# Talking Baseball · Baseball Level 1: Beginner

Baseball · Level 1: Beginner · Insporta Book (https://book.insporta.app/baseball/level-1/talking-baseball/)

Words for hits, outs, pitches and fielding plays, base-running and count words, team and roster talk, nicknames for places, the box score, and everyday phrases that come from baseball.

## Test 1: Words for hits

- A single takes the batter to first base. (Source: General baseball reference)
- A double is a two-base hit. (Source: General baseball reference)
- Line drives are hit hard on a flat path, often too fast to catch. (Source: General baseball reference)
- A moonshot is a towering home run. (Source: General baseball reference)
- Dinger, homer, jack and bomb are all slang for a home run. (Source: General baseball reference)
- A batter who beats out a slow ground ball in the infield has an infield hit. (Source: General baseball reference)
- A nubber is a feeble little roller, sometimes good enough for an infield hit. (Source: General baseball reference)
- One, two, three and four bases. (Source: General baseball reference)
- Grounders stay on the ground, liners fly low, fly balls go high and pop-ups highest of all. (Source: General baseball reference)
- A bloop is a weakly hit ball that falls in just beyond the infield. (Source: General baseball reference)

## Test 2: Words for outs

- A runner on third tags up and scores after the catch; the batter is out but drove him in. (Source: General baseball reference)
- K has stood for a strikeout since the early days of scorekeeping. (Source: General baseball reference)
- The batter hits a grounder and is thrown out at a base. (Source: General baseball reference)
- A double play records two outs on a single play. (Source: General baseball reference)
- A runner thrown out trying to steal is caught stealing. (Source: General baseball reference)
- The pitcher or catcher throws behind a runner who has strayed too far from his base. (Source: General baseball reference)
- A runner who is not forced is put out by being touched with the ball. (Source: General baseball reference)
- One, two and three outs. (Source: General baseball reference)
- Four is the second baseman, six the shortstop and three the first baseman. (Source: General baseball reference)
- A batter who is called out on strikes without swinging has struck out looking. (Source: General baseball reference)

## Test 3: Pitching words

- A balk is an illegal motion that can deceive runners; they each move up a base. (Source: General baseball reference)
- A pitch through the zone over home plate is a strike even without a swing. (Source: General baseball reference)
- A pitch so far off target that the catcher cannot stop it, letting runners move up. (Source: General baseball reference)
- The changeup fools the batter's timing by arriving later than he expects. (Source: General baseball reference)
- The heater, gas and cheese are all slang for a fastball. (Source: General baseball reference)
- Pitches on the edges of the strike zone are the hardest to hit well. (Source: General baseball reference)
- Relievers take over from the starting pitcher. (Source: General baseball reference)
- A curveball is usually the slowest, a changeup a little faster and the fastball fastest. (Source: General baseball reference)
- Three strikes, the last one swinging, and the batter is out. (Source: General baseball reference)
- The topspin on a curveball makes it dive as it nears the plate. (Source: General baseball reference)

## Test 4: Fielding words

- An error is charged when a fielder misplays a ball that should have been an out. (Source: General baseball reference)
- An easy, high fly ball that drops gently into the glove is a can of corn. (Source: General baseball reference)
- On long hits an infielder lines up to take the outfielder's throw and pass it on. (Source: General baseball reference)
- A web gem is a highlight-reel catch or stop. (Source: General baseball reference)
- Calling for the ball tells team-mates to stay clear. (Source: General baseball reference)
- A fielder whose throw helps put a runner out gets an assist. (Source: General baseball reference)
- The fielder who catches the ball for the out, or tags the runner, gets the putout. (Source: General baseball reference)
- A relay through an infielder is faster and more accurate than one long throw. (Source: General baseball reference)
- Five is the third baseman and three the first baseman. (Source: General baseball reference)
- Moving fielders towards where a batter usually hits the ball is called a shift. (Source: General baseball reference)

## Test 5: Base-running words

- 'Stand up' tells the runner there is no play, so he can come in standing. (Source: General baseball reference)
- Taking two bases on a single puts the runner ninety feet from scoring. (Source: General baseball reference)
- A pinch runner comes in to run for a slower team-mate on base. (Source: General baseball reference)
- In a double steal two runners go together, often with runners on first and third. (Source: General baseball reference)
- The runner waits until the catcher or infielders relax, then goes. (Source: General baseball reference)
- Station to station means advancing a base at a time, with no steals or extra bases. (Source: General baseball reference)
- Fielders often try to get the lead runner, the one closest to scoring. (Source: General baseball reference)
- Fielders run the trapped runner back towards the base he came from, then tag him. (Source: General baseball reference)
- The runner on first draws the throw so the runner on third can score. (Source: General baseball reference)
- A runner caught between bases is in a rundown, also called a pickle. (Source: General baseball reference)

## Test 6: Words for the count

- The count is always balls first, then strikes. (Source: General baseball reference)
- At 3-2 the next pitch decides: ball four, strike three, or a ball in play. (Source: General baseball reference)
- Ahead in the count, the batter can wait for a pitch he likes. (Source: General baseball reference)
- 0-2 is the pitcher's best count. (Source: General baseball reference)
- Each batter starts with no balls and no strikes. (Source: General baseball reference)
- A foul ball cannot be strike three, unless it is a bunt or a caught foul tip. (Source: General baseball reference)
- Taking a pitch means not swinging at it. (Source: General baseball reference)
- Two strikes favour the pitcher; more balls than strikes favour the batter. (Source: General baseball reference)
- Balls first, then strikes, after each pitch. (Source: General baseball reference)
- Umpires show the count with balls on the left hand and strikes on the right. (Source: General baseball reference)

## Test 7: Team and roster words

- A team's bullpen is both the warm-up area and its staff of relievers. (Source: General baseball reference)
- The general manager is in charge of the roster; the manager runs the games. (Source: General baseball reference)
- Starters take turns, usually five of them in the major leagues. (Source: General baseball reference)
- A utility player fills in wherever the team needs him. (Source: General baseball reference)
- Rookies are first-year players. (Source: General baseball reference)
- Bench players come in as pinch hitters, runners and defensive substitutes. (Source: General baseball reference)
- The farm system is where a club develops its young players. (Source: General baseball reference)
- The organisation includes the minors; the roster includes the bench; the line-up is the nine starters. (Source: General baseball reference)
- Players move between the minors and the majors as they struggle or improve. (Source: General baseball reference)
- In baseball the manager is the head coach who runs the team in games. (Source: General baseball reference)

## Test 8: Nicknames of places on the field

- Second base is the keystone, and the two middle infielders turn double plays around it. (Source: General baseball reference)
- Bleachers are bench seats, usually in the outfield, named for being bleached by the sun. (Source: General baseball reference)
- The pitcher and catcher who work together are called the battery. (Source: General baseball reference)
- A plain dark area behind centre field helps batters see the ball out of the pitcher's hand. (Source: General baseball reference)
- The ivy on the brick walls of Chicago's Wrigley Field was planted in 1937. (Source: General baseball reference)
- First and third basemen are the corner infielders. (Source: General baseball reference)
- Players often shorten bullpen to 'pen'. (Source: General baseball reference)
- The best and dearest seats are behind the plate; the bleachers are far out. (Source: General baseball reference)
- Second base, then the grass, the warning track and the dark backdrop. (Source: General baseball reference)
- Fenway Park's left field wall, about 37 feet high, is the Green Monster. (Source: General baseball reference)

## Test 9: Words from the box score

- AB counts a batter's official times at bat. (Source: General baseball reference)
- HR is the home run column. (Source: General baseball reference)
- The E column shows each team's errors. (Source: General baseball reference)
- LOB counts runners stranded on base at the end of innings. (Source: General baseball reference)
- H is the number of base hits. (Source: General baseball reference)
- Earned run average shows how many earned runs a pitcher allows per nine innings. (Source: General baseball reference)
- SB counts stolen bases. (Source: General baseball reference)
- At-bats, runs, hits and runs batted in come first in most box scores. (Source: General baseball reference)
- Innings, hits, runs, earned runs, walks and strikeouts. (Source: General baseball reference)
- Many fans keep score with a scorecard and pencil, recording each play. (Source: General baseball reference)

## Test 10: Everyday phrases from baseball

- To touch base is to check in with someone. (Source: General baseball reference)
- Something out of left field comes as a surprise. (Source: General baseball reference)
- Stepping up to the plate means accepting a challenge. (Source: General baseball reference)
- A ballpark figure is close enough, not exact. (Source: General baseball reference)
- The phrase means a third failure ends your chances. (Source: General baseball reference)
- Rain checks were tickets for a game rained out; now the phrase means postponing an offer. (Source: General baseball reference)
- Covering all the bases means leaving nothing to chance. (Source: General baseball reference)
- Striking out is failing, first base is a start, a home run is complete success. (Source: General baseball reference)
- Getting to first is a start, rounding third is nearly there, bringing it home is finishing. (Source: General baseball reference)
- To hit it out of the park is to do something brilliantly. (Source: General baseball reference)

Sources: General baseball references, WBSC and league material, coaching manuals; original questions authored, nothing reproduced. Numbered rules belong to the Rules category.

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