Calculate batting average (BA), on-base percentage (OBP), and slugging percentage (SLG) from your hitting statistics. Enter hits and at-bats to get instant results.
Batting average (BA) is the most recognisable statistic in baseball, calculated simply as hits divided by at-bats. Stated as a three-decimal number (e.g., .300), it represents the rate at which a batter gets a hit during official at-bats. For over a century, batting average has been the primary yardstick for measuring a hitter's ability, and the ".300 hitter" remains an iconic benchmark in the sport.
Our Batting Average Calculator takes your raw hitting statistics — hits and at-bats at minimum — and computes BA instantly. You can also enter walks, hit-by-pitches, sacrifice flies, and extra-base hit breakdowns to see OBP and SLG alongside BA, giving a more complete picture of offensive performance.
Whether you're a Little League player tracking your season, a fantasy manager evaluating trade targets, or a casual fan comparing historical legends, this calculator gives you the core offensive stats in one place with clear explanations of what each number means.
While advanced analytics have moved beyond BA, it remains the most commonly discussed hitting statistic in casual baseball conversation. Understanding exactly how it's calculated and what constitutes a good batting average helps fans, players, and coaches communicate effectively. By combining BA with OBP and SLG in one tool, you get the traditional stat alongside the sabermetric upgrades that front offices prefer.
Batting Average: BA = H / AB. On-Base Percentage: OBP = (H + BB + HBP) / (AB + BB + HBP + SF). Slugging Percentage: SLG = Total Bases / AB, where TB = 1B + 2×2B + 3×3B + 4×HR. OPS = OBP + SLG.
Result: .300 BA, .382 OBP, .513 SLG, .895 OPS
BA = 165 / 550 = .300. Singles = 165 − 30 − 3 − 25 = 107. TB = 107 + 60 + 9 + 100 = 276. SLG = 276 / 550 = .502. OBP = (165 + 70 + 5) / (550 + 70 + 5 + 4) = 240 / 629 = .381. OPS = .381 + .502 = .884. This line would represent an All-Star quality hitter in modern MLB.
Batting average has been tracked since the earliest days of professional baseball in the 1870s. Henry Chadwick, a British-born sportswriter, adapted the concept from cricket's batting average to create the baseball version. It quickly became the most important offensive statistic and remained so for over a century. The batting title (awarded to the player with the highest BA) is still one of the sport's most prestigious individual honours.
Beginning with Bill James in the 1980s and accelerating with the "Moneyball" revolution, baseball analysts demonstrated that OBP is a better predictor of runs and wins than BA. Teams began prioritising walk rate and on-base ability over raw batting average. Today, wOBA (weighted on-base average) and wRC+ (weighted runs created plus) have further refined offensive measurement, but BA persists in mainstream conversation.
A .280 hitter on a contact-oriented approach with few walks may be less valuable than a .250 hitter who walks frequently and hits for power. Context matters: league environment, ballpark factors, position, and era all affect what constitutes a "good" BA. Always look at BA alongside OBP, SLG, and rate stats like wRC+ for a complete picture.
High school hitters often bat .300–.500+ due to weaker pitching. College hitters in Division I might average .280–.310. Minor league averages vary by level. In MLB, the overall batting average has ranged from .237 (2022) to .270+ in offensive-friendly seasons. Comparing across levels requires understanding the quality of competition.
In modern MLB, a good BA is .270–.290. Excellent is .300+. Elite is .330+. League average has been around .250–.260 in recent years, though it fluctuates by season. In college and high school, averages tend to be higher due to lesser pitching quality.
An at-bat occurs on most plate appearances where the batter puts the ball in play or strikes out. Walks, hit-by-pitches, sacrifices, and catcher interference are not counted as at-bats even though they are plate appearances. This distinction matters for calculating BA vs OBP.
Batting average ignores walks, which are valuable offensive events (reaching base). A player who walks frequently generates nearly as much value as one who singles frequently, but BA gives zero credit for walks. OBP treats any form of reaching base as valuable, making it a better predictor of run production.
In modern MLB (post-1900), Ted Williams was the last player to hit .400, batting .406 in 1941. Before that, several players achieved it, including Ty Cobb and Rogers Hornsby. In the current era, the closest was Tony Gwynn's .394 in the strike-shortened 1994 season.
The "Mendoza Line" is a colloquial term for a .200 batting average, named after light-hitting shortstop Mario Mendoza. Hitting below .200 is considered so poor that a player's career viability is in question. It has become a cultural reference for minimal acceptable performance in baseball.
BA = Hits / At-Bats. OBP = (Hits + Walks + HBP) / (At-Bats + Walks + HBP + Sac Flies). OBP is always equal to or higher than BA because the numerator includes walks and HBP while the denominator includes those extra plate appearances. A player batting .260 with a .370 OBP is highly disciplined at the plate.
OPS (On-base Plus Slugging) simply adds OBP and SLG together. Despite being mathematically unsophisticated (it adds different-denominator fractions), OPS correlates strongly with run production. Generally: .700 = average, .800 = good, .900 = excellent, 1.000+ = MVP level.