The Official Professional Baseball Rules Book governs all aspects of the game of Major League Baseball beyond what happens on the field of play. There are a number of sources for these rules, but they all ultimately are sanctioned by the Office of the Commissioner of Baseball. Examples of these rules are the Rule 5 draft (so-named for the applicable section of the rule book) and the injured list. Other examples include:
The Official Professional Baseball Rules Book is organized into the following sections:
The below sections enumerate the numbered Major League Rules, both before and after Major League Baseball reorganized the minor leagues in advance of the 2021 season, as multiple rules were changed at that time.
As most rules do not state what the penalty is for a violation, broad discretion is granted to the Commissioner of Baseball via Rule 50, "Enforcement of Major League Rules", which specifies "action consistent with the commissioner’s powers under the Major League Constitution".[1]
The Major League Rules begin with a note stating that whenever a provision of any of its rules conflicts with a provision in the Basic Agreement (collective bargaining agreement) negotiated with the Major League Baseball Players Association, the provision in the Basic Agreement "shall in all respects control".
Source:[2]
The Rules are followed by an Acceptance; "The foregoing ... have been duly accepted by the Major League Clubs and the Leagues of the National Association."
There are then Attachments to the Rules (numbers refer back to Rule # above):
Source:[3]
The Rules are followed by an Acceptance; "The foregoing ... have been duly accepted by the Major League Clubs."
There are then Attachments to the Rules (numbers refer back to Rule # above):