Thus, a pitch that touches the outer boundary of the zone is as much a strike as a pitch that is thrown right down the center. The active tally of strikes and balls during a player's turn at bat is called the count.Īlthough the de facto enforced strike zone can vary, the Official Rules (Definitions of Terms, STRIKE (b)) define a pitch as a strike "if any part of the ball passes through any part of the strike zone", with the ball required to have not bounced. A pitch batted into foul territory-a foul ball-is also a strike, subject to various exceptions.) A pitch that is not a strike is called a ball (short for "no ball"). (A pitch is also a strike if the batter swings or offers the bat in an attempt to hit the pitch. Various rulebooks for baseball and softball define the strike zone slightly differently. In Major League Baseball, the top of the strike zone is the midpoint between the top of the batter's shoulders and the top of the uniform pants, and the bottom of the strike zone is at the hollow beneath the kneecap, both determined from the batter's stance as the batter is prepared to swing at the pitched ball. Its sides are vertical planes extending up from the edges of home plate. The strike zone is a volume of space, a vertical right pentagonal prism. Balls are desirable for the batter and the batting team, as four balls allow the batter to take a "walk" to first base as a base on balls. A pitch that misses the strike zone is called a ball if the batter doesn't swing. Strikes are desirable for the pitcher and the fielding team, as three strikes result in a strikeout of that batter. Whether a pitch passes through the zone is decided by an umpire, who is generally positioned behind the catcher. The strike zone is defined as the volume of space above home plate and between the batter's knees and the midpoint of their torso. In baseball, the strike zone is the volume of space through which a pitch must pass in order to be called a strike even if the batter does not swing. The batter attempts to hit a baseball pitched by the pitcher (not pictured) to the catcher and the umpire decides whether pitches are balls or strikes. A labelled drawing of the strike zone superimposed onto an image from a game, showing a batter, catcher and umpire.
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