Guides · Judgment call

Hit or error

The batter is safe. Did he earn it, or did the defense give it to him? It’s the hardest call in the book because it’s a judgment about what should have happened.

The test

Would a fielder of average skill at that position, in that league, have made the out with ordinary effort? If yes, it’s an error. If no, it’s a hit. When it’s genuinely close, the batter gets the benefit of the doubt (Rule 9.05, comment).

Notice what the test is not. It isn’t whether the fielder touched the ball, how hard he tried, or whether the play looked bad.

It can be an error even if nobody touched the ball

A routine grounder through the shortstop’s legs, or a catchable fly that drops between two fielders, is an error if ordinary effort would have made the out (Rule 9.12(a)(1)). Charge the fielder who should have made the play.

The reverse: a ball no fielder could reach with ordinary effort is a hit, even if it hit a glove on the way by.

It’s not an error just because the throw was late

Slow handling without a misplay isn’t an error. A shortstop who fields cleanly and throws accurately but too late to beat the runner gave up a hit (Rule 9.12(a)(1), comment). An error needs a misplay: a bobble, a drop, a bad throw.

Mental mistakes aren’t errors

Throwing to the wrong base, or a pitcher failing to cover first, is a mistake but not an error by itself (Rule 9.12(a)(1), comment). If the mental mistake leads to a physical misplay, like a throw into the dugout, that misplay is the error.

Throws: whose error?

• The throw is off target and a runner who would have been out is safe: error on the thrower (Rule 9.12(a)(5)).
• The throw is on target and the receiver drops it or doesn’t touch the base: error on the receiver (Rule 9.12(a)(1), (3) and (4)).
• A good throw wouldn’t have gotten the out anyway: no error for the bad throw, unless it lets a runner take an extra base (Rule 9.12(d)(2)).
• Fielding or throwing. Official scorers record which kind. A bobble or a drop is a fielding error; a bad throw is a throwing error. E6 throwing and E6 fielding are different calls in Tough Call’s grade, though GameChanger doesn’t ask.

Never an error

• A walk, a hit batter, or a batter who reaches on a wild pitch or passed ball (Rule 9.12(e)).
• Runners advancing on a wild pitch, passed ball, or balk (Rule 9.12(f)).
• A fielder who misplays the ball but still recovers in time to force a runner out (Rule 9.12(d)(4)).

How to score it

Hit

1B, 2B, 3B. If an error lets the batter take an extra base after a clean hit, score the hit and the error separately: 1B, then E8 for the extra base.

Reached on error

E plus the position: E6, E5. The batter is charged with an at-bat and no hit.

Examples

Calibrate to your league

“Ordinary effort” is measured against an average player in that league. In Tough Call, the answer key is an MLB official scorer judging MLB fielders, so the bar is high. At a 12U game, the same ball might reasonably be a hit. Practice the reasoning here, then apply your league’s level.

Tough Call marks many hit-or-error plays as judgment calls: if you land on the other side of a close one, it doesn’t count against your streak.

Rules cited are from MLB’s Official Baseball Rules, Rule 9.05 (Base Hits) and Rule 9.12 (Errors). Your league’s rulebook governs your games.