Charging the mound etiquette, not to mention dangerous, for the batter to charge the mound with a bat). Though serious injuries have occurred from charging in the past, usually fights are either broken up or joined by all other players so the conflict turns into posturing and name-calling; in baseball parlance, this is known as a rhubarb. Charging the mound is typically about responding to an indignity rather than an attempt to injure the pitcher. There is long-standing etiquette in baseball regarding what is an acceptable offense to warrant a beaning, and there are similar "unwritten rules" for charging in response to being
Little League Baseball could intentionally walk a batter by simply announcing his intent to do so and not have to actually throw any pitches. Beginning in 2008, the pitcher had to actually pitch the required four balls (which were counted against the pitch count). In 2017, the Major and Minor levels of Little League Baseball aligned with a new rule of Major League Baseball and allowed the pitcher to intentionally walk a batter simply by declaration. The intentional walk adds 4 to the pitcher's pitch count. This change rescinded a former rule in which the team at bat could decline the award of