In baseball, to “record a hit” means that a batter successfully reaches at least first base after hitting the ball, without any errors by the defensive team. This can occur in a few different ways:
- Single: The batter hits the ball and is able to reach first base safely.
- Double: The batter hits the ball and reaches second base.
- Triple: The batter hits the ball and reaches third base.
- Home Run: The batter hits the ball out of the playing field in fair territory and rounds all the bases to score.
A hit is officially recorded when the ball is hit into fair territory and the batter reaches base without being put out. If the ball is hit but caught by a fielder before it touches the ground, or if the batter is tagged out while trying to reach a base, it does not count as a hit.
In the official scoring of a baseball game, a hit is denoted in the scorebook and contributes to a player’s batting average, which is a key statistic for measuring a player’s offensive performance. The calculation for batting average is the number of hits divided by the number of at-bats, with the result typically expressed as a three-digit decimal (e.g., .300).
Recording a hit is a fundamental aspect of offensive strategy in baseball, as it allows a team to advance runners and ultimately score runs.