Like any other sport, baseball has its own lengthy set of rules and regulations. But perhaps more so than other sports, it is also has governed by a lengthy list of unwritten rules pertaining to everything from tipping your hat to the crowd, to intentionally hitting a batter with a pitch.
Protecting Your Hitters
Baseball pitchers are expected to protect their teammates. When a batter is hit by a pitch and it's believed to be intentional, the pitcher on his team is expect to return the favor by striking an opposing batter with a pitch. This practice is known as a "bean ball."
Running Across the Diamond
Some consider the pitcher's mound a sanctuary, one that no opposing player may enter. In 2010, for instance, Oakland A's pitcher Dallas Braden berated New York Yankees slugger Alex Rodriguez for crossing over the mound on his way back to first base.
Tipping Your Cap
When a player has had a great game or has hit a home run, often the fans will cheer or give an extended standing ovation. In such cases, the player is expected to step out of the dugout and take off his cap, tipping it to the crowd in acknowledgment.
Showing Up the Umpire
Baseball players are not supposed to argue balls and strikes with the home plate umpire. When they do, however, they're expected to do so in a subtle manner. It's an unwritten rule that players don't intentionally show up umpires by demonstratively arguing pitch calls.
Running Out Ground Balls and Fly Balls
Baseball is a game of hustle, and not hustling is considered an affront to the sport. Even when it's near certain a player won't reach first base safely, he's expected to run hard until the out is recorded.
Stealing Signs
Baseball players often steal signs used by opponents in an effort to gain an advantage. But this argument has two sides, and some athletes -- especially on lower levels of play -- feel an unwritten rule prohibits such activity.
Breaking Up Double Plays
It's acceptable to intentionally slide into a second baseman or shortstop in an effort to keep him from throwing to first base and completing a double play. But an unwritten rule says you don't slide into the base with your cleats high in an effort to injure the opponent.
Brawls
Sometimes a bean ball can lead to a fight, usually at the pitcher's mound. While fighting is discouraged in the rulebook, the unwritten rule says that when a fight does flare up, you must race in to protect your teammates during the brawl.
Don't Rub It
Being hit by a pitch hurts, regardless of what part of your body is struck. But despite the natural urge to soothe yourself, the unwritten rules state that rubbing it is a sign of weakness. You're expected to keep a stiff upper lip and run to first base, with no massaging.
Don't Show Up Your Teammates
Fielding errors happen, and sometimes they determine the outcome of the game, which can be especially frustrating for a pitcher who has done his job, only to have a teammate botch the play. Still, the pitcher is expected to keep it inside and not show up his teammate via either verbal or nonverbal expressions of frustration.
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