Number of Pitches (NP)

Definition

A pitcher's total number of pitches is determined by all the pitches he throws in live game action, including strikes, unintentional balls and intentional balls.

The number of pitches thrown by a pitcher is a very important number in any baseball game. It's often used to determine when a pitcher might begin to get tired. Conversely, it often benefits a hitter to face a high number of pitches, because the more pitches he sees, the more likely he is to wear down a pitcher.

Origin

Pitch counts became prominent for pitchers in the 1980s. Many games taking place before then do not have records of the number of pitches thrown, but pitch counts (and innings-pitched totals for individual pitchers) were much higher before then.

In A Call

"pitch count," "total pitches," "pitches thrown," "tosses"