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In
baseball
Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding t ...
, an out occurs when the
umpire
An umpire is an official in a variety of sports and competition, responsible for enforcing the rules of the sport, including sportsmanship decisions such as ejection.
The term derives from the Old French nonper, ''non'', "not" and ''per'', ...
rules a
batter or
baserunner out. When a batter or runner is out, they lose their ability to score a
run and must return to the dugout until their next turn at bat. When three outs are recorded in a
half-inning
In baseball, softball, and similar games, an inning is the basic unit of play, consisting of two halves or frames, the "top" (first half) and the "bottom" (second half). In each half, one team bats until three outs are made, with the other team ...
, the batting team's turn expires.
To signal an out, an umpire generally makes a fist with one hand, and then flexes that arm either upward, particularly on pop flies, or forward, particularly on routine plays at first base. Home plate umpires often use a "punch-out" motion to signal a called strikeout.
Ways of making outs
* The most common ways batters or runners are put out are when:
** The batter
strikes out (they make three batting mistakes, known as ''strikes'', without hitting the ball into fair territory);
** The batter
flies out (they hit the ball and it is caught before landing);
** a baserunner is
tagged out (they are touched by the ball, held in an opponent's hand, while not on a base);
** a baserunner is
forced out (an opponent with the ball reaches the base the runner is forced to advance to before the runner does).
* The
batter is out when:
** Strikeout-related outs:
*** with two strikes, the batter swings at a pitched ball and misses;
[Baseball Explained by Phillip Mahony, McFarland Books, 2014. Se]
www.baseballexplained.com
*** with two strikes, they do not swing at a pitch that the umpire judges to be in the
strike zone
In baseball, the strike zone is the volume of space through which a pitch must pass in order to be called a strike even if the batter does not swing. The strike zone is defined as the volume of space above home plate and between the batter's k ...
(and the catcher
catches the ball and does not drop it);
*** with two strikes, the batter
foul tip In baseball, a foul tip is defined as "a batted ball that goes sharp and direct from the bat to the catcher and is legally caught. It is not a foul tip unless caught, and any foul tip that is caught is a strike and the ball is 'in play'."
A ''fo ...
s a pitch directly back into the catcher's mitt, and the catcher holds the ball and does not drop it;
*** with two strikes, they
bunt a pitch into
foul territory
In baseball, a foul ball is a batted ball that:
* Settles on foul territory between home and first base or between home and third base, or
* Bounces and then goes past first or third base on or over foul territory, or
* Has its first bounce occu ...
;
*** the
third strike is pitched and caught
in flight
In baseball, the rules state that a batted ball is considered in flight when it has not yet touched any object other than a fielder or his equipment. Such a ball can be caught by a fielder to put the batter out.
Once a batted ball touches the g ...
;
*** on any third strike, if a baserunner is on first and there are fewer than two outs (even when not caught);
** Outs related to the batter's box:
*** they are hit by their own fair ball, outside the
batter's box
A baseball field, also called a ball field or baseball diamond, is the field upon which the game of baseball is played. The term can also be used as a metonym for a baseball park. The term sandlot is sometimes used, although this usually refers ...
, before the ball is played by a fielder;
*** they hit a pitch while one foot is entirely outside the batter's box;
*** they step from one batter's box to the other when the pitcher is ready to pitch;
** Other ways of being out:
*** they commit
interference
Interference is the act of interfering, invading, or poaching. Interference may also refer to:
Communications
* Interference (communication), anything which alters, modifies, or disrupts a message
* Adjacent-channel interference, caused by extr ...
;
*** they
fail to bat in their proper turn and is discovered in an
appeal; or
*** they are found to have used an altered bat.
* Ways that runners can be out:
** The
batter-runner is out when:
*** a preceding runner interferes with a fielder trying to complete a double play on the batter-runner;
*** Tag-related outs:
**** a fielder with a
live ball in their possession touches first base or
tags the batter-runner before the batter-runner reaches first base (except when the batter is awarded first base, such as on a
base on balls)
**** the batter-runner does not return directly to first base after overrunning the bag and they are tagged with the ball by a fielder.
*** Flyout-related outs:
**** a batted ball is caught in flight (
fly out);
**** they hit an infield popup while the
infield fly rule applies;
**** a fielder intentionally drops a line drive with fewer than two outs in a force situation (man on first, men on first and second, men on first and third, bases loaded) in an attempt to create a double play;
** Any
baserunner, other than the batter-runner, is out when:
*** they are
forced out; that is, they fail to reach their
force base
In baseball, a force is a situation when a baserunner is compelled (or ''forced'') to vacate their starting base ( time-of-pitch base) and try to advance to the next base.
When a runner is forced to advance to a base, they are forced out if an o ...
before a fielder with a live ball touches that base;
*** a fielder catches a batted ball in flight, and subsequently, some fielder with a live ball in possession touches the runner's
time of pitch
In baseball, there are two legal pitching positions: the windup, and the set. Colloquially, the set is often referred to as "the stretch", although this term actually only refers to one part of the pitching motion when pitching from the set.
Defi ...
base before the runner
returns to it (
appeal play);
*** while they are attempting to reach home plate with fewer than two outs, the batter interferes with a fielder and such action hinders a potential tag out near home plate;
*** they are found to have committed a mockery of the game, for example, a
stolen base of first from the second; or
*** they are found to be an illegal substitute.
** Any baserunner, including the batter-runner, is out when:
*** they are tagged out; that is, touched by a fielder's hand holding a live ball while in jeopardy, such as while not touching a base;
*** they stray more than three feet (.91 meters) from their running
baseline in attempting to avoid a tag;
*** they pass a base without touching it and a member of the defensive team properly executes a
live ball appeal;
*** they pass a preceding runner who is not out;
*** they commit
interference
Interference is the act of interfering, invading, or poaching. Interference may also refer to:
Communications
* Interference (communication), anything which alters, modifies, or disrupts a message
* Adjacent-channel interference, caused by extr ...
, such as when they contact a fielder playing a batted ball, or when they contact a live batted ball before it passes a fielder other than the pitcher;
*** they are touched by a fair ball in fair territory before the ball has touched or passed an infielder. The ball is dead and no runner may score, nor runners advance, except runners forced to advance. EXCEPTION: If a runner is touching their base when touched by an infield fly, they are not out, although the batter is out;
*** they intentionally abandon their effort to run the bases after touching first base; or
*** they run the bases in reverse order in an attempt to confuse the defence or to make a travesty of the game.
Crediting outs
In baseball statistics, each out must be credited to exactly one defensive player, namely the player who was the direct cause of the out. When referring to outs credited to a defensive player, the term
putout is used. Example: a batter hits a fair ball that is fielded by the shortstop. The shortstop then throws the ball to the first baseman. The first baseman then steps on first base before the batter reaches it. For this play, only the first baseman is credited with a putout, while the shortstop is credited with an
assist
Assist or ASSIST may refer to:
Sports
Several sports have a statistic known as an "assist", generally relating to action by a player leading to a score by another player on their team:
*Assist (basketball), a pass by a player that facilitates a ba ...
. For a strikeout, the
catcher
Catcher is a position in baseball and softball. When a batter takes their turn to hit, the catcher crouches behind home plate, in front of the ( home) umpire, and receives the ball from the pitcher. In addition to this primary duty, the ca ...
is credited with a putout, because the batter is not out until the pitched ball is caught by the catcher. (If the catcher drops the third strike and has to throw the batter-runner out at the first base, the first baseman receives the putout while the catcher receives an assist.) When an out is recorded without a fielder's direct involvement, such as where a runner is hit by a batted ball, the fielder nearest to the action is usually credited with the putout.
Although pitchers seldom get credited with putouts, they are credited with their role in getting outs through various pitching statistics such as
innings pitched (a measure of the number of outs made by the pitcher, used in calculating their
ERA
An era is a span of time defined for the purposes of chronology or historiography, as in the regnal eras in the history of a given monarchy, a calendar era used for a given calendar, or the geological eras defined for the history of Earth.
Comp ...
) and
strikeouts.
Outs that occur in specific situations
Certain terms are sometimes used to better describe the circumstances under which an out occurred.
For strike outs:
* A strike out looking means that a third strike was called because the ball was in the strike zone
* A strikeout swinging refers to a swinging third strike.
For force outs and/or tag outs (outs that retire runners):
* Throw out: refers to when a throw is made to a fielder
covering a base
In baseball, part of the infielders' and pitcher's jobs is to cover bases. That is, they stand next to a base in anticipation of receiving the ball thrown from another fielder, so that they may make a play on an opposing baserunner who is ap ...
, who then uses the ball to put out a runner coming to that base.
*
Ground out: when the batter hits a ground ball that leads to them being thrown out.
For fly outs:
* Pop out: When the batter hits a
pop up (a fly ball that goes high but not far) and it is caught.
*
Line out: A
line drive
In the sports of baseball and softball, a batted ball is a pitch that has been contacted by the batter's bat. Batted balls are either fair or foul, and can be characterized as a fly ball, pop-up, line drive, or ground ball. In baseball, a fou ...
that is caught.
*
Foul out: A foul fly ball that is caught.
See also
*
Safe (baseball)
In baseball, a baserunner is safe when he reaches a base without being put out by various ways. While a runner is touching a base, he is usually not in jeopardy of being put out, and is thus "safe" from fielders' actions, such as tags. Th ...
*
Tie goes to the runner
*
Out (cricket)
In cricket, a dismissal occurs when a batter's innings is brought to an end by the opposing team. Other terms used are the batsman being out, the batting side losing a wicket, and the fielding side taking a wicket. The ball becomes dead (so no ...
Further reading
Official rules for batters, including when the batter is outOfficial rules for runners, including when the runner is out
References
{{Baseball, state=collapsed
Baseball rules
Baseball terminology