Editing Pinch runner (section)

==={{visible anchor|Courtesy runner}}s===
Between 1877 and 1949, major-league teams occasionally used "courtesy runners" in addition to pinch runners.<ref name=retro/> A baserunner that had to leave the game temporarily, due to injury or an equipment issue, could be replaced by a courtesy runner. The courtesy runner could be a player who had not yet appeared in the game (in which case, the courtesy runner could still be used later as a substitute) or could be a player already in the game (in which case, that player's position in the batting order was not affected). The player who had to leave was free to rejoin the game when his team returned to the field defensively, although in some cases, an injury proved to be serious enough that he was replaced by a substitute. The last use of a courtesy runner in the major leagues was in 1949.<ref name=retro>{{cite web|url=http://retrosheet.org/courtesy.htm |title=Courtesy Runners |website=[[Retrosheet]] |access-date=August 13, 2024}}</ref>

An example of a courtesy runner occurred in a game between the [[Detroit Tigers]] and [[St. Louis Browns]] during the {{mlby|1944}} season, on August 31.<ref name=outlaw/> In the second inning, Detroit right fielder [[Jimmy Outlaw]] was hit in the head by a pitch, leaving him temporarily unconscious.<ref name=DailyNews>{{cite news |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/daily-news-tigers-rally-tops-browns/153249747/ |title=Tigers' Rally Tops Browns |newspaper=[[New York Daily News]] |page=41 |date=September 1, 1944 |accessdate=August 14, 2024 |via=newspapers.com}}</ref> With permission of the St. Louis manager,<ref name=DailyNews/> Detroit first baseman [[Rudy York]], who had made the first out of the inning, ran for Outlaw.<ref name=outlaw/> After Detroit finished batting that half-inning, both Outlaw (who had "recovered shortly")<ref name=DailyNews/> and York returned to their defensive positions and played the rest of the game.<ref name=outlaw>{{cite web |url=https://www.retrosheet.org/boxesetc/1944/B08310SLA1944.htm |title=Detroit Tigers 4, St. Louis Browns 3 |date=August 31, 1944 |website=[[Retrosheet]] |accessdate=August 13, 2024}}</ref>

The Official Rules used by MLB now forbid courtesy runners.<ref>{{cite book |title=Official Baseball Rules |date=2023 |page=54 |section=Rule 5.10(e) |url=https://img.mlbstatic.com/mlb-images/image/upload/mlb/wqn5ah4c3qtivwx3jatm.pdf |publisher=Office of the Commissioner of Baseball |isbn=978-1-63727-284-8 |via=mlbstatic.com |quote=Comment: This rule is intended to eliminate the practice of so-called courtesy runners. |accessdate=August 13, 2024}}</ref>