on-base percentage
noun
on-base per·cent·age
ˈȯn-ˈbās-pər-ˈsen-tij 
baseball
: a statistic that is expressed as a 3-digit decimal and that indicates the frequency with which a batter reaches base by a hit, a walk, or being hit by a pitch
Note: A batter with an on-base percentage of .350 has reached base 3.5 times for every 10 at bats.
Through Sunday he led the league in on-base percentage (.479) and hits (40) and was second in runs scored (21) and ninth in slugging percentage (.515).—
Ivan Maisel
Ivan Maisel… he understood that on-base percentage was a far better tool to evaluate a hitter than batting average …—Tom Verducci
Tom VerducciExamples of on-base percentage in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
From runs per game and plate appearances to home runs, RBIs, and on-base percentage, these two teams dominated in nearly every major offensive category.
—Giovanni Malloy, Forbes, 22 Oct. 2024
Judge led the majors in home runs, runs batted in, on-base percentage, slugging, and two different measures of WAR, an advanced metric to gauge how many more wins a player is worth than an average-level player at his position.
—Louisa Thomas, The New Yorker, 19 Oct. 2024
The outfielder had a largely forgettable 2019 season with the A’s, batting .281 with a .301 on-base percentage.
—Laurence Miedema, The Mercury News, 1 Oct. 2024
Over the last 14 days the Angels have the tenth-best average against right-handed pitching and the eighth-best on-base percentage.
—David Faris, Newsweek, 9 July 2024
See all Example Sentences for on-base percentage 
Giovanni Malloy, Forbes, 22 Oct. 2024
Judge led the majors in home runs, runs batted in, on-base percentage, slugging, and two different measures of WAR, an advanced metric to gauge how many more wins a player is worth than an average-level player at his position.
—Louisa Thomas, The New Yorker, 19 Oct. 2024
The outfielder had a largely forgettable 2019 season with the A’s, batting .281 with a .301 on-base percentage.
—Laurence Miedema, The Mercury News, 1 Oct. 2024
Over the last 14 days the Angels have the tenth-best average against right-handed pitching and the eighth-best on-base percentage.
—David Faris, Newsweek, 9 July 2024
See all Example Sentences for on-base percentage
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'on-base percentage.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
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Cite this Entry
“On-base percentage.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/on-base%20percentage. Accessed 4 Nov. 2024.
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