Glossary of baseball (W) facts for kids

Baseball is a super fun sport with lots of special words and phrases! This guide will help you understand some of the unique terms that start with the letter 'W'. Knowing these words will make watching or playing baseball even more exciting!

Baseball Terms Starting with W

Waiting for the Express and Caught the Local

This funny phrase is used when a batter is expecting a really fast pitch (the "express") but instead gets a slower pitch (the "local"). If they don't swing and the umpire calls it strike three, they've "waited for the express and caught the local." It means they were fooled!

Wallop

When a player hits a baseball really hard and it goes out of the park for a home run, they "walloped" it. It's like saying they hit it with a lot of power!

Walk

In baseball, a "walk" happens when a pitcher throws four pitches outside the strike zone that the batter doesn't swing at. The batter then gets to go to first base for free. This is also called a base on balls.

Walk-Off

A "walk-off" is one of the most exciting ways for the home team to win a game! It happens in the bottom of the last inning (usually the ninth) when the home team scores the winning run. As soon as they score, the game is over, and everyone can "walk off" the field because they won! A walk-off home run is when the winning run is scored by hitting a home run.

Warning Track

Around the edge of a baseball field, right before the fence, there's a special area made of dirt or gravel. This is called the "warning track." It's there to help outfielders know they are getting close to the fence so they don't run into it while trying to catch a ball. It's like a warning!

Warning Track Power

If a batter hits a ball really high and far, but it's caught by an outfielder right on the warning track, it means they had "warning track power." The ball almost went for a home run, but not quite!

Waste a Pitch

Sometimes, a pitcher will throw a ball far outside the strike zone on purpose. This is called "wasting a pitch." They might do this if they are already ahead in the count (like having two strikes on the batter) and hope the batter will swing at a bad pitch. It's the opposite of trying to throw strikes.

Wave

The word "wave" can mean a few things in baseball:

• If a batter swings at a pitch and misses it, especially with a weak swing, they might have "waved" at it.
• When an umpire points a runner to the next base because of a rule (like a ball going out of play), they are "waving the runner" to that base.
• A third-base coach will "wave the runner home" by making a big arm motion, telling a runner to keep going and try to score.
• "Doing the wave" is when fans in the stands stand up and sit down in sequence, creating a moving "wave" around the stadium.

Wearing a Pitch

This happens when a batter lets a pitch hit them on purpose, or they move their body slightly to get hit by the ball. If a pitch hits a batter, they get to go to first base. Sometimes, teammates will even yell "wear it!" from the dugout if a pitch is coming close.

Web Gem

A "web gem" is an amazing defensive play, like a spectacular catch or a fantastic throw. It refers to the "webbing" of a baseball glove. This term became popular thanks to the TV show Baseball Tonight on ESPN.

Went Deep

This is another way to say a batter hit a home run. If a player "went deep," it means they hit the ball far out of the park!

Went Fishing

When a batter swings at a pitch that is very far outside the strike zone, especially one they have to reach across the plate for, they are said to have "went fishing" for it. They're trying to catch a pitch that's not really catchable!

Wheelhouse

A batter's "wheelhouse" is their favorite spot to hit the ball. It's usually a pitch that's about waist-high and right over the middle of home plate. When a pitcher throws a ball into a batter's wheelhouse, it's often hit very hard!

Wheel Play

A "wheel play" is a defensive move by infielders, especially when a batter tries to bunt the ball to the left side of the field. The third baseman runs in to field the bunt, and the shortstop quickly moves to cover third base. They rotate like a wheel to cover all the bases.

Wheels

In baseball, "wheels" is a slang term for a player's legs. If a player "has wheels," it means they are very fast runners, especially when running the bases.

Whiff

To "whiff" means to swing at a pitch and completely miss it. It's a swinging strike, and you might even hear the sound of the bat "whiffing" through the air.

Whiffout

A "whiffout" is a swinging third strike. This means the batter swung at the pitch and missed, leading to the third strike and an out.

Whip

"Whip" can mean two things:

• It's another name for a curveball, which is a pitch that curves as it travels toward the plate.
• It's also a short way to say Walks plus hits per inning pitched (WHIP), which is a statistic that measures how many walks and hits a pitcher allows per inning.

Whitewash

To "whitewash" a team means to shutout them. This means the opposing team scores zero runs in the entire game.

Wild Card

In baseball playoffs, the "wild card" spot is given to the best team that didn't win their division. It's a chance for a strong team to still make it to the playoffs even if another team in their division was slightly better.

Wild in the Strike Zone

A pitcher who is "wild in the strike zone" throws a lot of strikes, but they don't have good control over exactly where those strikes go. This can make it hard for the catcher and easy for batters to hit. For example, Carlos Zambrano was sometimes described this way.

Wild Pitch

A "wild pitch" (often shortened to WP) happens when a pitcher throws a ball so badly that the catcher can't catch it with normal effort. This allows runners on base to move to the next base, or if it's a third strike, it might allow the batter to run to first base. It's different from a passed ball because it's the pitcher's fault, not the catcher's. It's recorded as a separate statistic and not an error.

Win

In baseball, a "win" is given to the pitcher who was on the mound when their team took the lead for good. You can learn more about how wins and losses are counted for pitchers in a Win–loss record (pitching).

Window Shopping

This is another way to say a batter was "caught looking" for strike three. It means they didn't swing at the pitch, and the umpire called it a strike, ending their turn at bat.

Windup

When a pitcher throws the ball, they can use one of two main positions: the "windup" or the "set." The "windup" is usually a bigger, more flowing motion that pitchers use when there are no runners on base. It can help them throw with more power. The "set" position is quicker and used when runners are on base to prevent them from stealing.

Winning Record

A team has a "winning record" or a "winning season" if they have won more games than they have lost. For example, if a team plays 162 games in a season, they need to win at least 82 games to have a winning record.

Winning Streak

A "winning streak" is when a team wins several games in a row without losing. It's a great sign that the team is playing well!

Winter Leagues

"Winter leagues" are professional baseball leagues that play their seasons during the off-season of Major League Baseball (MLB). Many players, especially younger ones, play in these leagues to get more experience or stay in shape. Some well-known winter leagues include the Arizona Fall League, the Dominican Winter Baseball League, and the Mexican Pacific League.

Wire-to-Wire

This phrase means that a team led from the very beginning to the very end.

• In a game, if a team scores in the first inning and never loses the lead, they led "wire-to-wire."
• For a season, if a team is in first place from the start and stays there until the end, they led their division or league "wire-to-wire."
• It can also describe a pitcher who throws a complete game (pitches the whole game), especially a shutout.

Wood

"Wood" is a slang term for the baseball bat. When a player "gets good wood" on the ball, it means they hit it perfectly with the bat.

Work the Count

When a batter is "working the count," they are being patient and trying to see a lot of pitches. They want to get ahead in the count (like having more balls than strikes) or wait for a pitch they can hit really hard. This makes the pitcher throw more pitches and can tire them out.

Worm Burner

A "worm burner" is a baseball that is hit very hard and low to the ground, almost as if it's "burning" the ground as it goes. It's a fast ground ball. Another term for this is a daisy cutter.

Worm Killer

A "worm killer" is a pitch that is thrown so low that it hits the ground before it even reaches home plate. These are usually off-speed or breaking balls that don't make it to the catcher.

Wrapped Around the Foul Pole

When a batter hits a home run that just barely stays fair, curving very close to the foul pole, it's sometimes described as having "wrapped around the foul pole." Even if the ball lands in foul territory, if it passed on the fair side of the pole, it's still a home run!

WW

This is a funny note sometimes used by unofficial scorekeepers. "WW" stands for "wasn't watching." It's used when they got distracted and missed what happened on the field! Famous baseball announcer Phil Rizzuto was known for supposedly using this note.