Double first-base bags coming to high school baseball for safety’s sake

By: Chris Harlan
Tuesday, July 8, 2025 | 7:30 PM

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No, you’re not seeing double.

High school baseball will have two first-base bags starting in 2027, a change already in use by colleges as a way to avoid injury-causing collisions.

The National Federation of State High School Associations, which writes the rulebook used by the PIAA and WPIAL, announced the move Tuesday. Starting in 2027, high school baseball fields must have two adjoining first bases straddling the baseline, one each for the fielder and runner.

The additional base is a solid, non-white color, usually orange or green.

“My first thought is it’s no big deal,” said Serra Catholic coach Brian Dzurenda, whose team won a WPIAL Class A title this spring. “It’s most likely going to lead to safer play. A couple of times a year you see that big collision at first base. Anything that can prevent injury is beneficial to the WPIAL, PIAA and all leagues in general.”

NFHS rule changes aren’t automatically adopted by the PIAA but typically are, especially one dealing with player safety.

The NCAA made the double first base optional in the regular season for college teams this spring, but it was required for all Regional, Super-Regional and College World Series games. The additional green base was easy to spot when ESPN televised the tournament last month.

Soon, it will be a part of high school baseball, too.

“Adding the double first base is symbolic to the evolution of the sport,” NFHS administrator Elliot Hopkins said in a statement. “It will immediately address running lane violations, and it will further protect the players from the violent collisions that have occurred at first base. By reducing collisions and enhancing safety, it preserves both the integrity of competition and the well-being of those who play.”

The function of the double base is simple.

In most circumstances, the fielder uses the white base while the runner goes for the solid-colored side. But there is some nuance.

According to the NFHS: “The batter-runner should use the colored base on an initial play at first base unless a fielder is drawn into foul territory to receive a dropped third strike, in which case, the batter-runner would use the white portion of the base. Once the batter-runner reaches first base, the batter-runner must always return to the white base, including when leading off, returning on a pick-off attempt or tagging up on a fly ball.”

Additionally, NFHS says a runner can safely touch either first base “on an extra-base hit to the outfield when there is no chance of a play to be made at first base.”

Valley coach Jim Basilone said he likes the NFHS decision. But he noted that it’ll take time to adjust to the new rule because it isn’t necessarily natural for players.

“It will really have to be explained to the kids because it could become confusing,” Basilone said. “When you run down the line, you’re allowed to cross the (new) base, but when you come back, you have touch the original base.”

Collisions near first base are rare but do occur.

In last year’s WPIAL finals, Avonworth coach Jeff Bywalski saw his first baseman knocked down by a runner as his team fielded a sacrifice bunt. But not all collisions can be avoided by adding another base.

“My pitcher threw the ball inside the baseline a little bit and made my first baseman reach across the line,” Bywalski said. “I’ll be honest. Even with another base, would that have prevented that play? Probably not.”

Bywalski said that collision at first was the only one he remembered in recent years but still agreed with the NFHS move to add the base.

“I don’t see (collisions) being a big problem in high school baseball, but for safety-wise, it’s probably a good idea, no doubt about it,” Bywalski said.

Norwin coach Craig Spisak said his team hadn’t had any collisions at first base but did have a few close calls. He said he was fine with the NFHS move.

“I watched the college baseball playoffs this year and saw them,” Spisak said. “I assumed it would only be a matter of time until it trickled down to the high school level.”

The NCAA announced the addition of the double first base in January.

“It was just a natural evolution of everything,” Plum coach Carl Vollmer said. “I’m kind of impressed that it didn’t take five years. It only took one for it to ripple down.”

Online sporting goods stores list varsity-quality double bases for $200 to $350. The bases won’t be needed for a couple of years, but Dzurenda said he planned to buy one soon for practice.

“These vendors better have a million of those bases in stock,” he said. “How many schools do you have in the PIAA? That’s a lot of bases.”

Besides coaching Serra Catholic, Dzurenda runs the Western Pennsylvania Fall Baseball League. He said the WPFBL might adopt the double first base this fall or next as a trial run.

“I consider myself a traditionalist,” he said. “But first and foremost, I consider myself a coach who wants safe play for the high school kids.”

Chris Harlan is a TribLive reporter covering sports. He joined the Trib in 2009 after seven years as a reporter at the Beaver County Times. He can be reached at charlan@triblive.com.