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Softball Scorer’s Field Guide
A one-page printable reference designed for parents and coaches keeping score on phone apps. Print on letter-size (8.5×11″) portrait, laminate, and hang at the field.
The downloadable PDF is the canonical printable artifact — rendered at build time, identical on every machine.
Live HTML preview (source for the PDF)
Softball Scorer’s Field Guide
Hits, errors, FC & the calls scoring apps need from you
Scan to learn
the rules behind it
tallingo.com/field-guide
Scoring the Batter
When does she reach base?
| Play | Defense | The call | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| Clean Hit | Clean play, runner beat throw | Hit | 1B, 2B, 3B, HR |
| Fielder’s Choice | Tried for a different runner | FC | Batter only safe because defense chose another play |
| Error | Routine play missed (drop, bobble, wild throw) | E | Failed an ordinary-effort play |
| Heroic effort | Dive, sprint, leap — couldn’t reach | Hit | No penalty for going above and beyond |
| Dropped 3rd strike | Pitch in the dirt / over head | K+WP | Pitcher still gets the K |
| Dropped 3rd strike | Catcher dropped a catchable pitch | K+PB | Pitcher still gets the K |
Catcher Misses
& special-call shortcuts
| Pitch was… | Call |
|---|---|
| Catchable — catcher missed it | PB |
| Uncatchable — dirt, over head, way wide | WP |
Infield Fly: runners on 1B&2B (or loaded), <2 outs, catchable fair fly by infielder → Out. If dropped, still Out.
Look-Back: runner off base when pitcher has the ball in the circle → Out. Not an error.
Dropped 3rd: batter may run when <2 outs & 1B empty, OR with 2 outs.
Where Does the Error Go?
When an error happens, who gets credit for it?
| Play | What happened | Error goes to | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wild throw | Throw over or wide of the bag | The thrower | |
| Dropped throw | Throw was on target, dropped at the bag | The receiver | |
| Pulled foot | Good throw, fielder left the bag early | The thrower | |
| Routine fly dropped | Pop-up or fly that ordinary effort would’ve caught | The fielder |
Pro-Tip
Ordinary effort is the foundation
Every error call comes back to one question: would an average defender at that position, in normal conditions, make this play most of the time?
The surprise
If a fielder touches the ball and drops it, it’s almost always an E. If they had to dive or sprint to reach it, that’s a Hit— we don’t penalize heroic effort.
Adjust the standard to the players’ age and skill. 8U is not 18U.
Position
Numbers
For reading the box score
1 Pitcher
2 Catcher
3 First Base
4 Second Base
5 Third Base
6 Shortstop
7 Left Field
8 Center Field
9 Right Field
Most apps don’t make you type these — you tap the player — but the play-by-play uses them (E5, 6-3).
The app does the math. This sheet is the inputs.
GameChanger and other scoring apps reconstruct earned vs unearned runs for you automatically — including the third-out rule, K + WP vs K + PB, and relief-pitcher inheritance. But the math is only as good as your inputs. The most-missed input that wrecks a pitcher’s line: tagging the play that should have been the third out. Miss it and the app counts every run after that as earned.
Want to go deeper?Scan the QR (top right) for full explanations:
→What’s an infield fly, really — and why is it an automatic out?
→The look-back rule: when can a runner be called out for just standing there?
→Why a pitcher with a strikeout can still take an earned run on the same play.
→The third-out rule: how one missed error can cost a pitcher 4 runs of ERA.
Softball Scorer’s Field Guide
Hits, errors, FC & the calls scoring apps need from you
Scan to learn
the rules behind it
tallingo.com/field-guide
Scoring the Batter
When does she reach base?
| Play | Defense | The call | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| Clean Hit | Clean play, runner beat throw | Hit | 1B, 2B, 3B, HR |
| Fielder’s Choice | Tried for a different runner | FC | Batter only safe because defense chose another play |
| Error | Routine play missed (drop, bobble, wild throw) | E | Failed an ordinary-effort play |
| Heroic effort | Dive, sprint, leap — couldn’t reach | Hit | No penalty for going above and beyond |
| Dropped 3rd strike | Pitch in the dirt / over head | K+WP | Pitcher still gets the K |
| Dropped 3rd strike | Catcher dropped a catchable pitch | K+PB | Pitcher still gets the K |
Catcher Misses
& special-call shortcuts
| Pitch was… | Call |
|---|---|
| Catchable — catcher missed it | PB |
| Uncatchable — dirt, over head, way wide | WP |
Infield Fly: runners on 1B&2B (or loaded), <2 outs, catchable fair fly by infielder → Out. If dropped, still Out.
Look-Back: runner off base when pitcher has the ball in the circle → Out. Not an error.
Dropped 3rd: batter may run when <2 outs & 1B empty, OR with 2 outs.
Where Does the Error Go?
When an error happens, who gets credit for it?
| Play | What happened | Error goes to | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wild throw | Throw over or wide of the bag | The thrower | |
| Dropped throw | Throw was on target, dropped at the bag | The receiver | |
| Pulled foot | Good throw, fielder left the bag early | The thrower | |
| Routine fly dropped | Pop-up or fly that ordinary effort would’ve caught | The fielder |
Pro-Tip
Ordinary effort is the foundation
Every error call comes back to one question: would an average defender at that position, in normal conditions, make this play most of the time?
The surprise
If a fielder touches the ball and drops it, it’s almost always an E. If they had to dive or sprint to reach it, that’s a Hit— we don’t penalize heroic effort.
Adjust the standard to the players’ age and skill. 8U is not 18U.
Position
Numbers
For reading the box score
1 Pitcher
2 Catcher
3 First Base
4 Second Base
5 Third Base
6 Shortstop
7 Left Field
8 Center Field
9 Right Field
Most apps don’t make you type these — you tap the player — but the play-by-play uses them (E5, 6-3).
The app does the math. This sheet is the inputs.
GameChanger and other scoring apps reconstruct earned vs unearned runs for you automatically — including the third-out rule, K + WP vs K + PB, and relief-pitcher inheritance. But the math is only as good as your inputs. The most-missed input that wrecks a pitcher’s line: tagging the play that should have been the third out. Miss it and the app counts every run after that as earned.
Want to go deeper?Scan the QR (top right) for full explanations:
→What’s an infield fly, really — and why is it an automatic out?
→The look-back rule: when can a runner be called out for just standing there?
→Why a pitcher with a strikeout can still take an earned run on the same play.
→The third-out rule: how one missed error can cost a pitcher 4 runs of ERA.