Why is home plate a pentagon rather than a square?
607918
Home plate began its baseball career in the nineteenth century as a twelve-inch square, set down like a diamond, with the two sides forming the beginning of the foul lines. Home is the compass by which a baseball field is set. Those foul lines extend up the foul poles and on into infinity. It's the diamond of home plate that starts them running. In the winter of 1899 the Rules Committee extended the bottom of the plate (that is, the side facing the pitcher), creating the foundation of the home plate pentagon/house. That year's Spalding Guide tells us the committee felt the pitcher was handicapped by having to "cut the corners" of the old twelve-inch square. The umpire also found it difficult to judge which pitched balls caught those corners. The guide adds that by making the front of the plate square with a width of seventeen inches, the pitcher is able to see the width of the plate better and the umpire can judge balls and strikes with less difficulty. \n\nThat was a good question so i looked it up
547889
Basically, it's to prevent unfair play by the infielders.  Without the rule, an infielder could intentionally allow the ball to hit the ground, requiring the runner(s) on base to move forward.  It would then be easy to get a double play.
1038508
As ludicrous as this may sound, baseball stadiums may be different sizes because they are allowed to be just that. There is nothing to regulate how each stadium could be built. Hence, why Fenway has the Green Monster, and Minute Maid Park has the "hill."\n\nI think MLB only does this to make it a bit more interesting. It may be kind of dull if every single stadium was the same thing. True, it is unfair, but in the end, it would suit certain players over others. The way the stadiums are built now, are built to help the home team as much as it can.\n\n**If you were to regulate the sizes of baseball stadiums, in theory, you would have to regulate the height above sea level which they are built at too as that also affects scoring.**\n\nAs for other sports with variable field sizes:\n(a) golf\n(b) racing (as in road courses, not oval tracks)\n(c) horse jumping\n(d) any extreme sport (i.e. BMX, skateboarding, etc)\n(e) professional ski and snowboard races\n\nThere are many.
1181300
It is a fielder's choice, however he may not be credited with an RBI because the defense conceded the run by throwing to second.  They could have thrown home or checked the runner.  In that situation it would appear that the defense was going for a double play.
619970
the plate is part of the field of play.  however, if the ball then enters foul territory, it is foul.  if it stayed in fair territory, it is fair.\n\nthe same goes for the bases.  if a ball hits third base, it is fair no matter where it goes after that.
376924
Home plate started as a circular iron plate, painted white, with a diameter not less than 9 inches. By the 1870s, however, home plate had become a square just like the other bases. The year 1900 saw the introduction of the five-sided home plate, with a flat side rather than a point facing the pitcher. The extra rubber made it easier for both umpires and pitchers to judge when a ball "cut the corner," especially when dirt happened to cover the corners of home plate.
692380
The plate appearance counts but the base doesn't.  the play counts the same as if the fielder did not committ the error.  So if a hitter reaches base via error, their OB% will go down.
678882
Different pitches are usually named because of the movement of the ball as it comes at the batter. The reason I say usually is because a Knuckle-ball is named for they way the pitcher throws it.\n\nWhen you see a Slider coming at you, it has a lot of speed, but the ball will fade across the plate in a pretty straight line.\n\nA Curve-ball, on the other hand, is much slower and has a definite arc in it's trajectory.\n\nAnd as long as I brought up a Knuckle-ball, that pitch is really slow and comes at you with a side to side movement, making it very hard to hit with any power.
904078
"Where's the Pentagon?"
914112
It's usually called a quadrilateral, and the total of the internal angles of a convex quadrilateral is 360º.\n\nTo figure the sum of the internal angles of any convex polygon, the formula is (n-2)*180º, so a pentagon (five sides) has 540º, a hexagon (six sides) has 720º and so forth.
489663
Reviewing the facts:\n\n1.  You're constructing a pentagon and two trapezoids by using the center of the square.  Since the sides are 1, the short parallel side of the trapezoid is 1/2.\n\n2.  Since the two trapezoids are congruent, the short parallel side is midway in the square.  So the height of each trapezoid is 1/2.\n\n3.  Since there are three areas now, and each area is equal, the area of the trapezoid is 1/3.\n\nThe area of a trapezoid is A = (1/2)h(b1 + b2).  We have everything we need now to solve for b2, the longer parallel side:\n\nA = (1/2)h(b1 + b2)\n1/3 = (1/2)(1/2)(1/2 + b2)\n1/3 = (1/4)(1/2 + b2)\n4/3 = (1/2 + b2)\nb2 = 5/6
526589
It has something to do with winning the FA Cup. I cant remember which way around it is though.\n\nIf they are square then then they have won the FA Cup.
948147
pentagon, doesn't matter the length of each side\n5-sided is pentagon
380926
Why is this question in the BASEBALL category?
420258
The above answer is WRONG.  He's looking at the wrong rule!!!\n\nHe's awarded 2nd base.  Rule 7.05(h) One base, if a ball pitched to a batter, or thrown by the pitcher\nfrom his position on the pitcher's plate to a base to catch a runner, goes into a stand or a bench, or over or through a field fence or backstop.\n\nMaybe he should read the rules instead of copying and pasting them.
1029951
It is to help with the offside calls.\n\nAs noted by at least one, usually a lot of fields use different designs for purely aesthetic reasons, including circles, diamonds, etc.   As you've noticed, there has been a marked lack of variety in the field designs for the World Cup.  Only the striped patterns are used.
138294
It would be a pentagonal pyramid because its base would have 5 edges (10 divided by 2 = 5). Prisms and pyramids are alike because with the exception of their bases, all other faces are the same shape (triangles for pyramids, rectangles for (right) prisms.