Thanks To Beep Baseball, Visually Impaired People Can Now Play Baseball

• In the game of beep baseball, the most important sense to be used is the sense of hearing.
• The number of bases, innings and strikes have been modified to cater to the visually impaired.
• Just like traditional baseball, it also has a World Series where the visually impaired from all over the world can play and participate.

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Pasadena Panther’s player, Jason Esterhuizen, summarizes how ‘beep baseball’ includes the visually impaired in the game: “Usually as a visually-impaired person, you’re sitting on the sidelines and just cheering on, because you don’t have the chance to play basketball, or play football, but now that I’ve found this sport, I’m included.”

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And people who have only learned about the game would certainly ask, how come I do not know this game existed?  How did I not know that in 1976, the National Beep Baseball Association (NBBA) in the United States was organized?

How is the game played?

Beep baseball is a modified version of regular baseball. 

But the most important sense being used here is sound. Players need to use their hearing for defending their bases.  They need to know when a player is running toward them.

Instead of the usual three bases, there are only two bases that are 4 to 5 feet tall. When the batter hits the ball, the bases will start beeping for runners to follow their location.

Only the catcher and the pitcher are the team’s sighted players, the rest of the six players are visually impaired.  But they wear dark glasses to get rid of vision advantage.

Zone numbers are called out by sighter volunteer spotters.  And instead of nine, there are six innings and four strikes are allowed.

And just like the usual baseball, beep baseball also has a World Series.  From the City of Beaumont, Texas website, the beep baseball World Series “includes 37 teams throughout the United States, Taiwan, Canada, and the Dominican Republic. The world series is one of the most notable sporting events for the NBBA that gives all teams the opportunity to meet and compete.”

Beep Baseball has paved the way for traditional sports to include people who have always wanted to participate in traditional games but have not been given the chance to.

And now we wonder what sport would be next? 

Source: Inspire More