Intentional walks in baseball are used as a strategy : teams give a batter a free pass to first base to avoid letting a dangerous hitter swing and to set up a better situation for the defense.

What an intentional walk is

  • An intentional walk (IBB) is when the defense chooses to put the batter on first base on purpose instead of pitching to him normally.
  • In modern MLB, the manager can simply signal from the dugout and the batter is awarded first base without any pitches being thrown.

Main reasons they do it

  • To avoid a big hitter in a key spot, especially one likely to drive in runs or hit for power.
  • To face a weaker or more favorable matchup next (for example, a slumping hitter, a pitcher hitting, or a righty vs. righty instead of a righty vs. lefty).
  • To create force-play situations or a potential double play by putting a runner on first, especially when there is a runner on second or third and fewer than two outs.

Risks and downsides

  • You are literally giving the offense a baserunner, which goes against the defense’s goal of getting outs.
  • You can end up with the bases loaded, increasing the chance that any hit or walk brings in multiple runs.
  • Sometimes the supposedly “weaker” next hitter still comes through with a big hit, making the intentional walk look bad in hindsight.

How the rule changed recently

  • Before 2017, pitchers had to throw four balls outside the strike zone while the catcher stood up and reached out to receive them.
  • Since 2017, MLB lets managers signal the intentional walk, mainly to speed up the game by cutting out dead time; this change saves only a small amount of time per game but reflects the league’s focus on pace of play.

Why fans still debate it

  • Some fans see it as smart strategy that shows how much baseball is about probabilities, matchups, and game theory.
  • Others think it’s anti-climactic and takes the bat out of the best players’ hands, especially in big moments, which can feel unsatisfying or “cheap.”

TL;DR: Teams intentionally walk hitters to dodge dangerous bats and set up better defensive odds (like double plays), but they gamble by putting an extra runner on base and sometimes that gamble backfires.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.