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Glite Dictionary
🛡️ A safeguard 🛡️ A barrier 🛡️ To support 🥎 A catcher
backstop

backstop

1 6.0
A player who stands behind home plate and catches pitches
  • noun
  • /ˈbækˌstɑp/
  • US
translation icon : receptor
  • During the game, the coach pointed to the backstop as a crucial area for fielding missed balls.

Examples

  • JO walks up from behind the backstop.

    Fiction book (1992)

  • But she scared them, rattling the backstop.

    Fiction book (1998)

  • Atlanta has been on the hunt for catching help for at least the last week, when veteran backstop David Ross decided to sign with the Red Sox rather than re-signing with the Braves.

    Blog text (18)

  • The catcher crouched behind the backstop to block any wild pitches from the pitcher.

  • With a powerful arm, the backstop threw out the runner attempting to steal second base.

Synonyms

catcher
vsbackstop
  • US
122 3.5

A baseball player who crouches behind home plate and gets the ball when the batter misses

is an alternative baseball term for the same position

Surface Forms

backstop singular
backstops plural

Etymology

Backstop is also used for the catcher in baseball because the catcher stands behind the batter and 'stops' pitches that get past the batter. So calling the catcher a backstop reminds you that they are the last player to stop the ball.