Strikeout

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In baseball and softball, a strikeout is the game situation in which the pitcher throws a strike three times , so that the opposing batsman is eliminated and is therefore “out”. In the statistics, Stri K eouts are listed as K or SO . A strikeout is indicated by the umpire (referee) by waving his hand sideways, after which the batsman is eliminated and must go back to his bench.

Under certain circumstances, the batsman can also become a baserunner despite a strikeout and is not out, because the batsman is only out if one of the following things occurs:

  • The pitcher's throw is caught directly by the catcher and is in the strike zone or is seen by the umpire in the strike zone. This also applies to a foul tip, i.e. a throw that the batsman touches and deflects with the bat, but which is still caught directly by the catcher.
  • The pitcher's throw is not caught by the catcher, or only caught after touching the ground or contact with the umpire ( Uncaught Third Strike ), the first base is already occupied by a runner and the batsman's team has not yet identified a player or a player at this point .
  • The batsman bunted foul and no infielder gets the ball before crossing the foul line.

So if there is an Uncaught Third Strike and first base is not occupied, the batsman becomes a runner and can try to reach first base without being identified. If the attacking team already has two outs, the batsman always becomes a runner, even if another player is already on first base. In this case, the player on first base must legally advance to at least second base without being identified.

classification

Strikeouts are one of three “ Triple Crown ” measures by which throwers are judged: the other two are number of wins and earned run average . While ERA in particular evaluates efficiency, strikeouts are a measure of the “KO” quality of a thrower. The record holders in these Major League Baseball statistics are currently (as of 2014) Nolan Ryan (5,714) ahead of Randy Johnson (4,875) and Roger Clemens (4,672). Peter Johnson leads the statistic "Strikeouts per nine innings" with 10.67 and threw 13.41 Ks per nine innings in the year 2001 to date, unmatched to date .

Baseball culture

In practically every baseball park, it is common for fans to wave large posters with the letter “K” to cheer their thrower on and want to encourage them to strike out. With particularly notorious strikeout pitchers such as For example, Nolan Ryan or Randy Johnson (see above), fans hang a "K" poster on the edge of the field after every strikeout and are happy when this line gets longer and longer.