MLB batters strike out roughly 23% of the time. They put the ball in play almost 68 percent of the time, with 10 percent resulting in pop-ups and 37 percent in grounders. Yes, Virginia, in 55 percent of their plate appearances, MLB batters are now producing free outs, in which the defense needs to do practically nothing.
That's more than enough for them to be considered a potent offensive weapon, as they lead the league in home runs with 231. The next highest total is 174, by the Boston Red Sox.
Even though they hit fewer home runs than you might think (second lowest total on record), it's still possible for a team to score many more runs than that if all they did was hit home runs. And that's exactly what has happened: Despite hitting just.200 average overall, the Baltimore Orioles are first in the AL with 721 RBI, while the Chicago White Sox, who hit just.227, are second with 627. Both teams have many more men on base than that!
So, how often do pitchers get credit for wins? According to baseball-reference.com, there have been years when that has happened more than expected, but not very often. In fact, only about 5% of games end in a pitcher's victory over the last 100 seasons. The main reason is that starting pitchers tend to give up hits and walks, which can lead to scoring opportunities for your opponents.
Average MLB pitchers throw 62 percent of strikes, whereas better pitchers throw 65 percent of the time, for a strike-to-ball ratio of around 2:1. According to FanGraphs.com, 717,053 pitches were thrown in MLB in 2009. Of those, 269,484 (38%) were declared balls, while 447,569 (62%) were called strikes. Thus, overall, about 6 out of 10 pitches are strikes, which is similar to other major sports.
This means that about one out of every two batters gets to hit, which is typical for baseball. A batter's average life in MLB is around 600 plate appearances (PA). In other words, if you make it through your entire career with one team, then you've seen almost all of them play ball in MLB.
In addition, there are about 5,000 pitches per season in MLB, so about 20% of games will have at least one pitch within any given batter's range.
Finally, 27% of players last more than five seasons in MLB, so there are many opportunities to get into games.
Overall, then, about one out of every three pitches is a strike, and about one out of every two batters gets to hit. That's not very often, so take advantage of it when it does happen!
There is no defined amount of foul balls that constitute an out in baseball, including Major League Baseball. If you have two strikes, you may rely on foul balls to keep you alive until the "(fowl) chickens come home to roost." In 16-inch softball, however, if you have two strikes and hit a foul ball, you are out.
In the Major Leagues, if you are ahead in the count when the umpire calls "foul," the batter can choose not to take first base (or any base for that matter). If he does not, the batter is considered out.
In the Minor Leagues, if you are ahead in the count when the umpire calls "foul," the batter must take first base (or any other base) unless he wants to be put out. If he does not, he will be called out by default. This rule exists so that children cannot refuse to go to school just because they do not want to leave their favorite playground area yet still advance the game. In the Minors, if you fail to move after being called out, the next batter gets a free pass until someone else is due up.
In the Majors, if you are behind in the count when the umpire calls "foul," the batter has the option of taking first base or not. If he chooses not to, he is considered out.
A ground ball is struck on around 45 percent of batted balls. On around 34% of batted balls, a fly ball is hit. In 2015, the league average was 1.32. The league average HR/F ratio was 11% last season. A good ground-ball to fly-ball ratio is important because it means less damage is done by way of home runs.
Generally, if you want more power, go with a higher fly ball percentage; if you want better defense, go with a lower ground ball percentage. There are exceptions (such as when one outlier player dominates either category), but that's generally how it works.
There are many factors that go into determining a batter's ground-ball or fly-ball percentage. Weight plays a role: Heavy hitters tend to be more fly-ball oriented while lighter hitters have more power from the ground. So, if you have the opportunity, try to match up against a heavier hitter. Also consider the weather: If it's dry or not, hot or cold, overcast or sunny, those factors can influence what kind of ball players see and swing at.
Finally, make sure you're keeping track of the correct statistics. Grounders don't need to be touched by a fielder to count as a ground ball, so long as they aren't hits or flies.
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