Baseball Scorekeeping: Beginner Basics

The Scorecard Layout

A baseball scorecard has a diamond for each inning with spaces for all nine batters. Each diamond represents one at-bat for that batter.

Common Symbols

• 1B, 2B, 3B, HR: single, double, triple, home run
• K: strikeout (backward K for looking)
• BB: base on balls (walk)
• F followed by position number: fly out
• Ground out: position numbers of the fielders involved (e.g., 6-3)

Position Numbers

Pitcher is 1, catcher is 2, first base is 3, second base is 4, third base is 5, shortstop is 6, left field is 7, center field is 8, right field is 9.

Tracking Runners

Draw lines from base to base to show how runners advance. Circle the base when a runner scores. This creates a visual record of every run scored.

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