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Pesäpallo (; ; , colloquially known in Finnish as pesis and also referred to as Finnish baseball) is a fast-moving bat-and-ball
sport Sport is a physical activity or game, often Competition, competitive and organization, organized, that maintains or improves physical ability and skills. Sport may provide enjoyment to participants and entertainment to spectators. The numbe ...
that is often referred to as the national sport of
Finland Finland, officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It borders Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of Bothnia to the west and the Gulf of Finland to the south, ...
and has some presence in other places including
Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...
,
Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. It borders Norway to the west and north, and Finland to the east. At , Sweden is the largest Nordic count ...
,
Switzerland Switzerland, officially the Swiss Confederation, is a landlocked country located in west-central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the south, France to the west, Germany to the north, and Austria and Liechtenstein to the east. Switzerland ...
,
Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...
, and Canada's
northern Ontario Northern Ontario is a primary geographic and quasi-administrative region of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario, the other primary region being Southern Ontario. Most of the core geographic region is located on p ...
(the latter two countries have significant Nordic populations). It is similar to brännboll,
rounders Rounders is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams. Rounders is a striking and fielding team game that involves hitting a small, hard, leather-cased ball with a wooden, plastic, or metal bat that has a cylindrical end. The players score b ...
, lapta, and
baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball sport played between two team sport, teams of nine players each, taking turns batting (baseball), batting and Fielding (baseball), fielding. The game occurs over the course of several Pitch ...
. The basic idea of pesäpallo is similar to that of baseball: the offense tries to score by hitting the ball successfully and running through the bases, while the defense tries to put the batter and runners out. One of the most important differences between pesäpallo and baseball is that the ball is pitched vertically, which makes hitting the ball, as well as controlling the power and direction of the hit, much easier. This gives the offensive game more variety, speed, and tactical aspects compared to baseball. The fielding team is forced to counter the batter's choices with defensive schemes and anticipation. The manager has an important role in pesäpallo, leading the offense by giving signals to the players using a multicoloured fan. The defensive team play is directed by the manager's orders and hand signals by the fielders.


History

Pesäpallo, a combination of traditional ball-batting team games and North American
baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball sport played between two team sport, teams of nine players each, taking turns batting (baseball), batting and Fielding (baseball), fielding. The game occurs over the course of several Pitch ...
, was invented by Lauri "Tahko" Pihkala in the 1920s. It has changed with the times and grown in popularity. On 14 November 1920, it was played the first time at
Kaisaniemi Park Kaisaniemi park (, ) is a popular park, in the center of Helsinki, in the region of Kluuvi. The Kaisaniemi Park was named after Cajsa Wahllund, Catharina "Cajsa" Wahllund. Part of the park was given to the University of Helsinki in 1829, for garden ...
in
Helsinki Helsinki () is the Capital city, capital and most populous List of cities and towns in Finland, city in Finland. It is on the shore of the Gulf of Finland and is the seat of southern Finland's Uusimaa region. About people live in the municipali ...
. Pesäpallo was a
demonstration sport A demonstration sport, or exhibition sport, is a sport which is played to promote it, rather than as part of standard medal competition. This occurs commonly during the Olympic Games but may also occur at other sporting events. Demonstration sport ...
at the 1952 Summer Olympics, held in Helsinki, Finland. The main leagues began to be called
Superpesis The Superpesis is the highest level of the Finnish pesäpallo league system. Contested by 13 clubs in men's league and 12 clubs in women's league, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the Ykköspesis. Seasons usually run from ...
in 1990, and they were also heavily marketed. Veikkaus introduced pesäpallo's sports betting to Finland in 1993. However, in connection with this, pesäpallo was plunged into the biggest crisis in its history due to the 1998 match-fixing scandal.


Rules


Match format

A regular pesäpallo game is played in two periods of four
inning In baseball, softball, and similar games, an inning is the basic unit of play, consisting of two halves or frames, the "top" (first half) and the "bottom" (second half). In each half, one team bats until three outs are made, with the other tea ...
s each. A period is won by the team which scores more runs in its offensive half-innings. If the periods are tied, there will be an extra (9th) inning; if needed, there is a round (similar to a
penalty shootout The penalty shootout is a method of determining a winner in sports matches that would have otherwise been drawn or tied. The rules for penalty shootouts vary between sports and even different competitions; however, the usual form is similar to pe ...
) where the teams start with a runner on third base and try to get a score from that runner. During an inning, both teams take turns playing offense (batting) and defense (fielding). The offensive team can continue batting until three players have been put out or one round of the batting order has been completed without at least two runs scored. The batter and the
pitcher In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throws ("Pitch (baseball), pitches") the Baseball (ball), baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of out (baseball), retiring a batter (baseball), batter, ...
face each other at the home base, on opposite sides of the circular plate. The pitch is delivered by throwing the ball directly upwards above the plate, at least 1 meter over the head of the pitcher. Both teams have a ''pelinjohtaja'', lit. ''a game leader'' or more simply, a team's
manager Management (or managing) is the administration of organizations, whether businesses, nonprofit organizations, or a government bodies through business administration, nonprofit management, or the political science sub-field of public administra ...
. The
captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader or highest rank officer of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police depa ...
of the team – one of the players – tries to beat the other team's captain in the ''hutunkeitto'', "draw of choice", which determines which team gets to choose whether it will want to start in the offensive or the defensive half.


Offence

The team playing the ''offensive half'' has nine batters, and three additional batters known as ''jokers'' (Named for the
playing card A playing card is a piece of specially prepared card stock, heavy paper, thin cardboard, plastic-coated paper, cotton-paper blend, or thin plastic that is marked with distinguishing motifs. Often the front (face) and back of each card has a f ...
and resembles
designated hitter The designated hitter (DH) is a baseball player who bats in place of another position player, most commonly the pitcher. Unlike other players in a team's lineup, they generally only play as an offensive player and usually do not play defense as ...
s). Whereas ordinary batters must bat in a pre-designated batting order, the joker batters are allowed to enter the order at any point. Today, players strategy-wise usually have a specialised role in the batting order depending on their abilities. Fast runners are usually positioned first in the batting order, after which come players who specialize in advancing runners between bases. Next comes a player specializing in scoring runners home. Players from 6 to 9 often form another attacking combination. The jokers are usually a selection of either batting jokers (good hitters specializing in scoring) or runner jokers (fast runners specializing in advancing in the field). The batter has three strikes available during their turn at bat. A fair hit does not require the batter to reach base; all three strikes can be used before the batter must reach first base. A pitch counts as a strike if the batter takes a swing at the ball and the umpire rules the pitch legal. When a batter makes a fair hit, unless it is the third strike, the batter does not have to try to advance safely to the first base. However, if the batter hits a foul ball on the third strike and does not try to advance, only that player is out and the runners continue with the next batter. If the pitcher delivers two bad pitches (
Ball A ball is a round object (usually spherical, but sometimes ovoid) with several uses. It is used in ball games, where the play of the game follows the state of the ball as it is hit, kicked or thrown by players. Balls can also be used for s ...
), the batter is granted a
walk Walking (also known as ambulation) is one of the main gaits of terrestrial locomotion among legged animals. Walking is typically slower than running and other gaits. Walking is defined as an "inverted pendulum" gait in which the body vaults over ...
to the first base if there are no runners on base. If there are runners on any base, the point runner (the runner at the highest-numbered base) is granted a walk to the next base for the second and all consecutive bad pitches pitched for the same hitter. A pitch can be ruled as foul for various reasons, most common ones being that the ball does not fall on the plate or that the pitch is not thrown high enough. A hit is a foul ball if the ball first touches the field outside of the main area; the batter or the runners cannot advance on a foul ball. Players generally have little difficulty hitting the ball, so the main target is not just hitting the ball but selecting a suitable type of hit and directing it correctly. There are many different types of hits used, here are a few examples: * ''Snap (short) hit ("Näppi"):'' Normally used for advancing fast runners between bases, aimed to avoid defensive players. Usually hit in such way that the ball takes a hard spin. * ''Fly hit ("Koppilyönti"):'' An intentional high hit to be caught, often used to give way for faster runners. * ''High drive ("Kupperi" or "Kumura"):'' Aimed to drop to the field between midfield and outfield, with a top spin. Excellent for scoring. * ''Bouncer ("Pomppu"):'' Used for advancing fast runners, hit downwards very hard to be bounced right next to the front arc, somewhat similar to a bunt. Aimed towards the base that a runner is leaving, or to the centre. Technically very hard to perform, used only by advanced players. The runner reaches safety on a base by touching the base area before the ball is thrown to a fielder in the base. If the ball gets to the base first, the runner is out and is removed from the field. The batter is also out if the third strike is a foul ball. A runner on a base is forced to advance if the next runner reaches safety on the same base. The offensive team scores a run when a runner returns safely to the home base after advancing through all three field bases. If a batter advances to the third base on their batted ball, it is a "
home run In baseball, a home run (abbreviated HR) is scored when the Baseball (ball), ball is hit in such a way that the batting (baseball), batter is able to circle the bases and reach home plate safe (baseball), safely in one play without any error ( ...
". The player can then stay on the third base and try to score again as a regular runner by reaching the home base on a later play.


Defence

The defensive team has nine players on the field at a time. The ''pitcher'' is positioned at the home base. A ''catcher'' plays in the infield by the second base. Each of the three bases has its ''baseman'' and an additional two ''shortstops'' playing close to the second and third bases. Two ''outfielders'' cover the outfield. Players can switch their places and position themselves to the field wherever they want. Different positioning is used in different situations, when the defensive team can expect a certain type of hit. This is usually determined by the location of the offensive team's point runner. Special tactics could even be made against a certain batter. If a fielder catches the ball before it reaches the ground, the hit is a "catch", and all runners who tried to advance on that play are caught. Players who have been caught are removed from the field, but they do not count as outs.


Playing field

The infield is pentagonal, long and wide at its widest, and the ball must bounce at least once in the infield to be a valid fair hit. When it has bounced once, it may then go over a line (and even leave the field entirely if the field is not fully fenced) and still be in play. The back line on the fly counts as a ''laiton'' (literally "illegal", a
foul ball In baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball sport played between two team sport, teams of nine players each, taking turns batting (baseball), batting and Fielding (baseball), fielding. The game occurs over the course of ...
). The foul lines are also on the sides and the front of the field. So if a player aims high and hits a very hard hit that would be a certain home run in baseball, it is counted as a foul in pesäpallo. This increases the tactical approach. All home runs, therefore, are the " inside-the-park" variety even if they end up leaving the field. The outfield consists of everything that is fenced in on the playing field's lot, including bodies of water at ''
Vimpelin Veto Vimpelin Veto ( "Draw of Vimpeli"; or simply Veto) is a Finnish professional pesäpallo team from Vimpeli. It was founded in 1934. Vimpelin Veto is playing in the top-tier Superpesis. Vimpelin Veto has participated in many sports in Finland over t ...
'', and balls going underneath the fences at ''
Sotkamon Jymy Sotkamon Jymy ( "Huge of Sotkamo"; or simply Jymy) is a Finnish professional pesäpallo team from Sotkamo. It was founded in 1909. Sotkamon Jymy is playing in the top-tier Superpesis. Sotkamon Jymy has participated in many sports in Finland over ...
''. The fields' dimensions vary dramatically: The distance to center field fencing in the men's Superpesis vary from at '' Kiteen Pallo -90'', to at Seinäjoen JymyJussit. The playing fields are most commonly various mixtures of thin dirt comparable to tennis
clay court A clay court is one of the types of tennis court on which the sport of tennis is played. Clay courts are built on a foundation of crushed stone, brick, shale, and other construction aggregate, aggregate, with a thin layer of fine clay particles ...
s,
sand Sand is a granular material composed of finely divided mineral particles. Sand has various compositions but is usually defined by its grain size. Sand grains are smaller than gravel and coarser than silt. Sand can also refer to a textural ...
, and sometimes
artificial turf Artificial turf is a surface of synthetic fibers made to look like natural grass, used in sports arenas, residential lawns and commercial applications that traditionally use grass. It is much more durable than grass and easily maintained wi ...
, for instance at '' Pesäkarhut''. Normal grass is typically only seen near the outer fences. Due to the unusual field surfaces and dimensions, there are no dedicated
multi-purpose stadium A multi-purpose stadium is a type of stadium designed to be easily used for multiple types of events. While any stadium could potentially host more than one type of sport or event, this concept usually refers to a design philosophy that stres ...
s among the highest levels' home fields, neither with
association football Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 Football player, players who almost exclusively use their feet to propel a Ball (association football), ball around a rectangular f ...
, international
baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball sport played between two team sport, teams of nine players each, taking turns batting (baseball), batting and Fielding (baseball), fielding. The game occurs over the course of several Pitch ...
, or otherwise. Guest destination matches in the Superpesis are usually played on dedicated association football pitches with all-artificial turf, but are not the main home fields of any significant teams.


Differences from baseball

Besides the info on ball movements and infields listed elsewhere on the page, summaries of the most significant differences from baseball are: *Balls leaving the field on the fly is a foul ball and not a home run. *Instead of a "
batter's box A baseball field, also called a ball field or baseball diamond, is the playing field, field upon which the game of baseball is played. The term can also be used as a metonym for a baseball park. The term sandlot is sometimes used, although this ...
", the home plate serves as a ''pitching plate'', which is round with a diameter of . All other batting team players stand in a semicircle near the batter. *
Walking Walking (also known as ambulation) is one of the main gaits of terrestrial locomotion among legged animals. Walking is typically slower than running and other gaits. Walking is defined as an " inverted pendulum" gait in which the body vaults o ...
requires fewer invalid pitches, initially two per batter. *A fair hit does not force the batter to advance; he can use all three strikes at bat before he becomes a runner. *"Force outs" are always outs: if the runner is off the base and the ball is in the control of a defensive player at the next base, the runner is out. *The bases are not laid in a diamond shape; the players have to 'zig zag' the court (see chart). *When entering a base, the runner only has to cross the line of the base; there are no actual cushion bases like in baseball, only lines on the field showing each base's boundaries (A much larger area compared to the bases used in baseball). Similarly, the pitcher or the fielders in the bases do not have any plates to touch to make an out; having only a foot in the base is enough. *The attacking team uses a colour-coded fan to signal the runners when to move. The fan is multicoloured, held by the coach of the team. Colour sequence is decided prior to the game. *Runners will much more often dive head-first towards the next bases, instead of sliding leg-first. *As in most non-baseball sports, it is possible for the home team to have to bat first depending on the pre-match ''hutunkeitto'' procedure.


Equipment


Helmet

Each player is required to wear a helmet when playing in an offensive inning. If a player sets at bat without a helmet an out can be marked for the team. Apart from the pitcher and the outfielders, fielders are required to wear helmets.


Glove

The glove is used to ease catching the ball when playing a defensive inning. The glove used in pesäpallo differs from the one used in baseball both in characteristics and in appearance, resembling more a hockey goalkeeper's glove. The glove is made of leather although some manufacturers use different kinds of synthetic fibers on the back side. The inside of the glove is always made of thick leather and the main differences between gloves lie in the amount and quality of padding, the thickness of the leather, the size of the glove and its shaping. The ball is caught into the glove's cup between the thumb and the index finger. Sometimes, however, the ball hits the palm and a properly designed glove can prevent injuries. Other devices to catch the ball are not allowed.


Bat

The bat is a round, tapered cylinder. Previously the bats used in pesäpallo were made of wood. These were fairly brittle and did not last very long when used to hit such a heavy ball. Now, wooden bats are only used in children's matches and the bats used in adults' matches are made of a mixture of glass fiber and carbon fiber. The biggest differences between bats lie in the weight, centre of gravity, flexibility and length. The maximum length of the bat is . When using a children's ball the maximum length of the bat is . The weight of the bat is considered to be its most important property. A typical bat used in top competitions weighs . The heaviest bats weigh more than but these are only used by strong players like batting jokers. Junior players typically use bats that weigh less than . The usual diameter for the bat's hitting point is .


Spikes

The use of spiked shoes—like in running—is not required to play pesäpallo. However, they do help the player substantially in rapid situations, especially when playing on modern artificial grass fields with some sand, which are very slippery to ordinary sport shoes. The artificial turf differs from what is used on
football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...
fields. There are only a few manufacturers producing spikes designed for pesäpallo and many players use normal running spikes. Some shoes have also spikes at the heel but mostly spikes are positioned under the ball of the foot. Usually there are seven spikes in a shoe and they are 3–15 millimeters long. When playing on artificial turf the maximum length of spikes is 6 millimeters.


Ball

The ball used in pesäpallo is yellow and has a circumference of . They strongly resemble
tennis ball A tennis ball is a small, hollow ball used in games of tennis and real tennis. Tennis balls are fluorescent yellow in Professional sports, professional competitions, but in Amateur sports, recreational play other colors are also used. Tennis bal ...
s but are heavier. The weight of the ball varies by series: * Men's ball: * Women's ball: * Junior ball:


Competing

The Finnish championship series is known as
Superpesis The Superpesis is the highest level of the Finnish pesäpallo league system. Contested by 13 clubs in men's league and 12 clubs in women's league, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the Ykköspesis. Seasons usually run from ...
. Both men and women compete in their own series. The second tier is known as ', the third tier consists of interregional leagues known as ''Suomensarja'', and the fourth tier consists of provincial leagues known as ''Maakuntasarja''. An open cup called ' was played alongside the various series from 1969-1992. An annual east-west
all-star game An all-star game is an exhibition game that showcases the best players (the "stars") of a sports league. The exhibition is between two teams organized solely for the event, usually representing the league's teams based on region or division, bu ...
called ' is played annually, usually in June or early July. The senior main matches field Superpesis players, and other matches under that brand are also played among youth players. Junior leagues for under-21 players exist for both men and women (known as ''Poikien Superpesis'' and ''Tyttöjen Superpesis'' respectively). A Pesäpallo World Cup is played internationally every three years. In 2006 the fifth World Cup was played in
Munich Munich is the capital and most populous city of Bavaria, Germany. As of 30 November 2024, its population was 1,604,384, making it the third-largest city in Germany after Berlin and Hamburg. Munich is the largest city in Germany that is no ...
, Germany. Participant countries included
Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...
,
Finland Finland, officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It borders Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of Bothnia to the west and the Gulf of Finland to the south, ...
,
Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...
and
Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. It borders Norway to the west and north, and Finland to the east. At , Sweden is the largest Nordic count ...
. The sixth World Cup took place from July 8–11, 2009 in Pori, Finland, with teams from Australia, Finland, Germany, Sweden and Switzerland. The seventh World Cup took place in 2012 on the Gold Coast of Australia. The three teams were Australia, Finland and "Team Europe". The eighth World Cup was played in Lucerne, Switzerland in 2015 featuring Australia, Germany, Finland, and Switzerland. There are no significant inter-varsity pesäpallo leagues in Finland.


See also

*
Superpesis The Superpesis is the highest level of the Finnish pesäpallo league system. Contested by 13 clubs in men's league and 12 clubs in women's league, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the Ykköspesis. Seasons usually run from ...
*
Variations of baseball In sports Sport is a physical activity or game, often competitive and organized, that maintains or improves physical ability and skills. Sport may provide enjoyment to participants and entertainment to spectators. The number of part ...


References

Notes Further reading
Official International Rules
*


External links

*
Official International Rules of PesäpalloPesäpallo fan page

Superpesis

Introduction to Finnish Baseball/Pesäpallo
{{DEFAULTSORT:Pesapallo Ball and bat games Team sports Baseball in Finland Finnish games Baseball genres Sports originating in Finland