This series
of definitions is not meant to be comprehensive but rather an aid to help
fiction writers make their characters’ dialog sound “authentic.” Some are
occupational slang. Recording studio musicians for example hate “clams” (sour
notes). Others are basic terms. To a sailor a hold is where cargo is stowed
aboard a ship. To a gambler a hold is the bet percentage held back by a casino.
The lingo
of baseball, that most American of sports, can be heard from major league
ballparks to dusty back lots. So when your player pitches the apple make sure
he’s not a rag arm who lets the batter hit a dinger!
BASEBALL:
apple: baseball.
beanball: accidentally
hitting player at bat with pitched ball.
cellar: last
place in baseball league.
dinger: home run.
dusted off: hit by
a beanball.
grand slam: hitting
home run with bases loaded.
jug handle: curve ball.
lumber: baseball
bat.
pill: baseball.
rag arm: poor
pitcher.
rookie: new
player.
smoker: fastball.
thumbed out: ordered
off the field by the umpire.
woodpile: bat
storage rack.
BASEBALL CARDS:
Overall
there are two types of baseball card collectors. Boys who collect for fun,
often building their collections through trading. And adults who collect cards
as serious investments (often for serious cash). And who knows? Maybe that
player on a rookie card will one day grace a star card (though no longer a
tobacco card).
Michael McKeever
common card: card not in demand, usually a little-known or
average player.
disc: circular-shaped
card instead of the usual rectangle.
double-print: doubling
a card’s print.
layering: card
damaged by separating (paper, finish) layers.
reprint: reproduction
of an earlier popular card.
rookie card: new
player’s first card.
star card: famous
player’s card.
tobacco card: issued
by tobacco companies from late 19th through early 20th
centuries.
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