Box Score (baseball) - Early Box Scores

Early Box Scores

The first box scores tended to be vaguely related to Cricket scorekeeping, in that only two offense-oriented figures were presented for each batter: "O" and "R", meaning "number of times put out" and "number of runs scored", respectively.

As fan interest in all aspects of the game increased, the box scores were revised and expanded to include the offensive categories At-Bats, Runs, Hits and sometimes Total Bases; and the defensive categories Put-Outs, Assists and Errors for each batter, as well as a statistical summary underneath the lineups listing extra-base hits, innings pitched, earned runs, etc.

In baseball, if the team scheduled to bat last is leading after 8½ innings, there is no turn at bat for that team, as it would not affect the outcome of the game, so the last of the ninth is usually marked with an "X" as a placeholder in the line score. Some newspapers (and some scoreboards) in those days showed the home team in the top line, resulting in the peculiarity of an "X" placed in what appeared to be the "top" of the ninth. This practice was a carryover from the time when the home team had the choice of whether to bat first or last, another similarity with Cricket. Teams would often choose to bat first, counting on their ability to "get the jump" on the visiting team (as with football teams that win the coin toss), but the potential for the visitors scoring the winning run in the last of ninth was clearly an unsatisfying situation for the fans. The rules eventually required the home team to bat last, but the practice of listing the home team first was carried on for a while, in some places, even when it did not square with the actual events of the game.

The offensive statistic Runs Batted In was developed in the early 1900s, and was soon being carried in the lineup portion of the box scores.

As relief pitching became more common, a separate "lineup" section for the pitchers was developed, carrying individual Innings Pitched; the number of Hits, Runs, Earned Runs, and Bases on Balls allowed; and Strike-Outs achieved.

By the late 1960s or so, in the interest of space, most newspapers dropped the defensive stats from the lineups, just carrying the list of errors (if any) in the game summary. For a special event, such as World Series play (especially if a local team is involved), newspapers still often print the wider version of the box score.