noun
blooper
A softly hit baseball that lands just beyond the infielders.
The batter dropped a blooper into shallow right field.
Etymology
Bloop is an imitative word for a short, low sound. Baseball uses blooper for a weakly hit ball that drops into a gap, extending the word to an unimpressive-looking but effective hit.
More examples
- A lucky blooper brought the runner home.
- The shortstop chased the blooper but could not reach it.
- His only hit was a blooper just beyond the infield.
Forms
blooper · bloopers
Similar words
- line drive
- A line drive travels hard and fairly straight; a blooper is softly hit over the infield.
- grounder
- A grounder travels along or into the ground; a blooper drops from a short airborne arc.