⚾ Baseball Fun Fact of the Day
Friday, October 2, 2026
The Extra-Innings Runner
The Fact
MLB adopted a temporary extra-innings rule placing a runner on second base to start each half-inning after the ninth (introduced in 2020, later made ongoing for regular season), designed to shorten marathon games.
Why It Matters
Purists debate it, but it changed late-game strategy and bullpen usage overnight.
- Year
- 2020–present (regular season)
- Source
- MLB.com
- Difficulty
- ⭐ Casual Fan
Sourced from Baseball-Reference, MLB.com, the National Baseball Hall of Fame, SABR, Baseball Almanac, and related official histories. Come back tomorrow for a new one.