Why, in baseball, do we run the bases counter-clockwise?

I guess, cause most people are right handed and bat like that, thus it would be natural to run in that direction?

Total guess here, but I’m assuming most people are right handed 70 to 95% according this, since you are already facing right you’d want to start running that way.

lol

We were typing at the same time, you beat me though. :)

One might better ask: Why do clocks always go in what we now call “clockwise” order?

I think that’s the arbitrary decision. Baseball running order has a physical reason, as given by @limeaide and @oratio

@MrItty True. I assume clockwise order originates with the sundial and the suns movement.

@oratio is correct. Clocks turn clockwise because of the sundial.

@oratio @limeaide both seem to have the right idea, IMO

What I’m wondering is why it’s called clock wise .. I’ll never understand English completely. God Bless alternative languages.

Because they are running outside of the space time continuum. If we ran clockwise, the fabric of space time would rip, destroying the entire universe.

There was a recent question about wordswise and wisewise but I am too rushed activitywise to find it. Maybe @Jeruba, who is, indeed, wise, can find it.

If clockwise is based on the sundial, and we run bases counter-clockwise, then which direction do they run the bases in the southern hemisphere?

@robmandu They run clockwise backwards.

Upside-downwise?

Huh. Thanks, @oratio and @critter1982. I probably should have realized that.

Leftside-underside-diagonalwise?

This is just pushing the question a bit further back into history, but the general idea of baseball derives from the very old British game of “rounders”, which uses a similar playing field who’s bases are run in the same direction.

Because if a batter were to run the bases clockwise he’d be out.