at bat

noun

plural at bats

baseball

: a turn at batting

had three hits in five at bats

Note: For the purposes of calculating a player's batting average and slugging percentage, an official at bat is charged for each turn at batting except when the player walks, hits a sacrifice bunt or sacrifice fly, is hit by a pitched ball, or is interfered with by the catcher.

Examples of at bat in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

But having too many good players isn’t necessarily a bad problem to have, and in the short term Cora will have an interesting challenge trying to manage everyone’s playing time and ensure his best players get as many at bats as possible. —Mac Cerullo, Boston Herald, 10 July 2025

The 27-year-old had struggled as of late, going 2-for-21 in his prior at bats and 1-for-11 to start July. —Dj Siddiqi, Forbes.com, 10 July 2025

Bregman hit 11 home runs in 226 plate appearances, a rate of one every 20.5 at bats. —Jon Vankin, MSNBC Newsweek, 1 July 2025

Catcher Liam Hicks, a Rule 5 draft pickup last December, has flashed intriguing offensive skills (.277, .364 on base, 27 RBI in 141 at bats). —Barry Jackson, Miami Herald, 30 June 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1908, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for at bat

• begat
• bobcat
• chitchat
• doormat
• ducat
• eclat
• format
• hazmat
• muskrat
• nonfat
• polecat
• thereat