baseballBy measuring the changes in the delicate balance between offense and defense, statistics also reveal much of baseball’s history on the playing field. Lengthening the pitching distance to 60 feet 6 inches (18.4 metres) in 1893 initially touched off an offensive barrage. But increasing the size of the plate in 1900, counting the first two foul balls as strikes (adopted by the National League in...The objective of the offense is to score runs by hitting fair balls out of the reach of the defense. Each team strives to advance its players around the bases to score as many runs as possible before the third out ends its half of the inning at bat.
football...in 1977—banning defensive contact with wide receivers more than five yards downfield and allowing offensive linemen to block with their open hands—returned the advantage to the passing offenses. Small, quick offensive linemen gradually disappeared, replaced by 300-pound (140-kg) hulks who could hold off charging pass rushers with their extended arms and hands. (There were eight...
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