retire the side

idiom

baseball

: to end the inning by getting the final out

He struck out Jones to retire the side.

Example Sentences

Recent Examples on the Web

Clayton Kershaw came in to retire the side in the bottom of the ninth of Game 5 as the Dodgers won their second straight National League title, 40 years after accomplishing the feat in 1977 and 1978. —Los Angeles Times, 16 Oct. 2021

Jansen, who hadn’t recorded more than three outs in an appearance since June 9, needed only 11 pitches to retire the side in order in the ninth, allowing the closer to start the 10th. —Mike Digiovanna, Los Angeles Times, 13 Aug. 2021

Wilson, acquired in the offseason in a cash deal with the Pittsburgh Pirates, needed only 11 pitches to retire the side in the first then worked around a double in the second with a trio of strikeouts to finish with four in his 30-pitch outing. —Todd Rosiak, Journal Sentinel, 3 Mar. 2023

But with runners on the corners with one out in the sixth inning, when a comeback from a one-run deficit seemed attainable, a soft bouncing ball off the bat of first baseman Ryan Mountcastle ended it just as swiftly — a double play to retire the side and preserve Minnesota’s eventual 2-1 victory. —Andy Kostka, Baltimore Sun, 2 May 2022

But with two outs, Darvish got Mookie Betts to swing through a cutter to retire the side. —Jack Harris, Los Angeles Times, 23 Apr. 2022

Surma then took the mound to retire the side in the fifth, keeping Taylor North in front by five runs. —Brett Crossley, Detroit Free Press, 26 Aug. 2021

Franklin, who had been playing fairly shallow, turned his back to the infield, sprinted, dove and made a back-handed catch at full extension over his left shoulder to retire the side. —Tom Murphy, Arkansas Online, 5 June 2021

But Passeau worked out of the jam then needed only eight pitches to retire the side in order in the seventh to close out the victory. —al, 13 May 2021

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