Baseball is a game played between two teams of nine players who take turns batting and fielding. The offense attempts to score runs by hitting a ball thrown by the pitcher and moving counterclockwise around a series of four bases. A run scored returns to home plate. A player of the opposing team can stop at any of the bases and subsequently advance in the event of a serve or error by a teammate. Teams switch between the two whenever the fielding team gets three outs. A turn at bat for both teams, starting with the visiting team. The team with the most runs at the end of the game wins. Baseball Skills Baseball requires many skills involving hand-eye coordination, strength, and some speed. Throwing most likely requires the most strength due to the amount of shoulder and arm use. Be careful though when throwing from above because not using the right mechanics can ruin some ligaments in the shoulder and elbow. Hitting is another important part of the game - it requires stronger muscles in the legs and also a drop in the shoulder before bringing the club forward, the downward pull of gravity allows for greater club speed which causes the ball to go farther when hit. Running the bases requires another amount of skill: not only do you need to have a general idea of ​​where the ball is, but you also need to watch your foot and make sure you touch the bases. Fielding requires athleticism and timing, requiring an individual to move in front of the ball, tighten his glove, stand up, and then continue to throw the ball for an out. Catching in the outfield is another important part of the game: it requires great hand-eye coordination and overall body control. Pure instinct is another necessary skill, from the swing of the bat a player must be able to... middle of paper ......in the mid-1950s, the minor leagues were devastated and hundreds of disbanded semi-professional and amateur teams. Integration continued slowly: By 1953, only six of 16 major league teams had a black player. No major league team was found west of St. Louis until 1958, when the Brooklyn Dodgers and New York Giants moved to Los Angeles and San Francisco. The last all-white bastion of the majors, the Boston Red Sox, added an African-American player in 1959. In 1961, the American League went to the West Coast with the expansion team the Los Angeles Angels. Fortunately this helped Roger Maris break Babe Ruth's single-season home run record, one of the most famous marks in baseball history. Along with the Angels, three other different franchises were launched in 1961-1962. With this, the first major league growth in 60 years, each league now had ten teams.