July 25, 200719 yr Author Can of corn explained: To say that baseball has spawned a wide range of colorful terms would be an understatement, and "can of corn" is a good example of just how weird baseball lingo can get. According to Paul Dickson, "can of corn" was first used back in 1896 to describe a fly ball hit so high that the fielder has time to stand directly under the falling ball. The standard theory traces the term to old-fashioned grocery stores, where canned goods were stored on high shelves and pulled down with a long pole. An experienced store clerk would have no trouble catching the tumbling can, thus the term. Other theories trace "can of corn" to such fly balls being as easy to catch as "taking corn out of a can," or to the hollow "tin-canny" sound made by the bat in striking such a hit, or to an old-fashioned "cornball" confection made with popcorn and molasses, but the grocery explanation seems most logical to me.
July 25, 200719 yr Can of corn explained: To say that baseball has spawned a wide range of colorful terms would be an understatement, and "can of corn" is a good example of just how weird baseball lingo can get. According to Paul Dickson, "can of corn" was first used back in 1896 to describe a fly ball hit so high that the fielder has time to stand directly under the falling ball. The standard theory traces the term to old-fashioned grocery stores, where canned goods were stored on high shelves and pulled down with a long pole. An experienced store clerk would have no trouble catching the tumbling can, thus the term. Other theories trace "can of corn" to such fly balls being as easy to catch as "taking corn out of a can," or to the hollow "tin-canny" sound made by the bat in striking such a hit, or to an old-fashioned "cornball" confection made with popcorn and molasses, but the grocery explanation seems most logical to me. I've heard the grocery store explanation since I was a little kid...
July 25, 200719 yr Author I've heard the grocery store explanation since I was a little kid... I guess I need to hang out in Erlanger more often. I had never heard it.
July 25, 200719 yr If someone were to ask me what Griffey did in his AB in the 9th tonight, I'd say "he flew out to the wall". I don't use flied out at all.
July 25, 200719 yr Author If someone were to ask me what Griffey did in his AB in the 9th tonight, I'd say "he flew out to the wall". I don't use flied out at all. Only baseball people use "flied out." I remember when Thom first started calling games on Channel 5 in Cincinnati that Bench corrected him during a game when he said "flew out."
July 25, 200719 yr I guess I need to hang out in Erlanger more often. I had never heard it. I asked a lot of questions as a kid (big surprise), and I heard the phrase a lot at Reds games...
July 25, 200719 yr One of my favorites was the routine Brian Regan did. It's not something you see in Pro ball, although I'm sure it would make the game more fun. Hey batter, batter, batter. SWING! What am I supposed to say, Hey fielder, fielder. Hey coach is there a point to this? You don't see that in any other profession. Hey golfer, golfer. PUT, PUT GOLFER. SUE LAWYER, SUE! DRIVE BUS DRIVER DRIVE! :lol:
July 25, 200719 yr Author One of my favorites was the routine Brian Regan did. It's not something you see in Pro ball, although I'm sure it would make the game more fun. Hey batter, batter, batter. SWING! What am I supposed to say, Hey fielder, fielder. Hey coach is there a point to this? You don't see that in any other profession. Hey golfer, golfer. PUT, PUT GOLFER. SUE LAWYER, SUE! DRIVE BUS DRIVER DRIVE! :lol: Big Brian Regan fan - know the routine well.
July 25, 200719 yr I was always partial to the geographical references in baseball: Baltimore Chop Texas Leaguer And in a "crossover" reference, is it just me that calls it a "Thurman Munson" when one of my golfing buddies hits a snap hook?
July 25, 200719 yr So if Adam Dunn gets a triple, does that fall under "helping his own cause?" It would right now because he has the possibility of being traded, so it would. But he is still not a pitcher and his name doesnt appear with an L or a W next to it. That is what they mean by a pitcher "helping his own cause." It is a rarity that a pitcher gets a hit so when it happens it helps his own cause because he is adding to the teams production but also increasing his chance to show a W instead of that L by his name in the box score.
July 25, 200719 yr I always have enjoyed the numbers telling the story 6-3-1........ or SF 9 1 rbi. It's like a secret code unless of course you understand baseball. I have seen people at baseball games when listening to a conversation that I am having when I am telling someone that the batter has so far gone 0-2, 6-3, 5-3, SF 9 & 1 rbi and look totally mystified at me..... For those not understanding: 0 hits in 2 times at bat, ground out to the shortstop who threw it to first to get the batter out, ground out to the third baseman who threw it to first to get the batter out. Sacrifice Fly to right field which allowed the runner from third to tag up and come home to score a run....
July 25, 200719 yr I always have enjoyed the numbers telling the story 6-3-1........ or SF 9 1 rbi. It's like a secret code unless of course you understand baseball. I have seen people at baseball games when listening to a conversation that I am having when I am telling someone that the batter has so far gone 0-2, 6-3, 5-3, SF 9 & 1 rbi and look totally mystified at me..... For those not understanding: 0 hits in 2 times at bat, ground out to the shortstop who threw it to first to get the batter out, ground out to the third baseman who threw it to first to get the batter out. Sacrifice Fly to right field which allowed the runner from third to tag up and come home to score a run.... Great point....I had a father stop me after practice one day, said he never knew so much terminology was involved in Baseball.
July 25, 200719 yr What about at the end of a game when the announcer says: He finished the game going 3-4 with "2 ribby's"
July 25, 200719 yr How come right-handed pitchers aren't called "Northpaws"? Why does a winning pitcher "scatter six hits" but a losing pitcher never "scatters" six hits? 1. I always wondered why they were called Southpaws. 2. When you scatter the hits they usually don't get runs.
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