The World Baseball Softball Confederation (WBSC) published an updated version of its Official Rules of Baseball in English and Spanish, which are to be applied to all the WBSC Baseball Tournaments across the 2025 and 2026 seasons.
The Official Rules of Baseball consist of four chapters and five appendices:
Chapter One – Introduction
Chapter Two – Glossary
Chapter Three – Baseball Rules
Chapter Four – Scoring
Appendix One – WBSC Baseball World Cup Rules
Appendix Two – Umpire Video Review Protocol and Regulations
Appendix Three – Game Management and Clock Regulations
Appendix Four – Diagrams
Appendix Five – Cross-references between the WBSC Official Rules of Baseball and the Official Baseball Rule
The following are the main changes to the Official Rules of Baseball compared to the previous edition:
Chapter Three – Rule 12.7 (Obstruction), specifically Type B Obstruction (when the runner is obstructed while no play is being made on that runner). The updated version includes the addition of case 12.7.8: “A fielder cannot visually obstruct the runner.”
Chapter Four includes an update about the minimum pitching coefficients considered for the individual awards.
Appendix One includes a clarification of Rule 7.2 (Wooden Bat Regulation) on wood types (7.2.5) and colours (7.2.6).
Appendix Three includes relevant additions. Pitchers who fail to respect the clock’s limitations won’t receive a warning. The umpire will apply sanctions upon the first violation.
Except for the WBSC U-12 Baseball World Cup, the time allowed for pitching changes and the breaks between innings will increase from 90 to 120 seconds.
The WBSC Official Rules of Baseball in English are available for download here. The Spanish version is available here.
