Dropped third and pitcher's stats/WHIP

Welcome to Discuss Fastpitch

Your FREE Account is waiting to the Best Softball Community on the Web.

May 15, 2016
926
18
I was under the impression even with a successful steal of first from a dropped third strike, the pitcher gets the strikeout on her stats. Which if true, DD2 had her first four strikeout inning on Wednesday. How does that steal of first figure into her WHIP?
 
Nov 18, 2015
1,585
113
I'll take a stab at what I think is an easy answer - it doesn't.

I don't know off the top of my head if it affects ERA - but WHIP is just walks + hits / IP. It's a K for the pitcher. Probably an AB with a K against the batter. I'm 99% certain it's not considered a walk or a hit.

Now, maybe you were trying to ask if the recorded strikeout is treated as an extra "1/3" of an inning (or maybe a 1/4 inning?). While this WOULD effect the WHIP calculation, I'm still nearly certain it doesn't, since while it's a strikeout, it's not a recorded out (or is "put out" the right term?), so the IP for calculation-purposes is still going to be [x], [x]+1/3, or [x]+2/3.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
Feb 21, 2017
198
28
Drop third is credited as strikeout to pitcher, strikeout on batter and error on catcher. The batter reaches on error. Does not count towards WHIP.

Depending league or age level most stats are garbage. Batters have been known to swing at some crappy pitches which were unhittable and for a learning catcher difficult to block but it is what it is. DD has had 6 or 7 in an inning in MS, I rather she had three good pitches which produced three (1-3) ground outs in a row.
 
Nov 18, 2015
1,585
113
So as a scorekeeper, are your hands tied, so to speak, regarding the error? You can't assign the K's, and charge a WP on the pitcher?
 
Aug 29, 2011
2,581
83
NorCal
I was under the impression even with a successful steal of first from a dropped third strike, the pitcher gets the strikeout on her stats. Which if true, DD2 had her first four strikeout inning on Wednesday. How does that steal of first figure into her WHIP?

The is no "steal" of first.

The batter reaches first either on an E2, E3, or a Wild Pitch (WP).

And yes a pitcher can be credited with more than 3 Ks in an inning.
 
Last edited:
Feb 21, 2017
198
28
Generally if the batter runner is safe the "blame" has to be assigned on why but there is latitude so some of the decision rest with the score keeper (in official MLB, College or pro-FP games).

Say the catcher failed to secure a "catchable ball" and batter runner is safe but subsequent throw would have gotten the runner but was miss-handled by 1B. The way the play unfolded will dictate how the error is assigned, I mean how catchable was the ball, how good was the throw to 1B, did the person covering make a reasonable effort or was exceptional effort required. If the batter runner makes it to second then C and 1B could get an error.

More to your question is if the pitched ball was uncatchable then you can push it back to WP. The issue is if pitcher throws a good drop, but the catcher did a crappy block do you blame the pitcher for too good a pitch which is why the league or age of players matters. If 18U Gold catcher can't make that play then 18U Gold is not for her.

This is why most of this is useless until upper levels because expectations for each level have to be appropriate. We kept stats like this down to 11U in AAU baseball program but only to determine how runners advanced and where work in practice needed to be focused. For MS it pointed out the catcher who had not played any travel was not aware of how a drop-curve, curve or drop would move. To her credit she put in effort and they went way down by the end of season. In fact she got quite good but still funny to say 6 K's in one inning.

It reminds me there was a weird MLB game where the batter swung at a miss-thrown 2 strike pitch, I think intentionally to get on. Pitch was no where near strike so I will have to see how it was scored.
 
Jun 11, 2013
2,619
113
As they get older you will see so few of them that you won't really worry much about them. I think we had 1 in the last 3 14 and 16 U.
 
Oct 15, 2013
727
63
Seattle, WA
When a runner reaches as a result of a dropped third it counts as K for the pitcher and is scored as either a wild pitch or a passed ball (neither of which are errors). Any pitch in the dirt is a wild pitch, regardless of the quality of the catcher's block. An error may charged to the catcher if they make an errant throw to first or on the first baseman if they do not handle a good throw.



https://fs.ncaa.org/Docs/stats/Stats_Manuals/Softball/softball easy print stats manual.pdf
 
Last edited:
Jul 19, 2014
2,390
48
Madison, WI
Nope.

If the pitcher's dad is scoring, it's a passed ball.
If the catcher's dad is scoring, it's a wild pitch.

In DD 3's last team, I made sure I told the rules to the AC, who is the catcher's dad, before I agreed to do the books. :cool:;)
 

Latest posts

Members online

Forum statistics

Threads
42,830
Messages
679,468
Members
21,443
Latest member
sstop28
Top