What does batting around mean?

[ledzepp8]

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This topic reminds me of a discussion that I once had with Paul Folk.

Ever since I was a little kid, when a team scored in the top of the 1st inning, the announcer(s) would always say that the score is, "Indians 1, Tigers coming to bat."

If they scored 2 runs, then they would say, "Indians 2, Tigers coming to bat", and so forth.

In between every half inning after that, they would always give you the score of both teams (Tigers 3, Indians 2, etc.)

So I wondered ...... if a team scores a run(s) in the top of the 1st inning, and the other team has not batted yet, is it necessarily a "comeback" win if they tie the score or take the lead in the bottom half of the first inning, and wind up winning the game without falling behind again ???

In a literal sense, yes, it is a comeback. The team that won the game was behind on the scoreboard, even if it was only for half an inning in between the top half and bottom half of the 1st inning, and the team that "came back" had not even gotten one offensive chance yet.

On the other hand, baseball is different than a sport such as football, in that the defense cannot score when they are on the field ...... hence, the (possible) argument that a team is not truly "behind" until at least one full inning of play has been completed.

For myself, it's an interesting subject to ponder.

How dare you derail this interesting discussion with an equally interesting question!

I would say it's not a comeback because they haven't batted yet.

[Moshagge3]

If you're keeping score, 9 men to the plate means you've filled in the entire column. I think that's around. But it's a lot cooler when 10 men come up and you have to go into the next column.

[OFFNY]

How dare you derail this interesting discussion with an equally interesting question!

I would say it's not a comeback because they haven't batted yet.

Quite often, a complaint will be made when someone makes a thread in which the topic is the same/similar to another already-existing thread(s).

Someone will something along the lines, 'Did this really need a new thread? We already have two or three other threads on the same subject."

My previous post may be a rare case of the opposite ....... someone could say something along the lines of, "Couldn't you have started a new thread for this?" O:laughlol:

[JimDH]

I used to think it was ten or more. But Chuck Thompson always said they are batting around with the ninth batter.

End of thread.

[weams]

I used to think it was ten or more. But Chuck Thompson always said they are batting around with the ninth batter.

End of thread.

Chuck was never wrong.

[LarryHarlow]

Huh? Look use a clock, (and I know a baseball lineup only has 9 but it's the same difference) you start at 12 noon (1st batter of inning) and get to 11 pm (11th batter of inning) and 11 pm makes the 3rd out. Has the clock gone all the way around to 12 am or is it still at 11 pm, until the next time up?

Or use my walk around the block example. If you leave the house and walk around your neighborhood, have you made it all the way back around if you end up next door instead of your house (where you started from)?

Exactly. Lineup positions are discrete points, so the circuit all the way around is not complete until the 10th batter is reached.

[harp6]

Exactly. Lineup positions are discrete points, so the circuit all the way around is not complete until the 10th batter is reached.

Please note that when the 10th batter is reached, before a pitch is thrown to that batter, the team has batted around and only nine players have hit. When the 10th player steps to the plate, the circuit has already been completed because it finished when the 9th player completes his at-bat.

Just like the clock argument that you are supporting is not correct. When the 12th hour is complete, the hour hand is at 12 and has made a complete circle. The start of the 13th hour starts a new circuit. Please note that the 9th hitter has to complete the at-bat to have batted around. If a base runner is caught stealing for the final out of the inning during the 9th players at-bat, then the team did not bat around. If the tenth batter comes to bat and a player is picked off first base for the final out, the team has still batted around even though the 10th batter has not received a pitch. Why? Because all 9 players had one at-bat in the inning. If the team has 18 players complete their at-bat in an inning (WOW), then the team has batted around twice.

When a card game is played, all players play one card and only one card to go around. No players play two cards. In baseball all players have batted one time and only one time in an inning to bat around. Now sometimes a commentator may state that the team has batted around when the ninth player comes to bat, but he is only correct if that ninth player completes his at-bat.

[ledzepp8]

Please note that when the 10th batter is reached, you are one point beyond the start of the circuit, not at the start.

Just like the clock argument that you are supporting is not correct. When the 12th hour is complete, the hour hand is at 12 and has made a complete circle. The start of the 13th hour starts a new circuit. Just like when the ninth batter has completed his at bat, the full rotation of hitters is complete and a new rotation starts with the start of the tenth batter's at-bat. Therefore, the team has batted around one time, when the ninth player has completed his at-bat. Please note that the 9th hitter has to complete the at-bat to have batted around. If a base runner is caught stealing for the final out of the inning during the 9th players at-bat, then the team did not bat around. If the tenth batter comes to bat and the player is picked off first base for the final out, the team has still batted around even though the 10th batter has not received a pitch. Why? Because all 9 players had one at-bat in the inning. If the team has 18 players complete their at-bat in an inning (WOW), then the team has batted around twice.

When a card game is played, all players play one card and only one card to go around. No players play two cards. In baseball all players have batted one time and only one time in an inning to bat around. Now sometimes a commentator may state that the team has batted around when the ninth player comes to bat, but he is only correct if that ninth player completes his at-bat.

If they don't get back to the batter that led off the inning, what have they batted around to?

[brianod]

This is hilarious. 10 batters need to come up. Not 9. If a guy pinch hits for the guy that lead off, it's still batting around.

[harp6]

If they don't get back to the batter that led off the inning, what have they batted around to?

When the ninth player completes his at-bat, whether that is the third out or not, they have then batted around. To bat around is one complete rotation through the line-up. One complete rotation is when the ninth batter has completed his at-bat. Just like in the card game. If four people are playing a card game, when the fourth player has played his card, they have played around once. The round is complete when the last player has played his card, not when the first player is playing his second card. When that second player plays his second card, he has started the next round, not ended the previous round.

One "round" in a baseball inning is nine at-bats. A team has batted around twice in an inning when 18 hitters have batted in the inning, not when the 19th batter bats. If the 18th batter makes the last out, then they have gone through the line-up twice or batted around twice even though the 19th hitter has never batted.

[scOtt]

I always thought that the "around" part meant at least one batter gets two attempts.

Ten. Yes.

[ledzepp8]

When the ninth player completes his at-bat, whether that is the third out or not, they have then batted around. To bat around is one complete rotation through the line-up. One complete rotation is when the ninth batter has completed his at-bat. Just like in the card game. If four people are playing a card game, when the fourth player has played his card, they have played around once. The round is complete when the last player has played his card, not when the first player is playing his second card. When that second player plays his second card, he has started the next round, not ended the previous round.

One "round" in a baseball inning is nine at-bats. A team has batted around twice in an inning when 18 hitters have batted in the inning, not when the 19th batter bats. If the 18th batter makes the last out, then they have gone through the line-up twice or batted around twice even though the 19th hitter has never batted.

If you walk out of your front door to walk around your house, have you made it around if you don't end up back at the front door? Have you run a lap in a race if you don't end up back at the starting/finish line?

[weams]

Does one need to pass the front door to circle around? Go through the doorway? What is the rule for circling your house?

[harp6]

If you walk out of your front door to walk around your house, have you made it around if you don't end up back at the front door? Have you run a lap in a race if you don't end up back at the starting/finish line?

You have made it to the front door when you have finished the lap and that is my argument. At that point you have gone "around" the house one time. You can choose to quit at that time without starting a second lap around the house. The moment you then start again and take a step to go around again, you are now starting a new lap. That step doesn't indicate the end of the first lap, but the beginning of a new time around The new lap only begins when you have "completed" one time "around." When the 9th batter in the inning has completed his at-bat, the team has gone through the line-up once and are at the point of starting their second time through the line-up. If the 9th player makes the last out of the inning, you have gone around your line-up one time and have batted around. You are now at the starting point in the lineup at the start of that inning, but the 10th batter has not batted yet. The first time around the line-up is complete. If the ninth player doesn't make the last out, then when the tenth player steps to the plate, the second time around the line-up "begins." The tenth player batting does not end the first time around the line-up. The end of the first time around the line up ends when the 9th hitter finishes his at-bat.

See my argument about batting around twice. It only takes 18 at-bats to bat around twice. So why should it take 10 hitters to bat around once.

[ledzepp8]

You have made it to the front door when you have finished the lap and that is my argument. At that point you have gone "around" the house one time. You can choose to quit at that time without starting a second lap around the house. The moment you then start again and take a step to go around again, you are now starting a new lap. That step doesn't indicate the end of the first lap, but the beginning of a new time around The new lap only begins when you have "completed" one time "around." When the 9th batter in the inning has completed his at-bat, the team has gone through the line-up once and are at the point of starting their second time through the line-up. If the 9th player makes the last out of the inning, you have gone around your line-up one time and have batted around. You are now at the starting point in the lineup at the start of that inning, but the 10th batter has not batted yet. The first time around the line-up is complete. If the ninth player doesn't make the last out, then when the tenth player steps to the plate, the second time around the line-up "begins." The tenth player batting does not end the first time around the line-up. The end of the first time around the line up ends when the 9th hitter finishes his at-bat.

See my argument about batting around twice. It only takes 18 at-bats to bat around twice. So why should it take 10 hitters to bat around once.

But that's our point. If you've only made it to the driveway (9th batter of the inning) and stop there (he makes the 3rd out of the inning), then you haven't made it around the house and back to the front door where you started from (batter that led off inning, comes to bat again).