Brain Baseball

Free Online Version

Brain Baseball was originally released in August 1998 as a limited-edition game, made with leftover bid cards from a poorly sorted print run of Give Me The Brain. While this version isn't quite the same, it's close enough for those who didn't get the chance to buy the original. And you can play it with a standard deck of cards.

What you need:

• Players: 3-7
• Playing Time: 20 Min.
• A deck of playing cards with no Jokers.

How to Play:

The cards in the deck are worth their face value, with Jacks being 11 points, Queens 12, and Kings 13. Aces are low (1 point) except when used as Fielding cards, in which case they are worth 15. Deuces are also high in Fielding, and are then worth 14 points.

To begin, shuffle the deck and deal a hand of seven cards to each player. Play will consist of several rounds, or "tricks," each of which involves a pitch, a swing, and a catch. Each complete set of tricks is called an "inning." After the inning is over, the deal passes to the left, and the game ends when each player has dealt one inning.

Pitching: The trick begins with a Pitch. The Dealer pitches the first trick of each Inning, and subsequent pitches are thrown by whoever wound up with the last ball. The Pitcher plays one card from his hand face up on the table. This card is the "ball."

Hitting: Starting on the Pitcher's left, everyone but the Pitcher gets one chance to swing at the ball. They do this by playing a card that is equal to or lower than the value of the ball, but higher than any hits which have been played so far. For example, if the ball was a 7, and a 4 has been played, the only legal remaining swings are 5, 6, and 7. Taking a Swing is always optional, even if you have the card.

The closest swing, without going over, hits the ball. Put the ball in front of the Hitter, and discard all the Hit cards. If the ball is never hit, it is a "Strike." In this case, the Pitcher keeps the ball for points, and pitches again immediately.

Important Rule: If a player ever throws three strikes in a row, he wins the game!

Fielding: Once a ball has been hit, every player except the hitter gets one chance to catch the ball, starting with the player on the hitter's left. Like swinging, Fielding is always optional.

To catch the ball, you must play the highest card, in much the same way as you did while hitting. The only difference is that, in fielding, higher is always better. The first fielding card must be equal to or higher than the value of the ball, and subsequent cards must be higher than the last catch played.

Note: In Fielding, and only in Fielding, the Ace and 2 may be played as 15 and 14 points respectively.

If no one catches a ball that was hit, then the Hitter keeps the ball, and makes the next pitch. If the ball is caught, then the fielder keeps the ball, and throws the next pitch.

Ending the Inning: The inning continues until only one player has any cards left. In other words, when the next-to-last player plays his last card, this will be the last round of the inning. Every ball is now worth its base value in points. Record your scores and reshuffle the deck.

If the Pitch ever comes to a player who has no cards, it simply passes to their left.

Gambling variation: To play this as a gambling-style game, play each inning as a separate hand, with a rotating deal. Each time a player makes a pitch, he must add one dollar to the pot for each point in the pitch. Whoever wins the inning takes the pot.

Notes: You will notice right away that there's not much incentive to swing at a ball. You will only do so to prevent the pitcher from getting another strike, or if you're taking a chance that no one will bother to catch it.

Return to the list of Free Games