In baseball box scores and statistical leaderboards, CS stands for Caught Stealing. It records the exact number of times a baserunner attempts to advance to the next base, gets thrown out by the defense, and is tagged for an out before reaching safety.
While it looks like a simple tally on a stat sheet, tracking caught stealing offers deep insight into aggressive baserunning, catcher throwing arms, and overall team strategy. Understanding how the official scorer applies this metric helps clarify why some stolen base attempts count against a player while others do not.
What is Caught Stealing and How is It Charged?
A caught stealing happens when a runner tries to take an extra base—usually second or third—during a pitch, but the catcher and fielder combine to record an out. The official Major League Baseball rules dictate specific conditions for when this stat goes on a player's record:
- The runner attempts a stolen base and is tagged out directly by the fielder.
- The runner is caught in a rundown (pickle) play between bases and ultimately tagged out.
- The runner makes a move toward the next base during a play, gets trapped, and fails to return safely to their original bag.
When any of these scenarios occur, the runner is charged with a caught stealing, and the defending catcher is credited with a caught stealing statistic on the defensive side.
The Math Behind Stolen Base Percentage
You rarely look at caught stealing in isolation. Instead, analysts combine it with stolen bases (SB) to calculate a player's Stolen Base Percentage (SB%). This formula reveals whether a runner's speed actually helps the offense or hurts it by killing rallies.
To find the percentage, divide total stolen bases by total attempts, which equals stolen bases plus caught stealing:
$$\text{SB%} = \frac{\text{SB}}{\text{SB} + \text{CS}}$$
Managers generally look for a success rate of at least 70% to 75%. If a player attempts twenty steals but gets caught eight times, their success rate drops to 61.5%. Even though they grabbed twelve bases, giving up eight outs stalls momentum, ruins scoring opportunities, and hands the ball back to the opponent.
Pickoffs vs. Caught Stealing
A common point of confusion for casual fans is distinguishing between a pickoff and a caught stealing. They look similar because a runner gets tagged out away from the base, but the scorekeeper treats them differently:
- Pickoffs: When a pitcher or catcher throws quickly to a base while the runner is taking a standard lead, and the fielder tags the runner out before a definite advance is initiated, it is scored as a pickoff. No caught stealing is charged.
- Caught Stealing: If the runner breaks for the next base when the pitcher starts their motion or delivers the ball, the play is classified as a steal attempt. If they are thrown out, it goes down as a caught stealing.
If a runner takes a lead, gets picked off, but attempts to scramble toward the next base during the rundown, the official scorer may upgrade the play to a caught stealing.
Why Caught Stealing Matters in Modern Sabermetrics
Old-school managers loved speed and ran players constantly. Modern analytical front offices view caught stealing through the lens of run expectancy. Losing an out on the bases eliminates roughly 0.3 to 0.4 expected runs per inning, depending on the number of runners already on base and the count.
Because of this steep cost, teams study catcher pop times and pitcher delivery speeds via advanced tracking systems like Statcast. Runners only get the green light if the mathematical probability of success outweighs the high penalty of an out.
Common Baserunning Mistakes That Lead to CS
Players get caught stealing for a few recurring reasons, ranging from physical reads to mental lapses:
- Poor jumps: Failing to read the pitcher's distinct delivery time to the plate leaves the runner reacting too late.
- Bad pitcher reads: Trying to run on a pitcher with a quick slide-step or a catcher with a rifle arm.
- Hesitation: Stopping mid-stride or stutter-stepping breaks momentum and allows the infielder to set up a clean tag.
- Oversliding: Reaching the base safely with speed, but popping up or sliding past the bag, allowing the fielder to maintain the tag.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does a caught stealing count against the batter?
No. Caught stealing is strictly a baserunning statistic. It affects the runner who attempted the steal and the pitcher/catcher combination on defense, but it does not alter the batter's batting average or on-base percentage.
What happens if a wild pitch or passed ball occurs during a steal attempt?
If a runner is already breaking for second base on the pitch, and the ball goes to the backstop, the runner advances. If they are thrown out because of an alert recovery by the catcher, a caught stealing is still charged. However, if the runner stays put and only tries to advance after seeing a wild pitch, they are not charged with a caught stealing if thrown out.
Who holds the record for most caught stealing?
Hall of Famer Rickey Henderson holds the Major League Baseball record for career caught stealing, getting thrown out 335 times. Because he also holds the all-time record for successful stolen bases (1,406), his high caught-stealing total is simply a byproduct of decades of aggressive, high-volume baserunning.
How do catchers use caught-stealing metrics?
Defensive metrics evaluate catchers heavily on their Caught Stealing Percentage (CS%), which measures how many attempted base stealers they successfully throw out. Elite defensive catchers routinely throw out 30% to 40% of opposing base stealers, forcing opponents to play a more stationary brand of station-to-station baseball.
