ground ball

noun

: a batted baseball that bounds or rolls along the ground

Examples of ground ball in a Sentence

He hit a ground ball to the shortstop.
Recent Examples on the Web Coaches threw batting practice, while children snagged ground balls or pop flies. James Wagner, New York Times, 24 Nov. 2023 Torkelson then hit a slow ground ball that Giants second baseman David Villar couldn't grab, putting runners on first and third. Jenna Malinowski, Detroit Free Press, 24 July 2023 The Rangers got on the scoreboard first in this one as Astros starter Framber Valdez committed a throwing error to first base on a Robbie Grossman ground ball, leading to Marcus Semien to cross home plate. Scott Thompson, Fox News, 17 Oct. 2023 The Orioles’ other two runs came off James McCann’s bat, as the backup catcher drove in Ramón Urías, who left the game in the seventh with left heel discomfort, on a ground ball in the second and Westburg on a sacrifice fly in the fourth. Jacob Calvin Meyer, Baltimore Sun, 9 Aug. 2023 He was benched in June after failing to hustle on a ground ball. Julian McWilliams, BostonGlobe.com, 6 Aug. 2023 Steven Kwan followed with an RBI single, and Ramírez drove in a run with a ground ball back to the mound that struck Hernandez in the leg. Joe Noga, cleveland, 17 Sep. 2023 Clase mowed through the bottom of the Los Angeles lineup, retiring Jordyn Adams on a fly ball to center and getting Brett Phillips and Kyren Paris on ground balls to Andrés Giménez at second. Joe Noga, cleveland, 9 Sep. 2023 The only run-scoring plays Wednesday that didn’t involve Hays came off the bat of Anthony Santander, who drove in a run in the sixth on a ground ball single and two more in the eighth on his 27th homer of the season. Jacob Calvin Meyer, Baltimore Sun, 7 Sep. 2023 See More

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'ground ball.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

1857, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of ground ball was in 1857

Dictionary Entries Near ground ball

Cite this Entry

“Ground ball.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/ground%20ball. Accessed 8 Dec. 2023.

Kids Definition

ground ball

noun
: a batted baseball that rolls or bounces along the ground

More from Merriam-Webster on ground ball

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