MLB · By the Numbers
The answers, from every game since 2024
Baseball is a sport of confident claims: home teams win, day games are pitcher's duels, heat means offense. We run a database of 6,320 MLB games, so instead of guessing, we counted. A few of these cut against the conventional wisdom.
53%
home teams win
Does home field advantage matter in MLB?
The home team wins, but by a lot less than any other major sport.
49%
a run scores in the 1st
What is NRFI? How often does a run score in the first inning?
No Run First Inning, defined, with the actual first-inning scoring rate.
+1.5
runs, cold to hot
Does weather affect scoring in MLB?
Hot games score over a run more than cold ones. The effect is real and clean.
67%
scored first, won
How often does the team that scores first win in MLB?
First blood is worth a lot in a low-scoring sport. Here's the number.
9%
go to extras
How often do MLB games go to extra innings?
Roughly one in twelve. The real rate of free baseball.
8.8
runs, day games
Do day games score less than night games in MLB?
The day-game scoring dip is far smaller than its reputation.
Want to slice it yourself?
Every number here comes out of Explore, our Pro query tool. Filter every game by home/away, handedness, weather, rest, bullpen and more, then export the rows.
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