Strikeout

A baseball out recorded when a batter accumulates three strikes during a plate appearance. It ends the batter’s turn and is credited to the pitcher.

Strike zone: The area over home plate where a pitch must pass to be called a strike when the batter does not swing. A called third strike depends on whether the pitch crosses this defined area.
Strikeout rate: The percentage of a batter’s plate appearances that end in strikeouts, or a pitcher’s batters faced that end in strikeouts. This rate measures how often strikeouts occur relative to opportunities.
Groundout: An out made when a batter hits a ground ball that is fielded and retired under the rules. A groundout retires the batter through contact rather than three strikes.
Sammy Sosa: An American baseball outfielder who hit 609 major-league home runs and struck out 1,815 times. His career illustrates how high power production can accompany frequent strikeouts.
Foul ball: A batted ball that lands outside fair territory or otherwise meets baseball’s foul-ball rules. Most foul balls add a strike only until the count reaches two.
Strikeout-to-walk ratio: A pitching statistic comparing a pitcher’s strikeouts with the walks they issue. It weighs a pitcher’s ability to retire batters against their control.
Flyout: An out made when a fielder catches a batted ball in flight before it touches the ground. A flyout is a caught ball; a strikeout requires no batted ball.
Nolan Ryan: An American major-league pitcher who recorded 5,714 strikeouts, the career record in Major League Baseball. His record shows the exceptional scale a pitcher’s strikeout total can reach.
Dropped third strike: A rule allowing a batter to attempt to reach first base after the catcher fails to catch strike three cleanly, in specified situations. A third strike does not always end the batter’s chance to reach base.
Whiff: A swing that misses a pitch. Whiffs are a direct route to strikes and help explain a pitcher’s strikeout ability.

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