Nicknames
Baseball used to have the best nicknames for its players! The “Say Hey Kid” (Willie Mays), the “Sultan of Swat” (Babe Ruth), “Joltin’ Joe” (Joe DiMaggio), the “Splendid Splinter” (Ted Williams). There are still a few (Dustin Pedroia is the Laser Show), but nowadays, the default is: first-letter-of-first-name-and-first-syllable-of-last-name: A-rod for Alex Rodriguez, etc. Booooring! 1 Let’s see a return to real nicknames!
The Seventh Inning Stretch
At the end of the top of the seventh inning, it is traditional in baseball for there to be a short break; fans can stand and stretch, use the restroom, buy a beer, etc. Has a much nicer sound to it than “two minute warning”, don’t ya think?
Pinch hitters and runners
Forgot to include these earlier. A manager may elect to have a different player (that has not been in the game yet) bat in place of the player whose turn it is. This could be for a lefty-righty matchup, or maybe the hitter coming up hasn’t been hitting well. The player that does not hit is out of the game for good, of course. Since teams usually have only 4 or so “bench” players at any time (backup catcher, backup outfielder, two backup infielders), this needs to be done judiciously. Similarly, a manager can replace a baserunner with another (faster) runner.
On Deck
The player that will come up to bat after the current player is known as “on deck”. This player will be in the on deck circle, getting warmed up by swinging a bat, often with a donut-shaped weight slipped over the bat.
Bench-clearing
Brawl, that is. Usually happens after a pitcher has hit a batter with a pitch, and the opposing players believe it was deliberate 2 Watch this brawl between the Sox and (naturally) the Yankees.
I had a list of topics prepared, but forgot the list! Check back later for new content on this post!