Pesapallo

The name of the game is "Pesapallo." In Finnish, it means "baseball." Literally.

The most obvious difference between Pesapallo and what we know and love as baseball is the position of the pitcher. As illustrated in the picture, the pitcher stands a short distance away from the batter, and throws the ball up in the air so that it would land, if not hit, on the circular batter's plate. The field is also shaped differently.

As entertainingly, but somewhat unsympathetically described by Red Smith: "A Pesapallo field is a lopsided pentagon 278 feet long and 131 feet at its broadest. The pitcher stands across the plate from the batter and tosses the ball straight up like a fungo hitter. Base runners all act like Dodgers gone berserk. That is, they start for third base and then get lost. First base is just where Phil Rizzuto likes to place his bunts; in Yankee Stadium it would be between third base and the mound. If Finns didn't use chalk lines instead of fences, second base would be against the right-field wall. Third is directly opposite, on the left-field boundary. The route from there home is a dogleg to the left. The plate is a trash can cover, two feet in diameter. "

As funny as Mr. Smith's description might be, it's important to note that Pes?pallo is an established, and strategically deep sport. Here's a more respectful description of the game, its origins and geographic distribution.