Fielding percentage represents a defensive player’s efficiency at handling batted balls. It is determined by dividing the sum of putouts and assists by the total number of chances, which includes putouts, assists, and errors. The resulting decimal is typically expressed to three places. For example, a player with 100 putouts, 50 assists, and 5 errors, would have a fielding percentage calculated as (100 + 50) / (100 + 50 + 5) = 150 / 155 = .968.
This statistic offers a straightforward method to quantify a player’s reliability in the field. High values generally indicate a skilled and dependable defensive player, contributing to a team’s overall defensive strength. While not a perfect measure of defensive ability, this calculation has been a long-standing metric in baseball, providing a general overview of defensive performance and serving as a useful comparison tool across different players and positions.
