# How to read those things on a baseball stadium display that show previous at-bats? **URL:** \ **Category:** The Game Room\ **Created:** [May 28, 2015, 7:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-read-those-things-on-a-baseball-stadium-display-that-show-previous-at-bats/721064 "2015-05-28T19:02:46Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 15\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Arcite](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/67e7ee/32.png) [@Arcite](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Arcite)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2015, 7:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-read-those-things-on-a-baseball-stadium-display-that-show-previous-at-bats/721064/1 "2015-05-28T19:02:46Z")
I went to a MLB game earlier this week and noticed those graphics they display on the scoreboard that show what happened on each of the batter’s previous at-bats for that game. I can’t find an example by googling, but hopefully people know what I’m talking about. They look like pictures of baseball diamonds, and the symbols on them tell you what happened on that at-bat. I was furiously googling on my phone during the game, but couldn’t find any reference on decoding them. There’s a number in the upper-right corner, which I assume represents the inning. There’s a code at the bottom which tells you what actually happened, some of which I know (like K for strikeout, BB for walk,) but others of which are a mystery to me (one during this game read “6-3.”) Then there’s an arc, which I assume shows where the ball went. Also, sometimes there appeared to be blue lines between the bases, and also the infield would be colored differently on some than on others. There’s got to be a good reference site out there where you can read about what all this means. Anyone know? ---
**Author:** ![journeyman\_southpaw](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/5e9695/32.png) [@journeyman\_southpaw](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/journeyman_southpaw)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2015, 7:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-read-those-things-on-a-baseball-stadium-display-that-show-previous-at-bats/721064/2 "2015-05-28T19:25:28Z")
[Here](http://mlb.mlb.com/mlb/official_info/baseball_basics/keeping_score.jsp) are the basics on baseball scorekeeping. ---
**Author:** ![ElvisL1ves](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/5daacb/32.png) [@ElvisL1ves](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ElvisL1ves)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2015, 7:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-read-those-things-on-a-baseball-stadium-display-that-show-previous-at-bats/721064/3 "2015-05-28T19:25:38Z")
The numbers are a basic part of baseball scoring. Each stands for a position - 1 is the pitcher, 2 is the catcher, 3-5 are the 1/2/3 basemen, 6 is the shortstop, 7-9 are the left/center/right fielders. So “6-3” means the batter grounded out, shortstop to first. A change of color on the basepath line shows how far the batter advanced during that inning. On paper, you’d fill that in with pencil. The rest you seem to know already. ---
**Author:** ![OldGuy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/3bc359/32.png) [@OldGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OldGuy)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2015, 7:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-read-those-things-on-a-baseball-stadium-display-that-show-previous-at-bats/721064/4 "2015-05-28T19:30:05Z")
first 1 = pitcher 2 = catcher 3 = 1Baseman 4 = 2baseman 5 = 3Baseman 6 = Shortstop 7 = LFielder 8 = CFielder 9 = Right Fielder the notation 6-3 means the batter grounder to the shortstop who threw him out at first A simple 8 would mean flew out to centerfielder. Now the rest of this is guesswork without seeing exactly what it looks like. The arc if combined with a number might mean it was a pop fly rather than a line drive. If he got on base the blue lines on the base paths might indicate to which bases he advanced. They might fill in the inside of this if he scored a run. ---
**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2015, 8:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-read-those-things-on-a-baseball-stadium-display-that-show-previous-at-bats/721064/5 "2015-05-28T20:45:56Z")
What do you do if a batter comes up twice in one inning? ---
**Author:** ![ElvisL1ves](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/5daacb/32.png) [@ElvisL1ves](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ElvisL1ves)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2015, 8:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-read-those-things-on-a-baseball-stadium-display-that-show-previous-at-bats/721064/6 "2015-05-28T20:51:33Z")
Use the next column, and renumber the following ones. ---
**Author:** ![ZipperJJ](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zipperjj/32/211_2.png) [@ZipperJJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZipperJJ)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2015, 8:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-read-those-things-on-a-baseball-stadium-display-that-show-previous-at-bats/721064/7 "2015-05-28T20:57:55Z")
If they strike out swinging, it’s a K. If they strike out looking, it’s a backwards K. Most people notice and ask this when I take them to baseball games. ---
**Author:** ![Munch](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/munch/32/5281_2.png) [@Munch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Munch)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2015, 9:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-read-those-things-on-a-baseball-stadium-display-that-show-previous-at-bats/721064/8 "2015-05-28T21:33:48Z")
What games are you people going to where they show boxscore notation on the scoreboard? ---
**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2015, 9:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-read-those-things-on-a-baseball-stadium-display-that-show-previous-at-bats/721064/9 "2015-05-28T21:44:27Z")
> [@Munch](#): > > What games are you people going to where they show boxscore notation on the scoreboard? They do this at Fenway, as each batter comes up they show his line for the game including the filling in the diamond for how many bases they reached. They also display a “Score that:” after most plays. ---
**Author:** ![Arcite](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/67e7ee/32.png) [@Arcite](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Arcite)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2015, 10:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-read-those-things-on-a-baseball-stadium-display-that-show-previous-at-bats/721064/10 "2015-05-28T22:28:00Z")
> [@Munch](#): > > What games are you people going to where they show boxscore notation on the scoreboard? Progressive Field in Cleveland. IIRC, I’ve also seen this at either Citizen’s Bank Park in Philadelphia, and/or Coors Field in Denver. However, they’re not showing a line or boxscore. They’re showing a graphical representation of a baseball diamond for each previous at bat. [Here’s](https://mlblogstheballparkguide.files.wordpress.com/2011/02/progressive-field-scoreboard-closeup.jpg) an example. If it’s not showing up correctly, it’s the 3rd photo from the bottom on [this page.](http://theballparkguide.mlblogs.com/2011/02/23/cleveland-august-7-2010/) ---
**Author:** ![Jas09](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/d07c76/32.png) [@Jas09](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jas09)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2015, 2:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-read-those-things-on-a-baseball-stadium-display-that-show-previous-at-bats/721064/11 "2015-05-29T02:20:26Z")
> [@Arcite](#): > > [Here’s](https://mlblogstheballparkguide.files.wordpress.com/2011/02/progressive-field-scoreboard-closeup.jpg) an example. If it’s not showing up correctly, it’s the 3rd photo from the bottom on [this page.](http://theballparkguide.mlblogs.com/2011/02/23/cleveland-august-7-2010/) I like that! At Busch we only get a text description: “1: Groundout 6-3”, “4: 2B, RBI, Run”. They do give the official scoring after every play, which is helpful. ---
**Author:** ![Munch](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/munch/32/5281_2.png) [@Munch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Munch)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2015, 12:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-read-those-things-on-a-baseball-stadium-display-that-show-previous-at-bats/721064/12 "2015-05-29T12:01:49Z")
> [@Arcite](#): > > [Here’s](https://mlblogstheballparkguide.files.wordpress.com/2011/02/progressive-field-scoreboard-closeup.jpg) an example. If it’s not showing up correctly, it’s the 3rd photo from the bottom on [this page.](http://theballparkguide.mlblogs.com/2011/02/23/cleveland-august-7-2010/) Awesome! I wish more stadiums would adopt that. ---
**Author:** ![lieu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c2a13f/32.png) [@lieu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lieu)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2015, 12:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-read-those-things-on-a-baseball-stadium-display-that-show-previous-at-bats/721064/13 "2015-05-29T12:21:01Z")
So in **Arcite** ’s linked photo, if I’m reading it correctly the second time Brantley was at bat, in the 3rd, the 2nd baseman threw him out at 1st. Why does the red line run at an angle to the left of 1st, does that mean he’d turned the corner and was trying to get to 2nd? ---
**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2015, 12:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-read-those-things-on-a-baseball-stadium-display-that-show-previous-at-bats/721064/14 "2015-05-29T12:56:35Z")
> [@lieu](#): > > So in **Arcite** ’s linked photo, if I’m reading it correctly the second time Brantley was at bat, in the 3rd, the 2nd baseman threw him out at 1st. Why does the red line run at an angle to the left of 1st, does that mean he’d turned the corner and was trying to get to 2nd? I think that represents where the ball was hit. In the first inning it looks like he hit the ball directly to the first baseman. In the third inning he hit it to the 2nd baseman and the trajectory of the ball is the red line. They don’t add that line at Fenway were I’ve seen this type of display. We’d need to see a play where a batter got on base to verify. ---
**Author:** ![lieu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c2a13f/32.png) [@lieu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lieu)\ **Post date:** [May 29, 2015, 1:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-to-read-those-things-on-a-baseball-stadium-display-that-show-previous-at-bats/721064/15 "2015-05-29T13:56:04Z")
That would make perfect sense. I wish our stadium had them too, this is pretty cool and helpful. I’m sure teams keeps this data and use it to shift outfields, etc. Now even the casual fan can see why they’re doing that as it happens.