Baseball Box Scores: Runs, Hits and Errors (R/H/E)

Baseball line scores end with three summary columns: R, H and E. On SBLive game pages they appear whenever our data feed provides them.

R: runs

Runs are the score itself. The team with more runs after nine innings, or after extra innings, wins the game.

H: hits

Hits count the times a batter reached base safely on a batted ball without the help of an error or a fielder's choice. A team can out-hit its opponent and still lose, which usually means it left runners on base.

E: errors

Errors are charged to fielders when a misplay lets a batter or runner reach or advance a base that ordinary effort would have prevented. A high error count often explains unearned runs.

Why it matters

Together, R/H/E give a quick sense of how a game was played: a pitchers' duel shows few hits on both sides, while a sloppy game shows several errors.