In baseball

Baseball

Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each. The aim is to score runs by hitting a thrown ball with a bat and touching a series of four bases arranged at the corners of a ninety-foot diamond...

 statistics

Baseball statistics

Statistics play an important role in summarizing baseball performance and evaluating players in the sport.Since the flow of a baseball game has natural breaks to it, and normally players act individually rather than performing in clusters, the sport lends itself to easy record-keeping and statistics...

, an error is the act, in the judgment of the official scorer

Official scorer

In the game of baseball, the official scorer is a person appointed by the league to record the events on the field, and to send the official scoring record of the game back to the league offices...

, of a fielder misplaying a ball in a manner that allows a batter

Batting (baseball)

In baseball, batting is the act of facing the opposing pitcher and trying to produce offense for one's team. A batter or hitter is a person whose turn it is to face the pitcher...

 or baserunner to reach one or more additional bases, when such an advance would have been prevented given ordinary effort by the fielder.

The term error can also refer to the play in which an error was committed.

An error does not count as a hit but still counts as an at bat for the batter unless, in the scorer's judgment, the batter would have reached first base safely but one or more of the additional base(s) reached was the result of the fielder's mistake. In that case, the play will be scored both as a hit (for the number of bases the fielders should have limited the batter to) and an error. However, if a batter is judged to have reached base solely because of a fielder's mistake, it is scored as a "hit on error," and treated the same as if a batter was put out, hence lowering his batting average.

Similarly, a batter does not receive credit for an RBI when runs score on an error, unless the scorer rules that a run would have scored even if the fielder had not made a mistake. For example, if a batter hits a ball to the outfield for what should be a sacrifice fly

Sacrifice fly

In baseball, a sacrifice fly is a batted ball that satisfies four criteria:* There are fewer than two outs when the ball is hit.* The ball is hit to the outfield....

 and the outfielder drops the ball for an error, the batter will still receive credit for the sacrifice fly and the run batted in.

If a play should have resulted in a fielder's choice

Fielder's choice

In baseball, fielder's choice is a term used to refer to a variety of plays involving an offensive player reaching a base due to the defense's attempt to put out another baserunner, or the defensive team's indifference to his advance...

 with a runner being put out and the batter reaching base safely but the runner is safe due to an error, the play will be scored as a fielder's choice, with no hit being awarded to the batter and an error charged against the fielder.

Passed ball

Passed ball

In baseball, a catcher is charged with a passed ball when he fails to hold or control a legally pitched ball that, with ordinary effort, should have been maintained under his control. When, as a result of this loss of control, the batter or a runner on base advances, the catcher is thereby charged...

s and wild pitch

Wild pitch

In baseball, a wild pitch is charged against a pitcher when his pitch is too high, too short, or too wide of home plate for the catcher to control with ordinary effort, thereby allowing a baserunner, perhaps even the batter-runner on strike three or ball four, to advance.A wild pitch usually...

es are separate statistical categories and are not scored as errors.

If a batted ball were hit on the fly into foul territory, with the batting team having no runner(s) on base, and a fielder misplayed such ball for an error, it is possible for a team on the winning side of a perfect game

Perfect game

A perfect game is defined by Major League Baseball as a game in which a pitcher pitches a victory that lasts a minimum of nine innings and in which no opposing player reaches base. Thus, the pitcher cannot allow any hits, walks, hit batsmen, or any opposing player to reach base safely for any...

 to commit at least one error, yet still qualify as a perfect game.

There is a curious loophole in the rules on errors for catchers. If a catcher makes a "wild throw" in an attempt to prevent a stolen base and the runner is safe, the catcher is not charged with an error even if it could be argued that the runner would have been put out with "ordinary effort." There is therefore a "no fault" condition for the catcher attempting to prevent a steal. However, when considering that the majority of stolen base attempts are successful (around 2 successes per failure), this "no fault rule" is understandable due to the extreme difficulty of throwing out runners. If the runner takes an additional base due to the wild throw, an error is charged for that advance. However, if the catcher's glove is hit by the bat, it is counted as a catcher's interference and the catcher is given an error unless the batter gets a hit off the play.

Statistical significance

Traditionally, the number of errors was a statistic used to quantify the skill of a fielder. Research has shown that the error rate is higher when the quality of fielding is suspect, i.e., the performance of an expansion team in its first year, or the fielding done by replacement players during World War II, and is lower when playing conditions are better, e.g. on artificial turf and during night games.

However, fans and analysts have questioned the usefulness and significance of errors as a metric for fielding skill. Notably, mental misjudgments, such as failure to cover a base or attempting a force out

Force out

Force out may mean* Force play in baseball, causing an out* 401#Force-out, a provision allowing employers to close low-balance 401 retirement accounts of former employees...

 when such a play is not available, are not considered errors.

A more subtle, though more significant objection to the error, as sabermetricians

Sabermetrics

Sabermetrics is the specialized analysis of baseball through objective, empirical evidence, specifically baseball statistics that measure in-game activity. The term is derived from the acronym SABR, which stands for the Society for American Baseball Research...

 have noted, is more conceptual. In order for a fielder to be charged with an error, he must have done something right by being in the correct place to be able to attempt the play. A poor fielder may "avoid" many errors simply by being unable to reach batted or thrown balls that a better fielder could successfully reach. Thus, it is possible that a poor fielder will have fewer errors than an otherwise better fielder.

In recent times, official scorers have made some attempt to take a fielder's supposed "extraordinary" effort or positioning into account when judging whether the play should have been successful given ordinary effort. However, this still leaves statistics, such as fielding percentage

Fielding percentage

In baseball statistics, fielding percentage, also known as fielding average, is a measure that reflects the percentage of times a defensive player properly handles a batted or thrown ball...

, that are based on errors as a dubious way to compare the defensive abilities of players.

Statistical records for errors

In Major League Baseball

Major League Baseball

Major League Baseball is the highest level of professional baseball in the United States and Canada, consisting of teams that play in the National League and the American League...

, Herman Long holds the Major League records with 1096 errors in his career between 1889 and 1904. Bill Dahlen

Bill Dahlen

William Frederick Dahlen , nicknamed "Bad Bill" for his ferocious temperament, was an American professional baseball player and manager. He played as a shortstop in Major League Baseball for four National League teams from to...

, Deacon White

Deacon White

James Laurie "Deacon" White was an American baseball player who was one of the principal stars during the first two decades of the sport's professional era...

 and Germany Smith

Germany Smith

George J. "Germany" Smith was an American Major League Baseball player from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. He played primarily shortstop for five different teams spanning 15 seasons. He made his major league debut for Altoona Mountain City of the Union Association in...

 are the only other players to make 1000 errors during their MLB careers. All of these players played at least one season before 1900. The 20th century record is held by Rabbit Maranville

Rabbit Maranville

Walter James Vincent Maranville , better known as Rabbit Maranville due to his speed and small stature , was a Major League Baseball shortstop. At the time of his retirement in 1935, he had played in a record 23 seasons in the National League, a mark which wasn't broken until 1986 by Pete Rose...

 with 711 errors. The leader among active players is Miguel Tejada

Miguel Tejada

Miguel Odalis Tejada was a Major League Baseball infielder who has played for the San Francisco Giants, the San Diego Padres, the Houston Astros, the Baltimore Orioles and the Oakland Athletics...

 with 262 errors over 2028 career games as of the end of 2010. Second among active players is Édgar Rentería

Edgar Rentería

Edgar Enrique Rentería Herazo , nicknamed "The Barranquilla Baby," is a Colombian professional baseball shortstop. He throws and bats right-handed. Previously, he has played for the Florida Marlins, the St...

with 259 errors as of the end of the 2010 season.