Baseball: English Vocabulary List

a fast-paced, urban version of baseball played with a rubber ball and bare hands

"Baseball5 is a fast urban version of baseball."

"Baseball5 was a street version of baseball played with a rubber ball and no glove on a small field."

a game similar to baseball but on a smaller field in which players use a larger and softer ball

"We play softball every Saturday."

"We play softball in the park every Sunday afternoon with friends."

a minor league team, especially in baseball, affiliated with a major league club where players develop before potentially joining the major league roster

"The farm team develops young prospects."

"The farm team developed young prospects before they were called up to the major league club."

a defensive play in which two outs are made by the fielding team in a single continuous play

"The shortstop starts a double play."

"The shortstop started a double play by throwing to second and then to first."

a batter's turn to bat against the opposing pitcher during a game

"His at-bat ends with a strikeout."

"The slugger had four at bats with two hits and two strikeouts."

(baseball) a batting technique where a batter softly taps the ball with the bat to place it into play, often to advance a baserunner

"The batter lays down a bunt."

"The batter placed a bunt down the third base line to advance the runner."

(baseball) a hit that travels high into the air and is caught by a fielder before it touches the ground

"The outfielder catches the fly ball."

"The outfielder caught the fly ball for the second out of the inning."

(baseball) a play where a fielder touches the base with the ball to get an out before the baserunner arrive

"The force-out ends the inning."

"The shortstop stepped on second base for a force out before throwing to first."

(baseball) a situation where a defensive player forces a baserunner out by touching a base with the ball before the baserunner reaches that base

"The force play tags the base."

"The fielder stepped on the bag for a force play because the runner had to advance."

(baseball) a hit that travels outside the foul lines, usually resulting in a strike against the batter

"The foul ball goes into the stands."

"The batter hit a foul ball into the stands and a young fan caught it."

(baseball) a hit that rolls along the ground, typically resulting in a play by the infielders to get the batter out

"The ground ball rolls to the shortstop."

"The third baseman fielded the ground ball cleanly and threw to first base."

to hit a ground ball that is fielded by the defense, resulting in an out

"The batter grounded out to shortstop."

"The baseball player hit a ground ball directly to the shortstop who threw him out at first base."

a hit in baseball that occurs when a batter hits the ball and runs around all four bases, scoring a run for their team

"He hits a home run to left field."

"The slugger hit a towering home run that cleared the center field fence."

(baseball) a hard-hit ball that travels directly and quickly through the air, usually at a low angle, making it difficult for fielders to catch

"The line drive nearly hits the pitcher."

"The pitcher ducked to avoid a line drive hit straight back up the middle."

a hit by a backup batter in baseball

"The pinch hit worked."

"The pinch hit resulted in a crucial base hit that scored the winning run."

an out that happens when a batter receives three strikes during their turn at bat

"The strikeout ends the rally."

"The pitcher celebrated his tenth strikeout of the game with a fist pump."

(baseball) a batted ball hit high into the air but not far, typically resulting in an easy catch for an outfielder or infielder

"The pop fly drops between two fielders."

"The second baseman settled under the pop fly and caught it for the final out."

(baseball) a statistic that credits a batter when their hit or action allows a runner to score

"The single drives in two runs batted in."

"The single drove in the runner from second base for his third RBI of the game."

(baseball) the base where the batter stands and where players must reach to score a run

"The runner slides into home plate."

"The catcher tagged the runner at home plate to end the inning."

(baseball) a pitch thrown close to a batter to intimidate or force them away from the plate

"The brushback pitch comes too close."

"The pitcher threw a brushback pitch high and inside to back the batter off the plate."

(baseball) a type of pitch thrown at high speed with minimal movement

"The fastball was fast."

"The pitcher threw a blazing fastball that the batter couldn't even see."

(baseball) a pitch thrown with a grip that causes the ball to drop sharply before reaching the plate

"The forkball drops off the table."

"The forkball dropped sharply as it reached the plate confusing the hitter completely."

a deliberate pitch thrown by the pitcher far outside the strike zone in baseball

"The pitchout prevents a stolen base."

"The catcher called for a pitchout to catch the runner trying to steal second base."

(baseball) a baserunner being tagged out while attempting to steal a base

"The runner gets caught stealing."

"The runner was caught stealing when the catcher's throw beat him easily to the bag."

(in baseball) to return to and touch a base after a fly ball is caught before attempting to advance to the next base

"The runner tagged up at third base."

"The runner on third base decided to tag up after the outfielder caught the fly ball and then scored easily."

(in baseball) to touch a runner with the ball to get them out

"The catcher tagged out the runner."

"The catcher received the throw and quickly tried to tag out the runner sliding into home plate."

a part of the baseball game where each team gets a turn to bat and field

"The bottom of the inning begins."

"The home team scored three runs in the bottom of the ninth inning to win."

a swing and miss by the batter, where the bat fails to make contact with the ball

"The batter whiffs at a curveball."

"The batter took a mighty swing but only produced a whiff as the ball went into the catcher's glove."