In baseball, a stolen base most often occurs when a baserunner successfully advances to the next base while the pitcher is delivering the ball to home plate. In baseball statistics, stolen bases are denoted by “SB”.
If the defense makes no attempt to put the baserunner out (for example, if the catcher doesn't even look his way), the play is scored as defensive indifference (also called fielder's indifference), and no stolen base is credited to the runner. Defensive indifference is generally only scored instead of a stolen base when the game is in a late inning and the team with the stealing baserunner is down by more than one run. MLB Rule 10.07(g) covers defensive indifference.
Successful base-stealing requires not only simple running speed but also good base-running instincts and split-second timing. The scoring and criteria for awarding a stolen base to a runner are covered by rule 10.07 of the Major League Baseball rule book.
Read more about Stolen Base: Background, Technique and Strategy, Measuring Success, Evolution of Rules and Scoring, Stealing First
Famous quotes containing the words stolen and/or base:
“I felt proud of myself. I had stolen the honey of a spasm without impairing the morals of a minor.”
—Vladimir Nabokov (1899–1977)
“Adolescence is a time when children are supposed to move away from parents who are holding firm and protective behind them. When the parents disconnect, the children have no base to move away from or return to. They aren’t ready to face the world alone. With divorce, adolescents feel abandoned, and they are outraged at that abandonment. They are angry at both parents for letting them down. Often they feel that their parents broke the rules and so now they can too.”
—Mary Pipher (20th century)