Glossary

ACE —The best and most dependable pitcher on the team.

APPLE-The ball.

ARBITER-The umpire.

ASPIRIN TABLETS - Pitched balls by an exceedingly fast pitcher.

BEAN BALL — A pitched ball which comes close to the batter's head or which hits his head.

BENCH JOCKEY-A player in the dugout, or on the bench, who rides the opposing team's players, preferably the pitcher, his aim being to anger them and interfere with the performance of their assignments in the game.

BLANK —When a pitcher holds the opposing team scoreless, usually in an entire game.

BLOOPER-A short fly hit just in front of the outfielders and/or just in back of the infielders.

BLOW - (noun) A safe hit.

BOBBLE — Failure by a fielder to catch, or hold safely, a batted ball.

BONER —A mental mistake by a player, such as running off his base on a fly ball about to be caught with less than two out.

BOOT — A fielding error which deprives the defensive team of an out. Usually made on a ground ball.

BUSH — Term used by major league players and writers to describe the baseball hinterland, the deeper minor leagues. A player new to the big leagues whose behavior or speech does not please his associates is reprimanded by being called a "busher." When a player is transferred to the minors by a major league club, it is sometimes referred to as sending him back to the bush, or to the bushes.

CHARLEY HORSE-An injury to a leg muscle which is caused by a sudden strain on some part of the body of the muscle. Very painful.

CIRCUS CATCH-A caught fly ball, usually by an outfielder who leaves the ground and is forced to roll over after the catch, like a circus tumbler.

CLOTHESLINE-A line drive hit to the outfield which travels on a low line without touching the ground or rising more than ten or fifteen feet above the ground.

CLUBHOUSE LAWYER - A talkative player who never seems to be satisfied with the conduct and operation of the team by its manager or the performance of his teammates.

COUSIN —A pitcher who is hit safely quite frequently by one batter. Or a batter who is consistently retired by one pitcher. In the first case the pitcher is referred to as a cousin of that batter, and in the latter, the batter is referred to as the cousin of that pitcher.

CRIPPLE — When a batter is ahead on the count, three balls and no strikes, or 3 and 1, or 2 and 0, the pitcher must send the next pitch through the strike zone if he doesn't want to issue a base on balls. In such a situation the pitcher often throws the pitch down the middle. Such a pitch is known as a cripple, and is very often hit solidly and far by the batter.

DUSTER-A pitch close to the batter which causes him to fall to the ground. The batter then removes the dust from his uniform before resuming his batting position. A pitcher who intentionally throws the ball at the batter is dusting him off.

FOOT IN THE BUCKET-A batter who draws his front foot away from the plate as he swings at a pitched ball is said to be batting with one foot in the water bucket. This phrase has been handed down from the days when drinking water came in buckets instead of through the ball park's plumbing system.

GOPHER BALL —Any pitch the batter smashes for a long drive, usually a home run. This is derived from the way the batters "go fer" it, hit it, and then "go fer" two or three bases or a home run.

GO THE ROUTE (OR THE DISTANCE) — To pitch a complete nine-inning game.

GRANDSTANDER-A player who makes a routine play seem difficult in order to please the fans. Also known as a showboat.

GRANDSTAND MANAGER-A fan who shouts advice at the manager and/or players during the games from his seat in the grandstand or bleachers.

GRAPEFRUIT LEAGUE - Exhibition games played in spring training between major league teams.

HANDCUFF-A hard-hit batted ball-usually a line drive —which an infielder can't catch cleanly because he doesn't have time to get his hands in position to make the catch. Thus the infielder is handcuffed.

HIT FOR THE CYCLE-A player who hits a single, double, triple and home run in one game has "hit for the cycle."

IVORY —New players added to a team from leagues of lower classification or from teams outside organized baseball. The talent scouts of professional teams are also called ivory hunters.

KICK —A vocal objection to an umpire's decision; a protest. Also means to boot a grounder.

LEG HITTER-A speedy player who beats out a lot of infield rollers which would be routine outs if a player of normal speed was running to first base.

LONG-BALL HITTER-A batter with strong power at the plate who is capable of delivering extra-base hits with some frequency.

ON DECK — The next batter in the lineup who follows the player at bat is on deck.

PASS —A base on balls, a "free ticket" to first base for the batter.

POWERHOUSE -A long-distance hitter.

PRIMA DONNA - A player who is given to displays of temperament because things aren't going right for him.

PULL THE STRING - A change-up pitch. A pitcher who throws a ball slower than his usual rate of speed is said to pull the string.

RABBIT EARS-A player who hears everything said by the fans and the opposing players and gets disturbed by what he hears.

RELIEF ARTIST-A pitcher who comes in during the late stages of the game and halts the opposing team.

RHUBARB — A heated and long argument between players and umpires.

RIDING THE BENCH-A player not in the lineup is riding the bench.

ROCK - A boner.

ROOKIE - A first-year player.

SCRIBE — A baseball writer; also reporters and journalists in general.

SHAKE-OFF —A pitcher who wants another signal from his catcher shakes his head from left to right. The pitcher is shaking off the original signal for a pitch and now wants another signal.

SHAVE —A pitch that comes close to the batter and makes him move out of its way.

SPRAY HITTER-A batter who can hit pitches to all parts of the field but with little power.

SQUEEZE PLAY-A bunt with a base-runner on third. The runner attempts to score as the batter bunts the ball.

SWITCH HITTER-A batter who can hit right or left-handed. (Like Mickey Man-tie.)

TAKE CHARGE GUY-A player with leadership qualities who can inspire his teammates by vocal support or his outstanding individual play.

TEXAS LEAGUER-A fly ball which drops safely just beyond the infield and just in front of the charging outfielder.

THROWER —A pitcher who has very little of anything is sometimes known as a thrower.

TWO O'CLOCK HITTER - A player who looks like a great hitter in batting practice but can't buy a hit during the regular game.

VETERAN - A player who has been in the game a few seasons.

Are You Ready To Move Onto The Next Lesson? Click Here...