On Baseball - Anthony Magarello

The Game
“Baseball’s a simple game. They throw it, I hit it; they hit it, I catch it.” - Willie Mays
The baseball rule book is thick and is quite detailed. However, while the game can be complex, it
is basically simple to understand. The following describes what the spectator must know to follow the
action with some understanding. (refer to the diagram on the previous page)
The idea is for a player to touch, in order, first base, second base, third base and home plate,
which are arranged in a diamond. Doing so allows a score, called a run, for his team. The team with
most runs at the end of the game wins. No ties are allowed. (definitions of highlighted words are
defined below)
The game begins when the pitcher throws a ball toward the batter on the opposite team. The
pitcher must throw the baseball such that it is possible that the batter will hit the baseball. Thus, the
pitcher must throw the ball over home plate and between the armpits and knees of the batter as the
batter stands alongside home plate prepared to swing. The three dimensional area over home plate, not
higher than the batter’s armpits or lower than his knees, is called the strike zone. The batter may or may
not elect to swing his bat at any pitch, whether or not it is in the strike zone. (The umpire decides if a
pitch is or is not a strike.) The following are possible outcomes of a pitched ball:
1. If the batter does not swing at a pitch in the strike zone, the umpire will call that pitch a strike.
2. If the batter swings and misses any pitch, whether or not it is in the strike zone, it is also called a
strike.
3. If the pitcher misses the strike zone and the batter does not swing at the pitch, the umpire will
call it a ball.
4. If a pitched baseball contacts the bat, it is a strike even if the batter did not swing.
5. If the batter hits a pitched baseball such that it lands between the foul lines, the baseball is in
play, and the batter must run to first base and may elect to continue around the bases in an
effort to reach home plate and score a run.
6. If the batted baseball lands outside the field of play delineated by the foul lines, it is a strike.
7. If the batted baseball is struck such that it cannot be caught by the defense (called fielders)
before it hits the ground, the batter runs to first base. He is awarded a hit and can stay at first
base or elect to run to other bases in an effort to score a run at home plate.
8. If the batted baseball is caught by a fielder before it touches the ground, even if the ball is not
between the foul lines, it is called a fly out and the batter ends his turn at bat.
9. If the batted baseball does not go in the air but rather bounces along the ground, the batter
must run to first base. If he can reach first base before a fielder throws the ball to the first
baseman who is standing on first base, the batter gets a hit and stays on the base. If the fielder
throws the ball and it is caught by the first baseman while he is standing on first base, it is called
a ground out and ends the batter’s turn at bat.
10. If the pitcher can throw three strikes before the batter hits the baseball in play, it is called a
strikeout and the batter loses his turn at bat.
11. If the pitcher throws four balls before the batter puts the baseball in play, it is called a walk, and
the batter proceeds to first base.
A run is scored by a batter who runs from first base, to second, to third, and to home plate. The
batter, now called a runner, can score as a result of his own hit or in conjunction with the hits and walks
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of his teammates who bat after him. For example, if a batter reaches first base safely by a walk, and the
next batter hits a ball that lands safely in the outfield, the player who walked, the runner, can choose to
run to each base until he reaches home plate for a score. However, a player is out if he is tagged with
the ball by a fielder as he is running to a base. A player must stay on a base or risk being tagged out.
(Two players cannot occupy the same base.)
After three outs are recorded, the pitcher’s team become batters and the other team goes on
the defense and become fielders. When the batters make three outs, the inning is over. (An inning
contains six outs, three by each team.) Nine innings comprises the game unless the score is even. The
game continues until one team scores a run or more and the other team, in an equal number of innings,
fails to score as many runs. Thus, if after nine innings both teams have three runs each, a tenth inning is
played. If in the top half of the tenth inning, a team scores two runs, the second team has a chance to
bat in their half of the tenth inning. If they score fewer than two runs, the first team is the winner. If
they score three runs, the game is immediately over and the second team wins because they scored
more runs in the same number of innings, in this case 10, as the first team. (The first team is always the
visiting team; the second is the home team.)
Basic Baseball Terms
runs - noun = points scored. The team with the most runs wins.
pitcher = the defensive player who starts the action by throwing the baseball toward the batter. There is
one pitcher for each team.
batter = the offensive player who tries to hit the thrown baseball from the pitcher. Each player has a
chance to be a batter.
runner = a batter who has reached base safely.
out = occurs when a batter fails safely to reach (first) base. Twenty-seven outs per team comprise the
usual game.
at bat = the time a player tries to hit the baseball with his bat. Each player, in order, gets a chance to bat.
The batting order may not be changed.
inning = a section of the game (usually one-ninth) in which both teams have made three outs.
extra innings = played when the score is tied after the regulation nine innings. (Mostly games end in nine
innings.)
infield = the area of the baseball playing field where the pitcher and batter compete. It is the area within
and just past the diamond where the first, second, and third basemen as well as the shortstop stand in
defense.
outfield = the area of the playing field farthest from the batter. The left, center, and right fielders stand
there in defense.
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diamond = the area of the infield in which home plate and the bases are located.
home plate = the bottom of the diamond next to which the batter stands to hit the thrown baseball from
the pitcher. It is also the place that runs are scored when a batter returns to it after touching the three
bases of the diamond.
bases = the three white sacks that are located at the upper three points of the diamond.
first base = the right most corner of the diamond and the first leg in scoring a run. It is 90 feet from
home plate – counter clockwise.
second base = the top of the diamond and the second leg of scoring a run.
third base = the left most corner of the diamond and the third leg of scoring a run. It is 90 feet from
home plate.
pitcher’s rubber = the place the pitcher must stand when throwing the baseball toward the batter. It is
60 feet 6 inches from home plate.
pitcher’s mound = a slightly elevated, grassless area wherein the pitcher’s rubber is affixed.
left field = from home plate, the left most third of the outfield.
center field = the third of the outfield directly behind second base.
right field = from home plate, the right third of the outfield.
foul lines = chalk lines running to the left of left field and the right of right field inscribing the area of fair
play. Balls hit outside the foul lines are foul balls, and batters may not run; however, fielders can catch
those foul balls from the air for outs.
left fielder = defensive player who stands in left field.
center fielder = defensive player who stands in center field.
right fielder = defensive player who stands in right field.
first baseman = defensive player who usually catches thrown baseballs from the other infielders before
the batter reaches first base.
second baseman = defensive player who stands between first and second base who usually catches a
batted baseball that bounces before he throws it to first base.
third baseman = defensive player who stands alongside third base and usually catches a batted baseball
that bounces before he throws it to first base.
shortstop = defensive player who is positioned between third and second base and farther away from
home plate than the other infielders. He also catches bouncing balls and throws to first base.
catcher = positioned directly behind home plate, he squats down to receive the pitched baseballs. He
wears protective gear.
batter’s box = chalk lines indicating where a batter must stand to await a thrown ball from the pitcher.
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strike = a pitch that goes in the strike zone, or is hit out of bounds, or is swung at and missed.
strike zone = the 3-D area over home plate and between the armpits and knees of the batter. The pitch
must pass through this zone to be called a strike.
ball = (not to be confused with the baseball itself) a pitch that fails to pass through the strike zone.
umpire = the determiner of strikes, balls, and outs. There are four, one at each corner of the diamond.
in play = when a ball is hit between the foul lines (or if it can be caught before falling). Note: once a
pitcher at the mound receives the ball from the umpire, the ball is in play and runners are free to run at
their own risk.
fielders = the nine defensive players, including the pitcher, who can catch a hit baseball.
score = noun – the safe arrival of a player at home plate after he touched all other bases. A run.
fly out = an out recorded when a fielder catches a batted ball before it touches the ground.
ground out = an out recorded when a fielder throws a ball to first base and it is caught by the first
baseman, standing on the base, before the batter reaches first base.
walk = noun – occurs after four balls are recorded allowing a batter to reach first base.
strikeout = occurs after three strikes are recorded forcing the batter to lose his turn, an out being
recorded.
foul tip = with two strikes on a batter, a ball that is struck by the bat but goes foul. It is not counted as a
third strike, and the pitcher must throw again. Basically a “do-over.”
hit - noun = a batted baseball that lands on the ground without being caught or that allows the batter to
reach base before he is tagged by a fielder or before the thrown baseball reaches the base toward which
the batter was headed. Note that once a batter reaches a base before the baseball, he is safe and stays
on the base until he chooses to run.
force out = if the base(s) before the base upon which a runner is standing is occupied, and the ball is hit
on the ground, the runner must run to the next base. Should the thrown ball reach that base before the
runner, that runner is “forced out.” A runner on first base is always forced.
tag out = occurs when a runner not on a base is touched by the ball or by a fielder’s glove holding a ball.
Note, runners can run at any time during play but must reach a base before being tagged.
steal = occurs when a runner reaches his intended base as the pitcher is throwing the ball. Steals are
thwarted when the catcher throws the ball to an infielder who tags the runner before he reaches his
intended base. Then the runner is out.
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WHY BASEBALL IS SO POPULAR
Professional baseball in the United States has been played for just over a century and continues
to be among the most popular sports in the nation. The season includes 162 games over a period of six
months. In October, the best teams compete in a series of play-offs to determine which two teams will
play in the World Series, which usually ends by November 1. Over 30 million fans per year attend the
games, and countless millions watch on TV. The revenues continue to rise even as the best players earn
20 million dollars per year. Why?
There are a number of reasons for the lasting popularity of baseball, among them is that it is
played outdoors in good weather, the fields are quite beautiful in their symmetry and color, and its
tradition of being “America’s pastime” (much as football [soccer] is in Europe and South America). But it
is the game itself, its simplicity and complexity, its speed and leisurely pace, that attracts and beguiles so
many fans.
But baseball, given today’s electronic age, tends to be a bit anachronistic and so is not for
everyone. Football, basketball, and hockey provide more “action.” However, for the knowledgeable fan,
baseball has much to offer, even its leisurely pace which allows for anticipation of action to grow.
Baseball, like mankind’s real favorite activity, is a game of anticipation. Sufficient time is provided for a
situation to develop, for assessments of possibilities to be made, and for tension to build before a
sudden climax of speed and power provides relief.
The ringing of the batted ball occasions the roar of the crowd, and men run in different
directions to do the best they can to control a round hard ball moving at 100 miles an hour. Unlike
basketball where scores are made every minute, baseball scores take time. But not always. At times a
score takes a half hour to develop, at other times a half-second. One never knows but only anticipates.
And unlike in football and basketball, the best team cannot be counted on to win. The best
record after 162 games is most often a team that has won less than 60% of its games. Similarly, the best
hitters are successful only 30% of the time. In actuality, any team can beat any other team on any given
day, and that means that every fan can anticipate that his team will win the game at hand. Likely this is
due to the difficulty of dominating what Willie Mays said was a simple game: “They throw it, I hit it;
they hit it, I catch it.”
The problem lies in the hitting, catching, and throwing the little rock covered in white leather
and stitched in red nylon. Pitchers routinely throw the ball at 90 mph allowing the batter swinging a
rounded bat only the time it takes to blink an eye to decide if the pitch is hittable. Compounding the
difficulty is that the ball, with its raised stitching, tends to run off line such that a ball that in the first
half-second appeared to be belt high passes the bat at ankle height. That the bat is rounded reduces the
striking area of the round ball should contact be made. Often this leads to weakly struck balls and easy
chances for the fielders to record outs. Worse yet for the batter, even well-struck balls wherein the
center of the bat strikes the center of the ball can result in outs if the ball is hit at or even close to a
fielder and his big glove.
Catching the ball is not as easy as it may look on TV, which tends to slow the actual speed of the
ball. Baseballs are hit on the ground at over 90 mph, and they don’t often bounce straight and in line.
Infielders have less than four seconds to catch the ball and throw it across the diamond to first base. Fly
balls tend to be easier to catch, but sun and wind sometimes conspire against the outfielder as do the
unforgiving stands that ring the playing area.
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Throwing the ball presents its own problems. While the average man can throw a baseball from
the pitcher’s mound to home plate at 60 mph, some professionals can throw it at 100 mph. The
problem, of course, is to throw it that fast in the strike zone. Amazingly, there are players who hit solidly
such fireballs. The trick for the pitcher is to throw the ball regardless of speed such that the batter will
miss. Thus successful pitcher must throw a variety of pitches which move in different directions --- all
under his control.
But throwing the ball is not reserved for pitchers; fielders must be able to throw hard and with
accuracy from longer distances. The most demanding throw is made by the shortstop when a ground
ball is hit past the third baseman. The shortstop running to his right must catch the ball as his
momentum takes him away from his target and throw the ball to the first baseman before the runner
reaches. The throw is half again as long as the throw a pitcher makes off a mound while facing his
target.
Aside from the physical difficulty of hitting, catching, and throwing a baseball, the game is
unique in its variety of players. Basketball players must be tall and football players big, but baseball
players come in all sizes and body types. Players as large as 6’8” and 290 pounds compete with players
5’6” and 140 pounds. What matters most is one’s reflexes while at bat or in the field. Running speed is
most helpful but not necessary. Some of best fielders who ever played were not fleet of foot (Brooks
Robinson, for example), and some of the greatest power hitters were small men (Joe Morgan and Mel
Ott were two). So it is with throwing fastballs from the mound. While most pitchers are six and a half
feet tall and 220 pounds, a big help in generating leverage and arm speed, some pitchers are diminutive
with lightning fastballs (Ron Guidry and Pedro Martinez each weighed in at 150 pounds.) In 1950, 5’6”
shortstop Phil Rizzuto won the Most Valuable Player award over Hall of Famers Joe DiMaggio and Ted
Williams. In the National League that year 6’6” pitcher Jim Konstanty won the MVP.
An advantage that baseball has is that while it is a simple, it is complex, but that complexity is
not hidden from view of the fans. Everything in baseball is out in the open. Everyone on the field and in
the stands knows where the ball is at all times. Every player is in plain view, and his individual play easily
assessed. If he drops a ball, everyone sees it and no other player is to blame. If he clouts a ball into the
bleachers, everyone knows it was he alone who did it. This leads to an aspect of baseball that exists to a
degree in no other sport: statistical assessment.
While baseball is considered a team sport, it has the unique distinction of providing continual
one on one competition. Each of the 150 pitches thrown in an average game concerns a pitcher and a
batter (the catcher is part of the battery) in head to head competition. Thus at its core, baseball is
essentially a game between two players – not the same two, but always just two. Should the batter miss
the ball, the catcher becomes involved. Should the batter hit the ball, the fielders are involved.
Depending on the situation, several players are needed to complete a play. Of course, all of this is seen,
and every play is recorded for posterity; but despite the volumes of stats generated by one game, the
only number that really counts is the number of runs scored by each team at the end of the game. A
team may score twenty runs and lose, or it may score just one run and win – and the outcome can never
be predicted with anything approaching accuracy. And no player can win a game by himself. Even a
pitcher who allows no runs or hits for an entire game depends on his fielders to control the batted balls
for outs and his hitters to provide a run. [see DRUGS IN BASEBALL below]
Because everyone can see every play, and because of the strategy employed by players and
managers, fans can assess the effectiveness of such strategies – and they do, often loudly when they
believe, for example, a runner chose to run when he shouldn’t have or a manager replaces a pitcher who
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has been doing well. Because baseball is so difficult to play, strategy is often the difference between
winning and losing, and that fans can see the strategy and predict it even before it is employed adds a
great deal to the enjoyment of watching the game.
Yet another dimension offered by baseball are the players as individuals. Every player is seen by
himself on the field or at bat, and with HD TV, they become familiar faces rather than the faces of a few
megastars of the past. They have become more than just the numbers on their backs; they have become
personalities. This adds a personal touch important to fan interest. After seeing up to 162 games over
the course of six months, the fan of a particular team sees, say, Derek Jeter the man, not just the team’s
shortstop. Over twenty years, a unique emotional attachment occurs to a person one has never met.
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FREE AGENCY
Fans, players, and owners have different interests, and at times they conflict. Owners clearly
want to make the greatest profit possible, and players want to earn as much money as they can. Fans’
motives are less monetary. They want two things: their teams to win and their favorite players to be
successful on the field, not necessarily at the bank.
Before free-agency, players were bound by the teams who hired them. A player could play only
for the team who first signed him unless he were traded to another team, for which he had to play – or
not play at all. Courts ruled that baseball was an industry like no other, and that fans would best be
served by players not hopping from one team to another as free agents. As stated above, fan association
with “their” players was very much part of the game’s allure. Under the old rules, players changed
teams when they were traded, but trades were few and seldom involved the best players. That meant
that Duke Snider was always going to be a Dodger, Willie Mays a Giant, and Mickey Mantle a Yankee.
In the late 1960’s, courts ruled that players had the right to be free of management’s restraints
and could, after a time, sell their services to the highest bidder. Obviously a coup for the players. The
free market determined the value of players, which proved they had been grossly underpaid. Salaries
skyrocketed from the $100 thousand per year paid to DiMaggio and Mantle to the $20 million paid to
several of today’s stars.
However, the fans now have teams that radically change year after year. No longer are the “Boys
of Summer” a team for a generation of fans. The Duke, Campy, and Pee Wee would have probably gone
to the hated Yankees or Giants, who likely would have lost Mickey, Whitey, and Yogi to free agency.
Today, fans can have a favorite player one year and lose him the next. Radical personnel changes every
year destroy a fan’s interest in a team to the point that he can be loyal only to his team’s laundry.
Amazingly, the sport remains popular, no doubt because of the greatness of the game itself. Baseball, it
turns out, is bigger than any player or any team.
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THE NEGRO IN BASEBALL
Until the late 1940’s, Major League Baseball was a whites-only association. It wasn’t that there
weren’t fine Negro League players who could shine in the Big Leagues, it’s just that they were not given a
chance. But then, Dodger owner Branch Rickey decided to select a player from the Negro Leagues for
his Brooklyn team. The best player in the Negro Leagues was catcher Roy Campanella, but instead he
chose Jackie Robinson whom he thought would be more hard-nosed. Robinson turned out not only to
be tough enough to withstand the taunts of rival players but also to be an All-Star second baseman. His
success on and off the field led the next year to an American League contract for outfielder Larry Doby.
When the Dodgers signed Campanella he rewarded them with three Most Valuable Player Awards. By
the 1970’s perhaps half the major leaguers were black. (Why today so many fewer blacks are playing has
much to do with the absence of inner city amateur baseball.)
Major League baseball has sought to assuage its guilt over its barring of black players. It has
pushed for election to the Major League Baseball Hall of Fame players who never played in the Major
Leagues – as long as they had done well in other leagues, and as long as they were Negro. Players
named Andy Cooper and Martin Dihigo accompany Babe Ruth, Lou Gehrig, and Willie Mays in the hall.
Not to be outdone in the racial sycophancy department, Bud Selig, Commissioner of Baseball since 1992
(and a Jew with obvious guilt issues), determined that the number 42 worn by Jackie Robinson can
never be worn by any other player. Not the number 3 worn by Babe Ruth who virtually alone
popularized the sport across the world, but the player chosen by Branch Rickey to be the first Negro
player. It was Rickey who broke the color line; Robinson, a fine gentleman and player, did nothing but
accept a contract, as gladly would have Doby or Campanella had they been selected first. Compounding
the idiocy is that Selig has ordered that on the anniversary of Robinson’s first major league game, all
players of every team must wear the number 42! At least if white players were forced to blacken their
faces in honor of the Negro, they would be identifiable while on the field, and fans would not have to
toss away their scorecards.
Branch Rickey
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DRUGS IN BASEBALL
Almost from the outset of Selig’s administration, baseball players began using performance
enhancing drugs [PED’s]. As many the players did so, their on-field performance became astounding.
Homerun records were obliterated, and scoring could be counted on in virtually any inning, unless the
pitcher were using PED’s. Older stars became rejuvenated playing better than they had in their primes,
and several young stars were projected to outperform the greatest players ever to have played. Fans
didn’t seem to mind; in fact they came out in droves, and Selig claimed credit for increased attendance
under his watch. Selig, an obvious stooge for the owners, turned a blind eye on the issue despite the
publication of book by a player who admitted using PED’s and who claimed that many others were doing
the same. After a call for his resignation by baseball writers, Selig claimed that he was “shocked,
shocked” that players were doping. He instituted, in cooperation of the player’s union, meaningless
“penalties” which did little to curb the practice. Throughout the decade of the 90’s and into the new
millennium, players shattered not only team records of achievement but major league records as well. It
was farcical to many fans and writers, but most fans cared little as long as they got to see their heroes
outdo the great players of their fathers’ and grandfathers’ generations.
Finally, after twenty years of tacitly permitting abuse of the game, Selig was forced to enact
stringent penalties and frequent drug testing to stop the embarrassment. Of course, there were a few
pundits who thought drugs use should be allowed, especially because it is not entirely possible to detect
certain drugs that enhance production. Some PED’s wear off in a hour or two and leave no trace even
immediately after a game. They even have a name: The Clear.
Fortunately, as this is being written, Selig’s days are numbered as Commissioner, but the damage
to the integrity to the game has been done. Records in baseball have been very much a part of the game
and were used to compare not only players currently on the field but with players of the past. Babe
Ruth hit 60 homers in a 154-game schedule. Roger Maris hit 61 homers in a 162-game schedule. Those
records stood for thirty years each before several steroid users bested them.
Baseball writers who determine who goes into their Hall of Fame have yet to elect any player
whose production was obviously enhanced by drugs, but anyone who played during what is now called
“The Steroid Era” may have, unknown to the public, used drugs. Nothing can be done about the past,
nor can anything be done about those who use The Clear today. Sadly, every excellent player of the past
or playing now is tainted by his teammates who did cheat and continue to cheat. This fan no longer
considers valid any records or statistics recorded from 1990 forward.
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BASEBALL INJURIES
More players are disabled now than ever before. Tendon tears and muscle strains are so
common that teams are forced to use twice as many players to get through a season than had been
normal. Part of it may be due to free agency, the other may be due to excessive muscle building.
Since players are in essence independent contractors paid millions (the average player earns
over a million dollars per season; stars more than $20 million), whether or not a team wins or loses is
financially a non-issue. What is of importance is the contractor’s individual performance. If he plays
with a physical ailment, his production is likely to drop. Continued play may cause permanent damage,
and his value in the market may plummet. As the player’s contract can span several seasons, no
particular game is of any importance; the player gets all of his money whether he plays or not and
regardless of how well he performs. All that really matters to today’s player is the last year of the
contract when he must negotiate a new one. Perhaps that is why so many players miss so many games
--- except in the last year of the contract when they seem not to have so many problems.
That there are an excessive number of serious injuries today may be due to the attempt to
strengthen artificially players’ muscles. Many chemicals, even those not banned, can strengthen a player
beyond what for his body is natural. Extra muscle power can stress ligaments and soft cartilage beyond
their capability causing them to give way. Coupled with weight training, players can get “too strong.”
Interestingly, training with heavy weights was considered deleterious by 20th Century baseball trainers.
One cannot be certain. However, what is certain is that there are now many more serious injuries since
weight lifting has become de rigueur.
Gabe Kapler, Red Sox outfielder.
Out for a year after a ruptured Achilles tendon,
he retired from the game soon after.
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Crossing the Baseball Lexicon
A guide to help understand TV baseball announcers and analysts.
Maybe baseball players deserve to be multi-millionaires; they obviously perform magic right in
front of our eyes. The average fan knows that there is only one way to hit a ball: swing the bat so it
meets the ball. But on TV we learn that they can hit “the other way,” leaving many of us wondering just
what that one other way could be. We learn also that pitchers can pull a string even though there are no
strings in baseball. On extraordinarily well-groomed baseball diamonds players routinely find “holes”
that cannot be seen by the naked eye. And these holes seem to move.
Obviously TV announcers use a code that only some fans have any hope of breaking. Those who
have played organized baseball from Little League to college have a basic understanding of these terms,
and even they can be confused by the analyses of expert commentators. Unless they have kept up with
the evolution of baseball jargon, even they can be as lost as the casual fan.
But it is of real value for fans to know what the baseball announcer, play-by-play or color
commentator is saying. These observers know the game well and can offer insights that enrich the fan’s
enjoyment of the game. The problem is that the announcers use baseball speak, and therefore
communicate largely to experts while the majority of fans derive little from the observations of the
experts for lack of understanding the language.
What follows is a lexicon of terms and phrases which are routinely used by baseball analysts.
There are two sections, one of terms that are basically definitions and the other of phrases (and single
words) that tend to be descriptive of action. They are alphabetically arranged with quick and easy
definitions which can easily be referenced while watching.
While the lists are not complete, every effort was made to include the most important and most
used expressions. Printing the 7-page list below and using it during the game will help decode the
broadcasters’ jargon. Simply highlight the lists, copy them to a blank page of your word program, and
print. You can also email me with any others I missed or that you may need clarified. Like an umpire, if I
don’t know, I’ll make it up. ☺
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Term
Explanation
Aboard
Arm
Assist
At-bat
Away
Back door
Bailing out
Bases loaded
Batter’s box
Battery
Behind in the count
Belt
Black
Bloop single
Blown save
Board
Bottom half (inning)
Box
Breaking ball
Broken bat single
Bullpen
Bunt
Called strike
Cannon
Change up [change]
Checked swing
Chin music
Clean-up (batter)
Closed stance
Closer
Clothes line
Come backer
Come off the ball
Corner
Count
Curve
Cutoff (man)
Cutter
Cy Young award
Day to day
Deals
Deck (“on…”)
Delivers
On base
Player’s ability to throw the ball
Throw to a baseman who gets the out
When batter faces pitcher: a time up
Side of the plate opposite from batter
Back side of plate opposite the batter
Stepping back away from a pitched ball
When there are 3 runners on base
Where batter must stay and await pitch
Tandem of pitcher and catcher
Batter is at a disadvantage: more strikes than balls
Pitch location relative to the batter: easier to hit
Outer edges of the plate (no longer painted black)
A soft hit landing in front of an outfielder
Relief pitcher’s failure to keep his team ahead
Scoreboard
That part of an inning in which home team bats
Where batter stands or the pitcher’s mound
A pitch that does not go straight but veers
The bat broke but the ball landed safely (uncaught)
Area in which pitchers prepare to enter the game
To block a pitch with the bat; not a swing
Batter failed to swing at a strike (umpire judgment)
Strong throwing ability; arm
Pitch thrown slower than normal
Batter stops his swing in mid arc
Pitches that come close to a batter’s head
Fourth position in order (lineup) of batters
Batter’s hip faces more the plate than pitcher
A pitcher used to pitch the last inning or two
A low, hard hit ball [also a “frozen rope” or “rope”]
Ball hit back to the pitcher
To twist one’s hips too soon before swinging bat
Inside or outside edge of home plate
How many balls & strikes at a given time
Slow pitch which arcs downward
Relayer of throw from outfielder to baseman
A fast ball which does not go straight
Yearly award to a league’s best pitcher
Unsure when injured player will play again, but soon
Pitcher pitches [also “delivers”]
Next to bat or the place to wait (circle)
Pitcher pitches [also “deals”]
14
DL [disabled list]
Double play
Downstairs or down
Drag bunt
Dropped down
E
Earned run
Even count
Extra bases
Extra innings
Eye (“good…”)
E.R.A.
Fists (“on the…”)
Five-tool player
Fly out
Fly ball pitcher
Force (…play or …out)
Foul (or …ball)
Foul pole
Foul tip
Four-seamer
Full count
Gap
Glove man
Gold glove
Grand slam
Ground ball (“grounder”)
Ground ball pitcher
Ground out
Ground rule
Handcuff
Handle
Hanging curve (“hanger”)
Head hunter
Heater
Heavy pitch or ball
High [pitch]
High strike
Hit
Hit and run
Hitter’s count
Hitter’s umpire
Hole
Hole (“the …”)
List of those who can’t play for many days
One batted ball leading to two outs
Low pitch, ball or strike
Bunt while moving to first base (lefty hitter only)
Pitched from pitcher’s head height or below
Error: misplay allowing a base(s) to be attained
Run scored without an error by a fielder
1 ball & 1 strike or 2 balls & 2 strikes
Double, triple, or home run
When a game [score even] goes more than 9 innings
Batter’s ability to judge balls and strikes
Pitcher’s avg. of allowed runs per 9 innings
Batter’s hands as he holds the bat
Player who does everything very well
Batted ball caught in the air by an outfielder
Pitcher who often allows batters to hit fly balls
Runner must go to next base & is out as a result
Ball hit outside the game boundary (lines)
Pole signaling game boundary: “fair pole”
A ball grazed by bat; ball not in play; a “strike”
A fastball which tends to go straight & high
When there are three balls and two strikes
Expanse of turf between and beyond outfielders
Player who can field (catch balls) well
Yearly award for best fielding at each position
Homerun hit with three men on base (bases loaded)
Bouncing ball hit to an infielder
Pitcher who often induces batters to hit bouncing balls
Bouncing ball which leads to the batter’s being out
Rule particular to a ballpark or stadium
Have a ball thrown or hit too hard to catch
Part of bat close to batter’s hands
A pitch failing to arc downward enough to avoid being hit
Pitcher who throws at batters’ heads
Fastball; pitch thrown more than 90 mph
Pitch that has great spin and dips downward
Ball pitched over batter’s armpits level; a “ball”
A pitch at batter’s chest level
Any single, double, triple, or homerun (homer)
Base runner runs just before batter swings [run & hit]
2 balls & 1 or 0 strikes; 3 balls & 1 or 0 strikes
Tends to call balls on close pitches
When a pitcher is in a predicament
An area between players where balls cannot be caught
15
Hole (“1-9…”)
Hook
Horse [or workhorse]
In [or inside]
Inside corner
Interference
K
Kitchen
Knuckle ball
Knuckle curve
Ladder [“up the …”]
Late break
Late [batter]
Leather
Left-hand column
Left on [“…base”]
Letters, the
Long relief or reliever
Looking
Looped out
Looper, little
Low [pitch]
Line drive [or “liner”]
Little ball
Match up
Message pitch
Middle relief [or …man]
Mop up
Mound
Move to first
Movement [on the pitch]
Moving fast ball
M.V.P.
Numbers (“excellent…”)
Obstruction
Off-speed [“change-up”]
On-base average
On board
On deck
On the board
On the road
Open stance
Other way, the
Out [or “outside”]
Position in the batting order
A sweeping curve ball
Pitcher who pitches many innings in a season (200)
Close to the batter
Side of plate closest to batter, a “strike”
Illegally preventing a batter from swinging freely
Symbol for strikeout
Fast pitch close to batter’s stomach, ball or strike
Slow pitch that flutters like a butterfly
Slow curve ball that hardly flutters
Metaphor for successively higher pitches
Pitch that arcs just before crossing the plate
Pitch passed the batter before his bat passed the plate
Fielder’s glove or mitt
Location for listing wins; losses are on right
Runners on base at the third out; did not score
Chest high logo on batter’s shirt; upper “strike” limit
Relief of 1st or 2nd pitcher, not at end of game
Did not swing at a pitch (also “Taking” a pitch)
Softly hit ball in an easy arc to an outfielder
Softly hit ball dropping before an outfielder
Ball pitched below knee level of batter; a “ball”
Ball hit hard but low; can be a hit or an out
Offensive strategy relying on all but power hitting
Comparison between pitcher and batter
Pitch designed to make a batter fear being hit
Relief of 1st or 2nd pitcher, not at end of game
Pitching after a game is virtually lost
Raised area of infield from which pitcher pitches
Pitcher’s ploy to keep runner from advancing
When a pitch does not go straight but wobbles or veers
Pitch does not only go straight but veers or dips
Yearly award to best player in his league
Statistics which measure degree of success
Illegally preventing fielder from catching a ball
Pitch that goes slower than normal
Batter’s % reaching base per try (per at bat)
On base
Next to bat
Scored and recorded
Not at the team’s stadium
Batter’s both hips face the pitcher
The side of the field that the batter faces when at bat
Pitch located far from the batter
16
Outside (corner)
Passed ball
Payoff pitch
Pen [or “bullpen”]
Pick-off
Pick it
Pitcher’s count
Pull [“… it”]
Put out
Relief
Rising fastball
Role player
Rubber
Run (while on base)
Run (score)
R.B.I.
Sacrifice bunt
Sacrifice fly
Save
Scoring position
Set (“…position”)
Sinker
Slider
Slide step
Southpaw
Split-finger (or “splitter”)
Squeeze […play or …bunt]
Stance, closed
Stance, open
Stay back
Stay behind the ball
Steal
Stop (in pitcher’s motion)
Straight change (pitch)
Stranded runners
Stretch
Strike zone
Stud
Stuff [“good…”]
Suicide squeeze (bunt)
Switch hitter
Table
Tag play
Tag up
Side of the plate farthest from batter, a “strike”
Runner advances because catcher failed to stop pitch
Pitch when the count is 3 balls and 2 strikes
Area in which pitchers prepare to enter the game
When pitcher throws to a base to get a runner out
Great ability to catch grounders
0 balls & 1 or 2 strikes; 1 ball & 2 strikes
Hit to the side of the field from which the batter swings
Catch ball, tag runner or tag base to record an out
Replace a current pitcher
Fast and high pitch that seems to rise
One who plays occasionally as the situation demands
Where foot must remain when pitching
Attempt to steal, when referring to a base runner
The only scoring unit that determines a win or loss
Run batted in: credit for getting a runner to score
Batter makes out to allow runner(s) to advance
Batter makes out but the runner from 3rd base scores
Pitched in relief the last out of a close game
Being on second or third base
Pause in pitcher’s delivery
Pitch that veers downward as it approaches the plate
Fast pitch that arcs severely downward
Pitcher’s ploy to keep runner from stealing
Left-handed pitcher
Fastball that arcs slightly but suddenly downward
Batter bunts and runner runs home
Batter’s front hip faces more the plate than the pitcher
Batter’s both hips face the pitcher
Not lunge forward to hit or to pitch
Pitcher does not release the ball too soon
Base runner advances without waiting for a hit
The pause pitcher makes before raising his arms [“set”]
Slower than normal pitch, but not a curve ball
Runners left on base after 3 outs who did not score
Pitcher’s movement when men are on base; no windup
Between chest and knee height of batter & over plate
Dominating pitcher who pitches many innings
Hard-to-hit pitches that do not go straight; not fast
Runner runs home before batter attempts to bunt
Batter who bats either right- or left-handed
Metaphor for the plane of a pitch before it drops
Player must be tagged to be out; not forced
Runner waiting for a catch of a fly before leaving a base
17
Take (a pitch)
Take out (a fielder)
Thrown out
Tie-up inside
Top half (of inning)
Tools
Track [Warning track]
Turned two
Turn on it (“pull it”)
Two-base hit
Two-seamer
Up [batter]
Up [pitch]; (or “upstairs”)
Up the middle strength
Wait on the pitch
Walk-off homerun
Warning track power
Wild pitch
Win [pitcher]
Wind up (“winds”)
Wood
Zone
Batter does not swing at a pitch; he lets it go
Legal blocking of a fielder while sliding to a base
Runner out via throw from a fielder to a base
Pitch so that batter cannot swing with arms extended
That half of inning in which visiting team bats
Skills needed to play baseball
Dirt or cinder track along base of outfield wall
Made a double play (two outs from one “at bat”)
Hit ball hard on the side of field from which batter bats
Hard way of saying double
Fastball that tends to veer off line
At bat, ready to hit
High pitch, ball or strike
Having good players in the middle of the diamond
Not twist hips and/or swing prematurely
Homerun which was the last play of the game
Inability to hit many homeruns
Runner(s) advance as catcher had no chance to stop ball
Credit given to one pitcher on the winning team
Pitcher begins motion to release the ball
Bat (or the bench in the dugout)
Strike zone (between chest & knees and over plate)
Phrase
Translation
Ahead in the count
Ahead of the batter
At the letters
At the track
Ate him alive inside
Back to the box
Bang-bang play
Behind in the count
Blow the game open
Blown save
Bottom fell out
Calls a good game
Calls a good game
Caught looking
Cheap single
When either pitcher or batter has the edge
Count is no balls and 1 strike or 1 ball & 2 strikes
Pitch is at the height of the logo of batter’s shirt
Almost to the outfield wall or fence
Pitched very fast and close to the batter
Ball hit back to the pitcher
Things happened very quickly
When either pitcher or batter is at a disadvantage
Score so many runs that the game is all but over
Missed opportunity to keep the lead
Pitched ball had an extreme downward arc
Catcher makes wise decisions on which pitches to throw
Umpire judges fairly and consistently balls and strikes
Did not swing at the third strike
Softly struck and fortunately placed hit
18
Comes off the ball
Comes to a stop
Count is even
Count is full
Dead red
Deals
Doubled (tripled) to gap
Down Broadway
Dropped down (to pitch)
Drops in (pitch)
E [+ number, e.g. “E5”]
Excellent numbers
Extends his arms (batter)
Falls behind in the count
Falls behind in the count
Fight off (a pitch)
First base is open
Five-tool player
Framed the pitch
Go to his mouth
Go to work on the batter
Going up the ladder
Good speed aboard
Good stuff
Good with the leather
Got a piece of it
Got all of it
Got good wood on it
Got on top of it
Great at-bat
Hands back (on swing)
Has a cannon
He’s been a horse
High and away
Hit a monster
Hit behind the ball
Hit it off the hands
Hit the cutoff
Hung a curve
In a hole
In on the handle
In on the hands
Inside corner
Inside outed the ball
Batter twists hips too soon in his swing
Pitcher pauses before throwing pitch
1 ball & 1 strike or 2 balls & 2 strikes
3 balls and 2 strikes (full count)
Fastball
Pitcher pitches
Hit between and beyond outfielders
Pitched right over the heart of the plate
Released pitch from pitcher’s head height or below
Pitch that arches sharply over the plate for a strike
Error made by the player at position numbered
Good statistical evidence of success
Hits ball at perfect distance from his body
Batter has more strikes than balls in the count
Pitcher has allowed too many balls in the count
Batter manages to get bat on ball, usually hit foul
With a man on second base, a walk may not be too bad
One who excels at five key phases of the game
Catcher positioned his body to make pitch look good
Pitcher touches his mouth with his pitching fingers
Get the batter at a disadvantage
Pitching higher on successive pitches
Base runner(s) is fast
Controlled pitches that do not go straight or fast
Player can catch (field) well
Batter barely struck the ball
Batter hit the ball solidly, perfectly, usually a homerun
Batter hit the ball solidly
Batter hit the upper part of the ball, or hit a fastball
Batter made the pitcher work hard and “hung in there”
Batter did not lunge awkwardly at pitch
Fielder can throw very hard
Pitcher has pitched many innings per season
A pitch is above chest height and far from the plate
Batter hitter a long homerun
Batter hit ball off center and usually with arms bent
Batter hit ball off the lower part of the bat
Outfielder threw to the relay fielder
Pitcher threw a curve ball that did not drop off line
When a pitcher or hitter is in a predicament
Pitch (struck bat) close to the batter’s hands
Pitch close to the batter’s hands
Part of the plate closest to batter
Hitter hit ball off center and usually with arms bent
19
Jammed him
Jumped on it (the pitch)
Keep the ball down
Keeps hands in (batter)
Knocking on the door
Let the ball play him
Lined to …
Line-up turned over
Locked up (by pitch)
Manufacture a run
Missing upstairs
No way to defense him
Nothing across
Number one
Number two
Numbers in the left column
Off the table
On deck
On the board
On the DL
On the fists
One-hops the wall
Painting the black
Put up crooked numbers
Pulled it
Quick inside
Ran a 2-seamer in on him
Rang him up
Robbing him of extra bases
Runs well
Rushing to the plate
Sawed him off
Sending a message
Short-hopped it
Short way to second
Showing bunt
Stays back (batter)
Throwing across his body
Turned on it
Turns it over
Up and in
Waits on the pitch
Went around
Went down to get it
Pitcher threw fastball close to the batter
Hit the pitch as if he knew what was coming
Pitcher pitches balls low, in or out of the strike zone
Tries to hit inside pitch or side of ball closest to him
Threatening to score runs
Fielder was not aggressive toward catching the ball
Batter hit a ball hard and relatively low in the air
Ten players came to bat before 3 outs were made
Batter was unable to hit an inside pitch
Score by extra hustle or good strategy
Pitcher is pitching too high to get strikes
Batter hits in all directions at any time
No hits, runs, or errors recorded in the half inning
Fastball
Curve ball
Wins; losses are recorded in the right column
Metaphor for plane of pitch that arched sharply down
Next to bat
Scored and recorded
Disabled list; can’t play for many days
Pitch close to the batter
Batted ball hits the outfield wall on one bounce
Pitching pitches that are just barely strikes, hard to hit
Score more than one run, usually many
Hit ball sharply to the side of field from which he bats
Pitcher throws fastballs close to the batter
Pitched a fastball which veered close to the batter
Umpire called a batter out on strikes
Catching a potential double or triple
Runs fast
Pitcher is lunging; pitch will probably be high
Pitcher threw inside and bat broke
Throwing close to the batter to scare him
Caught a bouncing ball before its apogee
Force play made at second, not first base
Batter appears to be ready to bunt, not swing
Batter does not lunge at ball, lose power, get fooled
Not pitching in an arc directly at batter
Hit ball sharply to the side of field from which he bats
Pitcher throws ball to veer opposite from normal
High pitch close to the batter
Batter does not lunge at ball, lose power, get fooled
Batter swung his bat for a strike
Batter hit a low, difficult pitch
20
Went long
Went yard
Went (hit) the other way
Wheels and deals
Will (or doesn’t) run
Hit a homerun
Hit a homerun
Batter hit to the side of the field he faces when he bats
Pitcher swings his arms and pitches
Likelihood of a base runner’s attempting to steal a base
NOTES:
21