Infield in, because the run matters more than the out

Infield in, a baseball defence drawn in Playmaker: 9 of our players and 2 opposition players on the pitch. — Pitcher — 1 of 11

Baseball · Defence · 9 of your players and 2 opponents

A runner on third in a one-run game and four infielders standing on the grass. The ground ball that was a comfortable out is now a play at the plate, and every one of them has to know it before the pitch.

Open in Playmaker

Opens on a baseball pitch with the shape already drawn. Free, no signup.

Where the four of them go

All four infielders come forward, and they do not come forward equally. First base and third base are in at about 75 ft, close enough to field a squeeze bunt and short enough to make a hitter think about it. The second baseman and the shortstop are at about 115 ft, well onto the grass and about 35 ft in front of where they normally stand.

The outfield stays deep at 285 to 300 ft, which is the part people forget to draw. Nothing about a runner on third changes what a fly ball does, and pulling the outfield in as well turns a single into a triple and the tie into a loss. The eleven figures here include the runner on third and the batter, so the whole reason for the alignment is on the same picture as the alignment itself.

The moment that calls for it

One run in the game, a runner on third, and the out is worth less than the run. Late innings, mostly, and only with an infield that can actually make the throw home under pressure.

Be honest about what you have given away. At 75 and 115 ft the fielders have far less time to react, a hard ground ball goes past them that they would have handled at standard depth, and the hole between the corner and the middle infielder is bigger than it looks from the dugout. Coaches call infield in with runners on second and third and one out and then wonder why an ordinary ground ball tied it up anyway.

What has to be decided before the pitch

Home, or first. Say it before the pitch and say it for each fielder. A fielder who charges the ball and then decides is the fielder who gets neither out.
Where the catcher stands, and who backs him up. Draw the throw home and then draw the pitcher moving behind the plate. A throw home that gets away with a runner on second is how a one-run game ends.
The slow roller. Both corners at 75 ft are there for the bunt and the dribbler. Walk the barehanded play, then draw it.

Take this into the designer, set the throw home, and animate it against the runner you have put on third — the picture will tell you whether the play was ever there.