GUIDES · BETSLIP DOCTOR
When are a pickoff and a caught-stealing charge different records?
A pickoff is a between-pitch throw that retires a runner. A caught-stealing charge requires the runner to be put out while trying to steal or advance, or in another situation listed by Rule 9.07. A runner tagged while diving back to the original base is not automatically caught stealing.
For Bettors and cappers learning to read baseball records · Updated
A pickoff identifies the between-pitch throw
MLB defines a pickoff when the pitcher throws between pitches to a fielder who puts out or assists in retiring a baserunner. A throw to keep a runner close is a pickoff attempt; it is not a completed pickoff out if the runner is not retired.
The play description alone does not establish that the runner was attempting to steal.
Caught stealing depends on the runner’s action
Under Rule 9.07, the scorer charges caught stealing when the runner is put out, or would have been put out absent an error, while trying to steal, after being picked off and trying to advance, or while oversliding during a steal. Any move toward the next base after being picked off counts as an attempt to advance.
A runner picked off while diving back to a base has not attempted to steal. A runner thrown out while advancing on a wild pitch or passed ball is also not charged with caught stealing under the rule.
Two fictional throws to first
Hypothetical play A: a runner takes a lead, dives back toward first and is tagged when the pitcher throws to the fielder. The play can be a pickoff, but the runner was returning rather than trying to steal, so it is not automatically caught stealing. Hypothetical play B: after a pickoff throw, the runner moves toward second and is put out; Rule 9.07 treats a move toward the next base as an attempt to advance, so the scorer can charge caught stealing. If the runner is instead thrown out advancing on a wild pitch or passed ball, the rule excludes a caught-stealing charge.
Related questions
Is every out on the bases after a pickoff throw a caught stealing?
No. The scorer looks at whether the runner tried to advance. A runner tagged while returning to the original base is not automatically charged with caught stealing.