at bat
noun
plural at bats
Definition of at bat
baseball
: a turn at batting
had three hits in five at bats
Note: For the purposes of calculating a player's batting average and slugging percentage, an official at bat is charged for each turn at batting except when the player walks, hits a sacrifice bunt or sacrifice fly, is hit by a pitched ball, or is interfered with by the catcher.
Examples of at bat in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
That’s the importance of everybody having their at bats, keeping that line going. — Phil Thompson, chicagotribune.com, "5 takeaways from the White Sox-Astros series, including James McCann’s success against Houston and Jose Abreu getting back on the 100-RBI pace," 15 Aug. 2019 Brooks was standing at third base when Ted homered in his final at bat in the bigs. — Dan Shaughnessy, BostonGlobe.com, "He went to the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown and unearthed these nuggets," 21 July 2019 Tebow’s numbers for the Syracuse Mets of the International League are sub par to say the least, batting .150 with 76 strikeouts in 187 at bats, one homer and a .209 slugging percentage. — Jeff Bailey, The Denver Post, "Tim Tebow back in Denver in the Orange and Blue? It could happen this fall.," 28 June 2019 While the Cardinals’ first five hitters contributed only three hits in 23 at bats Saturday against East Carolina, the bottom four spots in the order went 11-for-18 with eight runs batted in. — Tim Sullivan, The Courier-Journal, "What it lacks in star power, Louisville baseball makes up for in offensive firepower," 11 June 2019 Mark Canha knocked his 19th home run in the next at bat. — Shayna Rubin, The Mercury News, "Matt Olson, Mark Canha deliver with bats and gloves in Oakland Athletics’ win over New York Yankees," 20 Aug. 2019 But while the Orioles were at bat in the eighth inning, Palmer put his hand to his throat and feigned choking — perhaps to ward off any evil vibes. — Chris Kaltenbach, baltimoresun.com, "The Orioles’ Jim Palmer pitched a no-hitter 50 years ago, and he wasn’t about to let Reggie Jackson ruin it," 16 Aug. 2019 That got called off after drunken fans threw debris at bat-wielding players. — Joe Lapointe, Detroit Free Press, "40 years ago, Disco Demolition Night stirred culture war still being fought," 12 July 2019 Judge remained at bat on foul pop fielding error by second baseman Holt. — BostonGlobe.com, "MLB boxscore: Yankees 9, Red Sox 6," 31 July 2019These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'at bat.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
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