“There is no terror in the bang, only in the anticipation of it.” -Alfred Hitchcock- I'm likely not the first person to suggest that a baseball game is like a nine-act play. Usually, it's a bit of a melodrama. Hopefully, it's never a comedic farce. Each inning is an act. The game flows from act to act and builds suspense through a series of finite events. The finite nature of the game's elements separate it from other sports and makes its form of suspense so unique. For example, the only finite element in football is that the game is over after 60 minutes of play, unless it goes into overtime. However, participants can stretch the time using timeouts. Similarly, one could argue, that the number of downs is finite, however, the downs repeat. There are only eleven players per side, but they are interchangeable, and players can reenter the game. Basketball and hockey are similar. In contrast, baseball is vastly different. Consider these finite elements: Players can’t reenter the game, once removed Hitters only hit four or five times a game The best hitter can't hit in critical situations if its not his turn Pitchers can only throw 100 pitches or so before he risks injury The most valuable commodity is outs, each team gets only 27 - three per inning It's the way teams use these finite elements throughout the game that creates the building suspense. The suspense occurs when the participants are forced to face the consequences of the plays and decisions already made. These are the times when baseball is at its best - the times when spectators are compelled to sit on the edge of their seats in anticipation of the next pitch. We should avoid anything that takes away from the chances to make the game suspenseful. Hitchcock’s Definition of Suspense Alfred Hitchcock was a wonderful storyteller the master of suspense. He always kept his viewers on the edges of their seats. This is how Hitchcock defined suspense: "We are now having a very innocent little chat. Let’s suppose that there is a bomb underneath this table between us. Nothing happens, and then all of a sudden, 'Boom!' There is an explosion. The public is surprised, but prior to this surprise, it has seen an absolutely ordinary scene, of no special consequence. Now, let us take a suspense situation. The bomb is underneath the table and the public knows it, probably because they have seen the anarchist place it there. The public is aware the bomb is going to explode at one o’clock and there is a clock in the decor. The public can see that it is a quarter to one. In these conditions, the same innocuous conversation becomes fascinating because the public is participating in the scene. The audience is longing to warn the characters on the screen: 'You shouldn’t be talking about such trivial matters. There is a bomb beneath you and it is about to explode!” The baseball game with the…