Keeping score looks like a secret code. It isn't — the basics take about ten minutes to learn, and they turn watching your child's game into genuinely following it. This is the beginner's version, in the order you'll actually need it.
You need three things: a scorecard with the grid printed on it, a pencil, and the nine position numbers. Print the free scorecard and you have two of the three.
Before first pitch, write the teams, the date and your player's team's batting order down the left-hand column: jersey number, name, and the position they're starting at. Nine or ten rows, depending on the league. If you want the order written out separately for the dugout or the coach, print a free lineup card as well.
Many youth leagues use a continuous batting order, where every player on the roster bats regardless of whether they're fielding. If so, write them all in — you'll need more rows than a Major League card provides.
This is the backbone of the whole system. Every defensive position has a fixed number, and plays are recorded as the sequence of fielders who touched the ball.
| Number | Position |
|---|---|
| 1 | Pitcher |
| 2 | Catcher |
| 3 | First baseman |
| 4 | Second baseman |
| 5 | Third baseman |
| 6 | Shortstop |
| 7 | Left fielder |
| 8 | Center fielder |
| 9 | Right fielder |
So a ground ball to the shortstop who throws to first is 6-3. A double play from second baseman to shortstop to first is 4-6-3. A fly out to center field is F8. The one that catches everyone: the third baseman is 5 and the shortstop is 6, not the other way round. More detail in baseball position numbers.
| Symbol | What it means |
|---|---|
| 1B / 2B / 3B / HR | Single, double, triple, home run |
| BB | Walk |
| IBB | Intentional walk |
| HBP | Hit by pitch |
| K | Strikeout swinging |
| ꓘ (backwards K) | Strikeout looking — the batter didn't swing |
| F7, F8, F9 | Fly out, caught by that fielder |
| L4 | Line out to that fielder |
| P5 | Pop-up to that fielder |
| 6-3, 4-3, 5-3 | Groundout, fielder to first base |
| U3 | Unassisted out by the first baseman |
| E6 | Reached on an error by that fielder |
| FC | Fielder's choice — out made on another runner |
| SAC / SF | Sacrifice bunt / sacrifice fly |
| DP | Double play |
| WP / PB | Wild pitch / passed ball |
| SB / CS | Stolen base / caught stealing |
Each batter's box on the card has a small diamond in it. When the batter reaches base, draw the line along the side of the diamond they reached — the bottom-right edge for first, then up to second, and so on as they advance.
When a runner scores, fill in the middle of the diamond. At a glance, a filled diamond is a run and an empty one isn't, which is how you total the innings later without re-reading anything.
Mark outs with a small number in the corner of the box — 1, 2 or 3 — so you know which out of the inning it was. Three outs, draw a line under the last box, move to the next inning column.
Four batters come up. Here's what goes on the card:
That's the inning: no runs, one hit, two left on base. Everything you need to total it is already on the card — and those totals are exactly what a box score is built from.
No. A bound scorebook is nice and it keeps a season together, but a single printed sheet clipped to a board does the same job for one game. Start with the free printable scorecard — it has the grid, the diamonds and a symbols key printed on it. If you only want to track your own child rather than the whole lineup, the game stat sheet is simpler.
When the season's totals matter more than the individual cards, run the numbers through the batting average and on-base percentage calculators — or let an app keep the running totals so the shoebox of paper stops being the system of record.
Write the batting order down the left column, then record each plate appearance in that batter's box for the inning: the symbol for what happened (1B, BB, K, 6-3 and so on), trace the diamond as the runner advances, and fill the diamond in when they score. Three outs ends the half-inning and you move to the next column.
They are the defensive positions: 1 pitcher, 2 catcher, 3 first base, 4 second base, 5 third base, 6 shortstop, 7 left field, 8 center field, 9 right field. Plays are written as the sequence of fielders who handled the ball, such as 6-3 for shortstop to first.
With a backwards K (ꓘ). A normal K means the batter swung and missed.
Check each half-inning: runs plus runners left on base plus outs should equal the number of batters who came to the plate. If it doesn't balance, something was missed.
No. A single printable scorecard clipped to a board works for a whole game, and you can print a fresh one each time.
The notation is identical. The differences are in the game — commonly seven innings rather than nine, and a tenth fielder in slow-pitch, who is usually written as 10.