passed ball

noun

: a baseball pitch not hit by the batter that passes the catcher when it should have been caught and allows a base runner to advance
one of his trick pitches shot by his catcher for a passed ballJohn Drebinger
compare wild pitch

Examples of passed ball in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
These examples are automatically compiled from online sources to illustrate current usage. Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
After San Francisco scored its only run off Ryan on a Smith passed ball in the fourth, Ryan struck out Mike Yastrzemski with a 95-mph cut-fastball with runners on second and third to end the inning. Mike Digiovanna, Los Angeles Times, 23 July 2024 The most consequential miscues, however, came on Turner’s two-base passed ball the following inning. Evan Webeck, The Mercury News, 3 May 2024 Saguaro had the bases loaded in the fourth after a batter reached on a strikeout passed ball. Richard Obert, The Arizona Republic, 15 May 2023 Arroyo advanced to second on a sacrifice by Wong (3 for 4), reached third on a Zunino passed ball, and scored when Verdugo grounded his seventh career walkoff hit through the left side of the infield for the 10th Red Sox comeback win of the year. Alex Speier, BostonGlobe.com, 29 Apr. 2023 See all Example Sentences for passed ball 

Word History

First Known Use

1860, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of passed ball was in 1860

Dictionary Entries Near passed ball

Cite this Entry

“Passed ball.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/passed%20ball. Accessed 12 Nov. 2024.

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!