak, also in 1941. The closest anyone has come to breaking that record was in 1978, when Pete Rose had a streak of 44.
The deepest part of many stadiums is 400 feet or so from home plate. Center field in Yankee Stadium is listed at 406 feet.
The first number retired in Major League Baseball was not the Babe’s, but that of his teammate, Lou Gehrig: number 4.
Speaking of retired numbers, the only one retired throughout Major League Baseball is Jackie Robinson’s 42.
One of the most insightful looks at the game was Jim Bouton’s book “Ball 4″
I’m sure there are more, but that’s a start.
posted by Paul on 10-17-2006 at 11:03 am
These are fabulous, guys! I think we’re on our way to publishing a book here. One more to add to Paul’s: There are 4 umpires on the field in a regular season game.
posted by David on 10-17-2006 at 11:09 am
Two more before I return to work:
+ Each league is divided into 3 divisions (East, West & Central)
+ Most regular-season MLB series are 3 games in length
And not that it’s a harbinger of what’s the come, but the Detroit Tigers have been in the World Series three times since WWII (1945, 1968, and 1983) and won the championship all three times.
They also lost the World Series in 1907, 08, and 09, becoming the first (and still only) team to lose three consecutive World Series.
posted by Sandy on 10-17-2006 at 11:12 am
And of course, there are 3 x 3 defensive players on the field (and offensive players in the batting order) at once. Okay, I’m stopping now. Honest.
posted by Sandy on 10-17-2006 at 11:29 am
And to tie it all together, there are 108 stitches on an official MLB baseball.
3 x 36 = 108
4 x 27 = 108
posted by Bill T. on 10-17-2006 at 11:53 am
Oh, and a batter needs 4 hits to hit for “the cycle” – single, double, triple, and home run.
posted by Bill T. on 10-17-2006 at 11:57 am
And I stuff my face with 4 hotdogs whenever I go to a game.
posted by Will on 10-17-2006 at 4:12 pm
…and of course Von Hayes was #9…3 X 3.
P.S. Sandy…Couldn’t agree more regarding Dale Murphy.
posted by Dawn Lorraine on 10-17-2006 at 8:31 pm
I’m surprised some of you think of home plate as a base. It is not, it is… home plate. You don’t stand at home after you’ve safely hit. 3 bases, 1 home plate.
posted by Shane on 10-18-2006 at 10:10 am
In the movie “The Fan”, Wesley Snipes’ character wore the number 11. When he gets traded, he wears number 33. He is told by his agent that the number is “3 times better than 11″…relevant?
posted by Sean on 10-18-2006 at 2:45 pm