caught look*ing
What Is The Definition Of Caught Looking In Baseball?
1. This is a term that is used to describe when a batter doesn’t swing the bat and watches the third strike cross the plate, therefore resulting in a strikeout. By watching the ball cross the plate, the batter is “caught looking” at the ball.
Examples Of How Caught Looking Is Used In Commentary
1. The batter is caught looking for a called strike three after the pitcher drops a curveball on the outside of the plate.
SportsLingo Goes The Extra-Inch With The Meaning Of Caught Looking
When a batter has two strikes against them in any at-bat, their main goal at that point is to at least give an effort to put the ball in play. The last thing they want to do is be caught looking at a called strike. However, many times a batter does watch the third strike cross the plate usually because they were fooled and guessed incorrectly at what type of pitch the pitcher was going to deliver. Other times the batter simply thinks the called third strike is a ball, therefore is called out on strikes.
When a pitcher records a strikeout with the batter caught looking, statisticians and fans will refer to this as a backwards k.
Sports The Term Is Used
1. Baseball
2. Softball