A stolen base shall be credited:

• A. When the runner attempts to steal a base.
• B. When the defense drops the batted ball in flight.
• C. When he is intentionally put on base.
• D. When he advances a base without the aid of a base hit, a putout, a fielding error or fielder's choice.

Answer: (A)

Stolen base is earned when a runner attempts to steal a base during the pitch and reaches the base safely. The act of attempting to steal is what triggers the statistic; if the runner is thrown out, it’s recorded as a caught stealing rather than a stolen base. The other scenarios described—a defensive error on a batted ball, an intentional base on balls, or advancing without a base hit, putout, error, or fielder’s choice—do not define a stolen base on their own. So the best choice is the one that states the stolen base is credited when the runner attempts to steal a base, since the attempt is the action that creates the statistic.