brushback pitch
1
8.6
- noun
- Jargon
:
lanzamiento cerca del bateador
- During the game, the coach decided it was time for a brushback pitch to keep the opposing team off balance.
Examples
-
The purpose is a brushback pitch, hoping to intimidate the press into criticizing Obama and going easy on McCain.
Blog text (6) -
In the first case, I would sling the brushback pitch that I had learned to keep at hand for such occasions, amply familiar from life in New York.
Academic text (2012) -
The pitcher aimed for a brushback pitch to make the batter think twice about swinging at the next ball.
-
After throwing a brushback pitch, the player felt the tension rise in the stadium as the batter stepped away from the plate.
Synonyms
1
8.6
A pitch in baseball thrown close to a batter to make them move away from the plate
A baseball pitch thrown near the batter to intimidate them
How Close
Surface Forms
Morphology
The components are directly compositional: 'brushback' already denotes an inside/intimidating pitch and 'pitch' denotes a throw/delivery, so together they plainly refer to that kind of delivery. A B1 learner who knows both constituent meanings can therefore derive the MWE’s meaning without prior exposure.
Etymology
The baseball term brushback pitch comes from the picture of a ball that almost brushes a batter back from the plate. Pitchers throw it to make the hitter move or to 'warn' and 'scare' them, so the phrase means a pitch meant to push the batter away or intimidate them.