{{Short description, Ratio of the number of times a batter strikes out to their plate appearance
In
baseball statistics
Baseball statistics play an important role in evaluating the progress of a player or team.
Since the flow of a baseball game has natural breaks to it, and normally players act individually rather than performing in clusters, the sport lends itsel ...
, plate appearances per strikeout (PA/SO) represents a ratio of the number of times a
batter
Batter or batters may refer to:
Common meanings
* Batter (cooking), thin dough that can be easily poured into a pan
* Batter (baseball), person whose turn it is to face the pitcher
* Batter (cricket), a player who is currently batting
* Batter ( ...
plate appearance
In baseball statistics, a player is credited with a plate appearance (denoted by PA) each time he completes a turn batting. Under Rule 5.04(c) of the Official Baseball Rules, a player completes a turn batting when he is put out or becomes a runne ...
.
This statistic allows a defensive team to examine the opposing team's lineup for hitters who are more prone to strikeout. Such players, when batting, are typically more aggressive than the average hitter. This knowledge permits the
pitcher
In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throws ("pitches") the Baseball (ball), baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of out (baseball), retiring a batter (baseball), batter, who attempts to e ...
to approach the batter with more pitching options, often throwing more balls out of the
strike zone
In baseball, the strike zone is the volume of space through which a pitch must pass in order to be called a strike even if the batter does not swing. The strike zone is defined as the volume of space above home plate and between the batter's k ...
in the hope that the batter will swing and miss.
The number of this statistic can be calculated by dividing a player's total number of plate appearances by their total number of strikeouts. For example,
Reggie Jackson
Reginald Martinez Jackson (born May 18, 1946) is an American former professional baseball right fielder who played 21 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Kansas City / Oakland Athletics, Baltimore Orioles, New York Yankees, and Cal ...
collected 2,597 strikeouts and 11,418 plate appearances in his 21-year baseball career, recording a 4.39 PA/SO, which suggests that for every 4.39 plate appearance Jackson had one strikeout.