What Is A Putout In Baseball?

A putout in baseball is a statistic credited to the defensive player who records the final out of a half-inning.

Definition of a putout

A putout, in baseball statistics, is given to a defensive player who records an out by a tagging a runner with the ball when he is not touching a base (a caught stealing), catching a batted or thrown ball on the fly (a flyout), or forcing a runner out by fielding a ground ball and throwing it to first base before the runner reaches base (a groundout).

How a putout is recorded

In baseball, a putout (denoted by PO or fly out) is given to a defensive player who records an out by a Tagging a runner with the ball when he is not touching a base (a tagout),
Catching a batted or thrown ball and tagging a base to put out a batter or runner (a catch),
Catching a thrown ball and tagging a base to record an out on an appeal play,
Catching a third strike (struck out),
forcing out a runner by throwing the ball to another defensive player who touches the target base before the runner arrives (a force out), or
A pitcher catching a batted ball before it touches the ground.

Types of putouts

In baseball statistics, a putout (denoted by PO or fly out when appropriate) is given to a defensive player who records an out by a Tagging a runner with the ball when he is not touching a base (a tagout),
Catching a batted or thrown ball and tagging a base to put out a batter or runner (a force out),
Catching a thrown ball and tagging a base to record an out on an appeal play,
Catching a third strike (a strikeout),
Catching a batted ball on the fly (a flyout), or
Being positioned closest to a runner when he is called out for not touching bases.

Examples of putouts

A putout, sometimes shortened to “out”, is the act of completing a play in baseball by getting the batter or baserunner out. There are three ways a batter or baserunner can be put out: they can be caught out, they can be tagged out, or they can be forced out.

-Caught out: A batter is called out if they hit a ball in the air and are caught by a fielder before it hits the ground. This can be done by a fielder in the infield or outfield.
-Tagged out: A baserunner is called out if they are touched by a fielder with the ball while not touching a base. This is most often done when a baserunner is trying to steal a base.
-Forced out: A baserunner is called out if they are forced to advance to the next base by a fielder with the ball before they have time to reach it safely. This is most often done when there is already a runner on the next base.

Situations when a putout is not recorded

In baseball statistics, a putout (denoted by PO or fly out when appropriate) is given to a defensive player who records one of the following outs:

A batter is out when:
-he hits a fair ball that he is not able to reach first base before it touched the ground,
-he bunts a ball that goes foul before passing through the infield,
-he bunts a ball that is caught by the pitcher before touching the ground,
-he hits a fly ball that is caught by an outfielder before touching the ground, or
-he hits a fly ball to an infielder who then throws to another infielder for a double play.