At-bat - Definition and Overview

In baseball statistics, an at bat (AB) is used to calculate other data such as batting average. A player has an at bat every time he comes to bat except under the following circumstances:

• He receives a base on balls (BB).
• He is hit by pitch (HBP).
• He hits a sacrifice fly or a sacrifice bunt.
• He is awarded first base due to interference or obstruction.
• The inning ends while he is still at bat (due to the third out being made by a runner caught stealing, for example).

Examples

An at bat can occur when

• the batter reaches first base on a hit
• the batter reaches first base on an error
• the batter is called out for any reason
• there is a fielder's choice
• other less common circumstances occur

At bat as a phrase

"At bat," "up," "up at bat," and "at the plate" are phrases in baseball describing someone that is facing the pitcher. Interestingly, just because a player is at bat does not mean he will be given an at bat in his statistics, and in fact just signifies a plate appearance.