Passed ball

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A passed ball is a defensive miscue by the catcher on a pitch that allows a runner to advance at least one base. A passed ball should not be confused with a wild pitch, where the fault lies with the pitcher. A pitch is normally called a passed ball when the catcher is able to get his glove on the ball but fails to catch it cleanly.

The instances of passed balls have decreased with advances in the design of catcher's mitts. It must be noted that many of Geno Petralli's 35 passed balls in 1987 were as a result of catching knuckleballer Charlie Hough.


All Time Leaders
Span Player Total Notes
Career (pre-1900) Pop Snyder 647
Career (modern) Lance Parrish 192
Season (pre-1900) Ed Whiting 105 1882
Season (modern) Geno Petralli 35 1987
Game (pre-1900) Alex Gardner 12 05-10-1884
Game (modern) Rube Vickers 6 10-04-1902
Game (modern) Geno Petralli 6 08-30-1987
Game (modern) Jerry Goff 6 05-12-1996

See Also: battery error