View source for Run batted in

{{Short description|Statistic used in baseball and softball}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=March 2013}}
[[File:Albert Pujols DSC 5191.jpg|thumb|right|St. Louis Cardinals' Albert Pujols, shown here in 2008, passed Babe Ruth's 2,214 official RBI in October 2022. Pujols finished his Major League Baseball career with 2,218 RBI and second place on the [[List of Major League Baseball career runs batted in leaders|all-time list]].]]
A '''run batted in''' or '''runs batted in''' ('''RBI'''<ref>{{cite web |title=RBI |url=https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/RBI |website=Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary |publisher=Merriam-Webster |access-date=30 October 2020 |language=en |archive-date=September 30, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200930054544/https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/RBI |url-status=live }}</ref>) is a [[Baseball statistics|statistic in baseball]] and [[softball]] that credits a [[batting (baseball)|batter]] for making a play that allows a [[run (baseball)|run]] to be scored (except in certain situations such as when an [[error (baseball)|error]] is made on the play). For example, if the batter bats a [[hit (baseball)|base hit]] which allows a teammate on a higher base to reach [[baseball field#Home base|home]] and so score a run, then the batter gets credited with an RBI.

Before the [[1920 Major League Baseball season]], runs batted in were not an official [[baseball statistics|baseball statistic]]. Nevertheless, the RBI statistic was tabulated—unofficially—from 1907 through 1919 by baseball writer [[Ernie Lanigan]], according to the [[Society for American Baseball Research]].<ref>[http://sabr.org/research/accurate-rbi-record-babe-ruth The Accurate RBI Record of Babe Ruth] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160927051519/http://sabr.org/research/accurate-rbi-record-babe-ruth |date=September 27, 2016 }}. ''SABR Website''. Retrieved on September 14, 2016.</ref>

Common nicknames for an RBI include "ribby" (or "ribbie"), "rib", and "ribeye". The plural of "RBI" is a matter of "(very) minor controversy" for baseball fans:<ref name="plural_controversy">{{cite book |last1=Martinez |first1=David H. |title=The Book of Baseball Literacy |date=1996 |publisher=Plume |isbn=978-0-452-27426-6 |page=319 |language=en }}; {{cite journal |title=Mighty Touchy Issue: RBI or RBIs? |page=40 |journal=[[The Sporting News]] |date=June 4, 1977 |first=Jack |last=McCallum |author-link=Jack McCallum}}</ref> it is usually "RBIs", in accordance with the usual practice for pluralizing [[initialism]]s in English;<ref name="sometimes_rbi_plural"/><ref>{{cite tweet |author=AP Stylebook |author-link=AP Stylebook |user=apstylebook |number=588068089465589760 |access-date=30 October 2020 |language=en |date=April 14, 2015 |title=Plural of RBI is RBIs, which can be used on all references for runs batted in.}}</ref> however, some sources use "RBI" as the plural, on the basis that it can stand for "runs batted in".<ref name="plural_controversy"/><ref name="sometimes_rbi_plural">{{cite book |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=mVcJqKs1isUC&q=rbi+plural+rbis&pg=PA638 |chapter=Plurals; I: Acronyms and Abbreviations |page=638 |author-link=Bryan Garner |edition=3rd |title=Garner's Modern American Usage |author=Bryan Garner |publisher=Oxford University Press |year= 2009 |isbn=9780195382754 }}; {{cite book|url=https://archive.org/details/wordsrulesingred00pink/page/28 |page=28 |via=Internet Archive |url-access=registration |title=Words and Rules: The Ingredients of Language |first=Steven |last=Pinker |author-link=Steven Pinker  |publisher=Basic Books |year= 1999 |isbn=0-465-07269-0 }}</ref>

==Major League Baseball rules==
The 2018 edition of the Official Baseball Rules of [[Major League Baseball]] (MLB), '''Rule 9.04 Runs Batted In''', reads:<ref>{{cite web|url=http://mlb.mlb.com/documents/0/8/0/268272080/2018_Official_Baseball_Rules.pdf|title=OFFICIAL BASEBALL RULES 2018 Edition|publisher=Major League Baseball|pages=107–108|access-date=June 28, 2018|archive-date=October 9, 2022|archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20221009/http://mlb.mlb.com/documents/0/8/0/268272080/2018_Official_Baseball_Rules.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref>
{{quote|A run batted in is a statistic credited to a batter whose action at bat causes one or more runs to score, as outlined in Rule 9.04.
(a) The official scorer shall credit the batter with a run batted in for every run that scores
:(1) unaided by an error and as part of a play begun by the batter's safe hit (including the batter's home run), sacrifice bunt, sacrifice fly, infield out, or fielder's choice unless Rule 9.04(b) applies;
:(2) by reason of the batter becoming a runner with the bases full (because of a [[base on balls]], an award of first base for being [[hit by pitch|touched by a pitched ball]] or for interference or obstruction); or
:(3) when, before two are out, an error is made on a play on which a runner from third base ordinarily would score.
(b) The official scorer shall not credit a run batted in
:(1) when the batter grounds into a force [[double play]] or a [[double play#Scoring of double plays|reverse-force double play]]; or
:(2) when a fielder is charged with an [[error (baseball)|error]] because the fielder muffs a throw at first base that would have completed a force double play.
(c) The official scorer's judgment must determine whether a run batted in shall be credited for a run that scores when a fielder holds the ball or throws to a wrong base. Ordinarily, if the runner keeps going, the official scorer should credit a run batted in; if the runner stops and takes off again when the runner notices the misplay, the official scorer should credit the run as scored on a fielder's choice.}}

From 1980 to 1988, the [[game-winning RBI]] was an additional statistic used in MLB.

==Criticism==
The perceived significance of the RBI is displayed by the fact that it is one of the three categories that compose the [[triple crown (baseball)|triple crown]]. In addition, career RBIs are often cited in debates over who should be elected to the [[National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum|Hall of Fame]]. However, critics, particularly within the field of [[sabermetrics]], argue that RBIs measure the quality of the lineup more than it does the player himself. This is because an RBI can only be credited to a player if one or more batters preceding him in the batting order have reached base (the exception to this being a [[home run]], in which the batter is credited with driving himself in, not just those already on base).<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.baseball1.com/bb-data/grabiner/manifesto.html|title=The Sabermetric Manifesto|last=Grabiner|first=David|access-date=September 2, 2009|archive-date=March 23, 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090323044515/http://baseball1.com/bb-data/grabiner/manifesto.html|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref name=moneyball>{{Cite book | last=Lewis | first=Michael D. | author-link=Michael Lewis (author) | title=[[Moneyball: The Art of Winning an Unfair Game]] | year=2003 | publisher=W. W. Norton | location=New York  | isbn=0-393-05765-8 }}</ref> This implies that better offensive teams—and therefore, the teams in which the most players get on base—tend to produce hitters with higher RBI totals than equivalent hitters on lesser-hitting teams.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.drivelinemechanics.com/2009/5/18/878880/the-myth-of-the-rbi-guy-part-one|title=Revisiting the Myth of the RBI Guy, Part One|date=May 18, 2009|publisher=Driveline Mechanics|access-date=September 2, 2009|archive-date=December 7, 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091207080053/http://www.drivelinemechanics.com/2009/5/18/878880/the-myth-of-the-rbi-guy-part-one|url-status=live}}</ref>

==RBI leaders in Major League Baseball==

===Career===
{{Further|List of Major League Baseball career runs batted in leaders}}
[[File:Hank Aaron 1960.png|thumb|upright|Hank Aaron, All-time career leader in RBI with 2,297.]]
Totals are current through 2023 (regular season). Active player is in '''bold'''.
#[[Hank Aaron]] – 2,297
#[[Albert Pujols]] - 2,218
#[[Babe Ruth]] – 2,214
#[[Alex Rodríguez]] – 2,086
#[[Cap Anson]] - 2,075
#[[Barry Bonds]] – 1,996
#[[Lou Gehrig]] – 1,995
#[[Stan Musial]] – 1,951
#[[Ty Cobb]] – 1,944
#[[Jimmie Foxx]] – 1,922
#[[Eddie Murray]] – 1,917
#[[Willie Mays]] - 1,909

===Season===
[[File:Hank Greenberg 1937 cropped.jpg|thumb|upright|Hank Greenberg, Hall of Famer and 2-time MVP]]
#[[Hack Wilson]] (1930) – 191
#[[Lou Gehrig]] (1931) – 185
#[[Hank Greenberg]] (1937) – 183
#[[Jimmie Foxx]] (1938) – 175
#[[Lou Gehrig]] (1927, 1930) – 173

===Game===
{{Further|List of Major League Baseball single-game runs batted in leaders}}

*12 RBIs<ref name=TenOrMoreRbiInOneGame>{{cite web|title=Ten or More RBI in One Game|date=June 7, 2017|publisher=Sports Reference LLC|work=Baseball-Reference.com|url=https://www.baseball-reference.com/tiny/anPVh|access-date=June 7, 2017}}</ref>
**[[Jim Bottomley]] (September 16, 1924)
**[[Mark Whiten]] (September 7, 1993)
*11 RBIs<ref name=TenOrMoreRbiInOneGame/>
**[[Wilbert Robinson]] (June 10, 1892)
**[[Tony Lazzeri]] (May 24, 1936)
**[[Phil Weintraub]] (April 30, 1944)
*10 RBIs<ref name=TenOrMoreRbiInOneGame/>
**By 12 MLB players, most recently '''[[Shohei Ohtani]]''' on September 19, 2024

===Inning===
{{Further|List of Major League Baseball single-inning runs batted in leaders}}

#[[Fernando Tatís]] (April 23, 1999) – 8
#[[Ed Cartwright]] (September 23, 1890) – 7
#[[Alex Rodriguez]] (October 4, 2009) – 7

===Postseason (single season)===
#'''[[Adolis García]]''' (2023) – 22<ref name="AdolisBreaks">{{Cite web |date=2023-10-28 |title=World Series Game 1 score, highlights: Rangers' Adolis García hits walk-off home run against Diamondbacks |url=https://www.cbssports.com/mlb/news/world-series-game-1-score-highlights-rangers-adolis-garcia-hits-walk-off-home-run-against-diamondbacks/live/ |access-date=2023-10-28 |website=CBSSports.com |language=en |archive-date=October 28, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231028050450/https://www.cbssports.com/mlb/news/world-series-game-1-score-highlights-rangers-adolis-garcia-hits-walk-off-home-run-against-diamondbacks/live/ |url-status=live }}</ref>
#[[David Freese]] (2011) – 21<ref name="DavidFreeseBreaks">{{cite web|title=David Freese breaks the all-time single-season post-season RBI record|date=October 28, 2011|publisher=Sports Reference LLC|work=Baseball-Reference.com|url=https://www.baseball-reference.com/blog/archives/16091|access-date=October 30, 2011|archive-date=October 31, 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111031130922/http://www.baseball-reference.com/blog/archives/16091|url-status=live}}</ref>
#'''[[Corey Seager]]''' (2020) – 20<ref name=AdolisBreaks/>
#[[Scott Spiezio]] (2002) – 19<ref name=DavidFreeseBreaks/>
#[[Sandy Alomar Jr.]] (1997) – 19<ref name=DavidFreeseBreaks/>
#[[David Ortiz]] (2004) – 19<ref name=DavidFreeseBreaks/>

==See also==
{{Portal|Baseball}}

*[[List of Major League Baseball runs batted in records]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

{{Baseball statistics|state=expanded}}
{{Baseball}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Run Batted In}}

[[Category:Baseball statistics]]
[[Category:Baseball terminology]]