In baseball and softball, a full count is the common name for a count where the batter has three balls and two strikes. The term may derive from older scoreboards, which had three spaces for balls and two for strikes, since this is the maximum number of each that can be achieved before some type of play must occur. Many scoreboards still use light bulbs for this purpose, and thus a 3-2 count means all the bulbs are fully lit up.
Another strike against the batter will result in a strikeout, while another ball will result in a walk. However, a batter may maintain the two strikes indefinitely by hitting foul balls, so a full count does not always mean that only five pitches have been thrown.
A pitch which is thrown with a full count is often referred to as a payoff pitch, since it is likely to be a good pitch for the batter to swing at. With three balls already, the pitcher cannot afford to miss the strike zone, which would result in ball four and a walk for the batter.
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Category: Baseball terminology
