Run Meaning in Baseball

Definition: A run is the unit of scoring in baseball. A team earns one run when a player safely touches all four bases—first, second, third, and home—in that specific order.

The ultimate goal of the game is to score more runs than the opposing team. Unlike other sports that use “points” or “goals,” baseball uses runs to track the score. A player can score a run all at once by hitting a home run, or they can progress around the bases one at a time as their teammates get hits. Regardless of how it happens, the run only counts once the player successfully touches home plate.

Example: The runner on third base sprinted home on a wild pitch to score the winning run in the bottom of the ninth inning.