How many stitches does a regulation baseball have?

An official baseball has 108 double stitches, sewn by hand with waxed red cotton thread. The stitches hold together the two figure-eight-shaped pieces of cowhide (earlier horsehide) that form the cover of the ball.

Specifications of a Major League Baseball (MLB) ball:

• Circumference: 9 to 9.25 inches (about 23 cm).
• Weight: 5 to 5.25 ounces (about 142-149 g).
• Core: a small cork centre surrounded by rubber, then tightly wound with layers of wool and cotton yarn, and finally covered with leather.
• The raised red seams help pitchers grip the ball and make it curve or swing through the air.

About baseball:

Baseball is played between two teams of nine players each.

A game normally has nine innings. In each inning, both teams get a turn to bat (offence) and to field (defence). A team's turn ends when three of its batters are out.

Runs are scored when a batter hits the ball and runs around the four bases (first, second, third and home plate) in order.

The field is shaped like a diamond, with bases 90 feet apart.

A "home run" is a hit that lets the batter go around all the bases, usually by hitting the ball out of the field.

Other baseball terms: pitcher, catcher, strike, ball, innings, "RBI" (run batted in), "strikeout" and "bunt".

History:

Abner Doubleday was traditionally credited with inventing baseball in 1839 at Cooperstown, New York, but historians now consider this a myth; the game developed from older bat-and-ball games. Alexander Cartwright wrote early rules in 1845.

Baseball is the national pastime of the USA and is very popular in Japan, Cuba and South Korea. It was an Olympic sport from 1992 to 2008 and in 2020, and returns at Los Angeles 2028.

Why not the other options?

• ✗96, 120 and 64 are not the number of stitches on a baseball.