Thanks to the baseball playoffs, we’re reminded of that every fall.
At some point over the next two weeks, we’ll be told by television analysts:
A team left “ducks on the pond.”
A catch wasn’t just made, it was a “can of corn.” And that’s not the only food reference.
Someone will hit a “tater.”
A pitcher will throw a “heater.”
A “slider” has nothing to do with a base runner launching himself at a base.
For that truly wacky moment, a pitcher will unload a “screwball.”
We will have a “seeing-eye ball” and it’s close cousin, the “at-em ball.”
There will be “thefts,” some “goose eggs,” and most certainly a “gapper.”
Someone will wave a bat to a “high, hard one.” When that happens, it’s best to have a “short memory.”
An outcome will likely be decided by “going yard,” which is the same as a “walk-off” winning hit.
We will witness plenty of “hooks,” whether they are pitches or the removal of pitchers.
There will be base runners “on the corners.”
There will be “bombs.”
Someone will be “drilled.”
Military jargon often is liberally sprinkled among these terms. A team’s defense might “blow up.” The crack of a bat might sound like an “explosion.”
A new favorite is “left a village on the bases.” No doubt lifted from “it takes a village …”
These are just some of the “colorful phrases” that I’ve “jotted down” as the season has “wound down.”
And that’s just the “tip of the iceberg” when addressing sports cliches.
So many cliches; so little space to address.
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