Regulation Game

 What is a Regulation Game?

A regulation game, or official game, is a rulebook term for a game that reaches a final result and is counted towards the MLB standings.

How many innings in a baseball game that is considered official? Although usually the answer is nine, there are some other answers. Obviously, games that go to extra innings can count as official, even though they have more than nine.

More importantly, a game can end early due to weather but still count as official. A game becomes “official” after 4 1/2 innings when the home team leads, after 5 innings if either the game is tied or the road team leads or, finally, upon the home team assuming the lead in the bottom of the 5th. No matter what happens after that point, the statistics accumulated and the result of the game will be counted

How is the term Regulation Game used?

Regulation games are used to determine the standings and statistics for a season. If a game is called before a game becomes “official,” then neither the final score nor the stats count. On the other hand, if it is called in the seventh, the stats enter the record and the game counts for the season’s standings.

The umpire has a great deal of discretion here, in terms of deciding whether to call a game and whether to count a game. Additionally, the umpire may rule a forfeit if they decide that the losing team is intentionally stalling to prevent an unofficial game from turning into an official loss.

When does a game officially become a Regulation Game?

As mentioned above, a game becomes “official” after 4 1/2 innings when the home team leads, after 5 innings if either the game is tied or the road team leads or, finally, upon the home team assuming the lead in the bottom of the 5th

Regulation Game Examples

Here is an example of a Regulation Game that ended before nine innings were completed:

Toronto Blue Jays vs Kansas City Royals Box Score: April 25, 2024

Interesting Regulation Game Stats

In many cases, a player could lose stats due to compiling them in a game that is not considered official. Our friends at Retrosheet have compiled an interesting list of home runs that were lost to games being called before becoming official.

See the list on Retrosheet.

Filed under Terms