How to Keep a Baseball Score Book

Keeping score of a baseball game with a typical scorebook can be a daunting task to the uninitiated person who is not familiar with how the process is done. But this can be an enjoyable hobby once you understand the various abbreviations and how the different plays are designated.

Instructions

  1. How to Keep a Baseball Scorebook

    • 1

      Find the area on the scoresheet where you enter the information pertaining to the team's names, the date of the contest, the umpires' names, the attendance and the weather conditions. This is normally on the top of the page. Fill in these areas with the correct information before the game starts.

    • 2

      Fill in the batters' names on the side of the scoresheet for each team. Write the names in the proper order once the batting order for the game has been announced. Also write the position the player will be playing next to the name. Numbers are assigned to each position on the field. The pitcher is 1, while the catcher is 2. The first baseman is 3, the second baseman is 4, the third baseman is 5 and the shortstop is 6. The left fielder is 7, the center fielder is 8 and the right fielder is 9.

    • 3

      Enter all pitching information in the appropriate spaces. This is typically at the bottom of the page and has enough room for the starting pitchers' names and those of any relievers.

    • 4

      Learn the abbreviations that represent the happenings in a game. Hits are marked as 1B for a single, 2B for a double, 3B for a triple and HR for a home run. Strikeouts are denoted with a K for a swinging strikeout and a backward K for a called third strike. A walk is designated by BB. Other abbreviations such as WP for a wild pitch and PB for a passed ball must be also remembered.

    • 5

      Use the small diamond-shaped boxes next to each player's name to be able to show how far a player advances when the batter gets on base. If a player gets a single, for example, you would write 1B in the box and draw a line on the small diamond from home to first. Draw a line to each base a player reaches during an inning and fill in the diamond if he scores a run.

    • 6

      Utilize these numbers to show how a player makes an out. For instance, a groundball to the shortstop that is fielded and thrown to first is written 6-3 in the appropriate box corresponding to the player's name and the inning during which he batted. Flyballs are written as F followed by the number of the player who caught the ball. Players reaching on errors are shown doing so with an E followed by the number of the position that made the miscue.

    • 7

      Keep track of the balls and strikes in the spaces provided. Use a pencil to black out the "S" for a strike and the "B" for a ball. Recap all the pitching and batting statistics when the time comes. Pitchers who leave the game can have their numbers added up and written in the correct boxes, with stats such as hits and runs allowed, strikeouts, walks and earned runs allowed being calculated. Once the game ends, write what each batter accomplished, such as times at bat, hits, runs and runs batted in the appropriate spots.