Earned vs unearned runs in a baseball box score
Understand why a pitcher's earned-run total can differ from the runs the opposing team scored.
Team runs and pitcher analysis differ
A run counts in the team score whether the scorer classifies it as earned or unearned. The classification helps describe responsibility in the pitching record. It does not remove the run from the game result.
A hypothetical team can score four runs while a pitcher is charged with fewer earned runs. Read the column label before deciding the box score has failed to add up.
The scorer reconstructs the situation
MLB defines an earned run as one scoring against a pitcher without the benefit of an error or passed ball. The official scorer may need to judge whether the run would have scored without the defensive mishap. Unearned runs depend on an error or passed ball in that situation.
A pitcher leaving the game with runners on base can still be charged with earned runs if those runners later score. The pitcher on the mound at the instant a run crosses home is not always the one responsible for that runner.
ERA does not tell the whole story
Unearned runs do not count against a pitcher's ERA, but they still affect the team's chance to win. They can also add pitches and pressure. Calling a run unearned is a scoring classification, not a claim that it had no sporting cost.
On ScoreZaap, read runs, earned runs and the game result separately when detail is available. Avoid judging one outing from ERA alone or inventing a missing earned-run figure from the team total. Corrections to official scoring can alter the breakdown after an early live display.