March 27, 2025 was Major League Baseball’s (MLB) Opening Day, so we thought it was only fit to give you a girl’s guide to the 2025 baseball season. We understand that the game of baseball may be confusing to those just starting to get into it, but that’s why we’re here to be your baseball fairy godmothers. Here’s what you need to know:
The Positions
In baseball, there are nine players on the field at all times. There are six infield positions and three outfield positions. The infield positions include the pitcher, the catcher, first base, second base, shortstop, and third base. The outfield positions are right field, center field, and left field. There’s also the designated hitter position in the batting order. The pitcher and catcher go hand-in-hand, and the rest of the fielders— the rest of the players on the field— basically play clean up.
Pitcher: Stands on the mound and throws a variety of pitches to the catcher.
Catcher: Crouches behind home plate and receives the pitches thrown to them.
First Base: Covers the area on and around the first base. Usually has quick reflexes; they’re the players that receive throws to make outs.
Second Base: Covers the area between first and second base. Fielders are typically speedy and participate in making double plays (two outs in one play).
Shortstop: Covers area between second and third base. This player has a strong arm that’s able to reach first base, and fields quickly and precisely.
Third Base: Covers the third base area. This is the player that handles balls that are hit the hardest, and also requires a strong arm to be able to reach first base.
Right Field: Plays the outfield behind first and second base. Must be able to track the ball down while it’s in the air and catch it to make the out. Should have a strong arm to reach the infield.
Center Field: Covers the field in between the left and right fielders. This player is usually the strongest outfielder and is considered the “captain of the outfielders.”
Left Field: Plays the field behind shortstop and third base. Also must be able to track the ball down while it’s in the air and catch it to make the out. Should have a strong arm to reach the infield.
Designated Hitter (DH): This player doesn’t play the field. Since the pitcher doesn’t hit during games, that position is filled in the batting order by the designated hitter.
Walk-up music
This is arguably the most important part of the baseball game. A player’s walk-up song says a lot about them. A walk-up song is just like the name suggests: it’s a song that plays as the player walks onto the field to hit. Some players have some iconic ones, such as Aaron Judge, who walks up to “Hello” by Pop Smoke and A Boogie Wit da Hoodie (because obviously he’s the king of New York). Another notable one is Philadelphia Phillies’ shortstop Bryson Stott’s song choice, “A-O-K” by Tai Verdes. Fans are known to sing along to this song every time he comes up to bat. We both love walk-up songs so much that we have put serious thought into what our personal walk-up songs would be. It’s one of the best parts of going to a baseball game.
Stars of the Game: Who to Watch Closely
When you think of baseball, the first player that may come to mind is Judge or Shohei Ohtani. However, there are some other names that you may or may not have heard of that you should keep watch of this season.
Juan Soto (Right Field): Soto played a great season last year with the New York Yankees, with a .288 batting average (a player’s batting average is determined by dividing the amount of hits the player has gotten by their total number of times that they’ve been up to bat, equalling their success at the plate), and being a major component in getting the Yankees to the World Series last season. Since then, Soto has stayed in New York, moving from the Bronx to Queens in signing with the New York Mets, which Yankees fans weren’t too happy about. Nonetheless, he’s still a great player and someone to keep your eyes on.
Paul Skenes (Pitcher): Finishing up his rookie year last year with the Pittsburgh Pirates with a 1.96 Earned Run Average (ERA), Skenes returns for another season pitching for the Pirates. He’s definitely a name to keep an ear out for, and with only being 22 years old, he’s not going anywhere in this league anytime soon.
Mookie Betts (Shortstop/Outfield): Betts finished the 2024 season with the World Series Champions, the Los Angeles Dodgers, with a .289 batting average and 19 home runs. At the end of opening weekend, Betts is already at a .500 batting average and hit a walk-off homerun against the Detroit Lions on Saturday, March 29.
Bryce Harper (First Base): There are lots of notable names on the Philadelphia Phillies, like Nick Castellanos and Stott, but Harper is like no other. Finishing off the 2024 season with a .285 batting average and 30 home runs, the first-baseman is already on-track for that with a .308 batting average and a homerun after opening weekend.Adley Rutschman (Catcher): Catcher for the Baltimore Orioles, Rutschman is the last person that we think you should look out for this season. Finishing last season with a .250 batting average and 19 home-runs, he has already started this season with a .313 batting average and two home-runs, making him a notable name.
Torpedo Bat Controversy
The “torpedo” bat isn’t necessarily new to the game of baseball. However, the bat has gotten more attention drawn to it after the Yankees hit nine home runs in their game on Saturday, March 29 against the Milwaukee Brewers. According to CNN Sports, “The ‘torpedo’ bat – so named due to its shape resembling a torpedo – is a customized bat that tailors the barrel for each hitter.” The bats are completely legal (despite baseball fans viewing it as a way of cheating) because they oblige by the MLB bat rules, have a diameter of no more than 2.61 inches, and are not more than 42 inches long. They’re used to cater to the hitter’s “sweet spot.” For example, shortstop of the Yankees, Anthony Volpe’s, “torpedo” bat is customized to have the barrel closer to the label on his bat because that’s his “sweet spot.” Some of the other players on the Yankees using the “torpedo” bat are Jazz Chisholm Jr., Cody Bellinger, Paul Goldschmidt, and Austin Wells.
While the Yankees are who brought the “torpedo” bat to light after breaking a franchise-record with their 20-9 win over the Brewers, they aren’t the only team using the bat this season. During spring training and opening weekend, Ryan Jeffers, the catcher for the Minnesota Twins, and Junior Caminero and Yandy Díaz from the Tampa Bay Rays, have also been using the bat. According to the New York Post, “Buster Olney reported during ‘Sunday Night Baseball’ that the Braves ordered torpedo bats after the Yankees’ 20-run, nine-homer barrage on Saturday.” It seems that a lot of MLB teams are going to follow in the Yankees’ footsteps, making the “torpedo” bat something to look out for this season.
Hopefully, this guide helped you to understand the game of baseball a little better. We hope to see you at the ballpark this season! And as always, let’s go Yankees, and MUCK THE FETS!