box score

noun

Sports.

1. a record of the play of a game, especially a baseball or basketball game, in which, on separate sides of the record, the players on each team are listed in a column by name and position, with additional rows of columns, each headed by the abbreviation of the type of information to be given for each player.

Word History and Origins

Origin of box score¹

An Americanism dating back to 1910–15

Idioms and Phrases

A detailed summary of actions or an event, as in The President wanted to base his reelection campaign on his box score . The term comes from baseball, where since about 1910 it has signified a statistical summary in table form of the essential details of a game. About 1930 it began to be used figuratively, especially by politicians referring to their own record while in office.

In military slang, the number of dead, wounded, or missing in action. For example, Never mind the details of the battle; just give the lieutenant the box score . [c. 1950]

Example Sentences

In the box score, all was not well.

From Los Angeles Times

And — in what didn’t reflect itself in the box score the way it did on the hardwood — the Energizer Bunny chimed in with four.

From Los Angeles Times

And in the box score, it was bulk man Emmet Sheehan who was credited with the win, following Ohtani with 4 ⅓ innings of one-run ball to end the Dodgers’ longest losing streak since September 2017.

From Los Angeles Times

On June 19, 2014, the fans and commentators of baseball praised in dramatic fashion Kershaw’s dominant no-hitter, but with a subtle tone of confusion and denial of the ugly blemish recorded across the team’s box score: 0-0-1.

From Los Angeles Times

Look at any box score or listen to almost any broadcast, and even the most casual observer will notice references to what was essentially Hill’s invention — the plus-minus.

From Los Angeles Times