suicide squeeze play

8.9

A risky baseball play where the runner on third base runs home while the batter bunts

noun
/ˈsuːɪˌsaɪd skwiːz pleɪ/

Jargon

: jugada de squeeze suicida

With two outs, the batter laid down a perfect bunt, allowing the runner to score on the suicide squeeze play.

Examples

The team pulled off a daring suicide squeeze play in the bottom of the ninth inning.
The team executed a perfect suicide squeeze play to win the game.
Executing the suicide squeeze play perfectly, the runner slid home safely.
Their coach is known for calling a suicide squeeze play when the pressure is on.
Did you see that suicide squeeze play last night?
In a crucial moment of the game, the team successfully executed a suicide squeeze play to bring the runner home.
The coach's strategy to call a suicide squeeze play caught the opposing team by surprise, leading to an easy run.

Synonyms

suicide squeeze

vssuicide squeeze play

Jargon

1 9.1

A baseball play where the runner on third base runs home as the batter lightly hits the ball

is the same phrase but written with the extra noun play at the end

Surface Forms

suicide squeeze play singular

suicide squeeze plays plural

Morphology

suicide + squeeze + play

The components give partial clues: 'suicide' signals extreme risk and 'squeeze' + 'play' suggests a tactical sports maneuver, so a learner might infer a risky kind of play. However the precise procedural meaning (a runner breaking for home while the batter bunts) is specific to baseball and not derivable from the constituent meanings alone, making the phrase only partially transparent to a B1 learner.

Etymology

Suicide squeeze play comes from baseball. The runner on third starts running for home while the batter tries to bunt, so if the bunt fails the runner may be 'out'. The word suicide shows the danger and squeeze shows how both players must act together in one small moment, so the phrase means a 'risky' all-or-nothing play.