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

… he understood that on-base percentage was a far better tool to evaluate a hitter than batting average …

—Tom Verducci

Examples of on-base percentage in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The 25-year-old had a below-average on-base percentage of .308 a year ago, something A’s general manager David Forst said needs improvement. —Jon Becker, The Mercury News, 1 Apr. 2024

Now both players will vie for time at first with LaMonte Wade, who posted a .373 on-base percentage. —Daniel R. Epstein, Forbes, 2 Mar. 2024

In nine career games at Milwaukee, Hoskins has batted .342 with a .405 on-base percentage, .790 slugging percentage, five homers and eight RBIs. —Steve Megargee, USA TODAY, 29 Jan. 2024

Last season, Vaz hit .279 with 124 hits, 32 extra-base hits, 51 RBIs and a .373 on-base percentage. —Jaylon Thompson, Kansas City Star, 6 Mar. 2024

His batting average, on-base percentage, and slugging percentage have all declined in each of his four MLB seasons. —Daniel R. Epstein, Forbes, 28 Feb. 2024

Diaz had a disappointing first season in Oakland, with career-worst numbers for average (.229), on-base percentage (.280) and slugging percentage (.337) after signing a team-high $14.5 million, 2-year free-agent contract. —Jon Becker, The Mercury News, 3 Mar. 2024

Corey Rosier, 24, hit ,285 with 49 steals and .351 on-base percentage in the minors in 2023. —Chuck Murr, Forbes, 1 Mar. 2024

Ideally, that could mean a higher on-base percentage for Ohtani (who still led the American League in that category last year with a .412 mark) and more run-producing opportunities for Freeman (whose .370 average with runners in scoring position last year was second-best in the NL behind Betts). —Jack Harris, Los Angeles Times, 27 Feb. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1949, in the meaning defined above