How to Calculate Slugging Percentage

By eHow Sports & Fitness Editor

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Slugging percentage is a classic baseball statistic and shows a hitter's power.

Instructions

Difficulty: Easy

Step1
Add up all official at bats. Do not include those at bats that resulted in a walk, sacrifices or hit by pitch.
Step2
Add up total bases. Total bases are how many bases you reached in all the times you hit safely.
Step3
Divide total bases by official at bats.
Step4
Round to the third decimal place. For example, .57051 is .571.

Tips & Warnings

  • If you hit safely but are out trying to get an extra base on the same play, you get the total base value of the last base you reached safely.
  • Slugging percentage tells you how many bases you hit for per time at bat.
  • Babe Ruth holds the record for lifetime slugging percentage in the major leagues with .690. This is why he is still considered the greatest power hitter.
  • Errors and fielder's choices are considered outs, not hits. They are included in official at bats.

Comments

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on 5/23/2008 Babe Ruth does hold the lifetime record for Slugging but no longer holds the record for Single-Season Slugging Percentage. *cringe* Barry Bonds broke the records (yes, two of .847 and .846) in 2001 with a slugging percentage of .863 with 411 total bases out of 476 at-bats. And, strangely enough, this does not really provide you with a slugging percentage, but it does give you the slugging average. MLB and other statistical entities simply use the original term because of past practice.

Anonymous

Anonymous said

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on 6/30/2006 To calculate total bases give one base for a single, two bases for a double, three bases for a triple and four bases for a home run ((1B)+(2Bx2)+(3Bx3)+(HRx4)) all this is divided by four.
example. Eric gets a single in his first at bat, gets out his second at bat, and hits a home run in his last at bat. That's ((1x1)+(1x4))/AB = (5)/3 = 1.66 slugging percentage

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eHow Article:  How to Calculate Slugging Percentage

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