Plunked

plunked

What is the definition of plunked in baseball?

1. Plunked is another term used to describe a hit by pitch in baseball. The word “plunked” is often used when a pitcher intentionally throws at a batter, aiming at their lower back and traveling slightly slower than their normal pitches. The plunking is used to send a message to the batter or the team.

What does getting plunked mean?

Plunking refers to getting hit while at bat. When a batter is plunked, it counts as a hit by pitch. This is an official baseball statistic which is abbreviated as HBP.

Although a plunk is a type of hit by pitch, it has a specific meaning in baseball lingo. The term “plunking” is used when it appears that the pitcher has intentionally tried to hit the batter with the ball. As opposed to a HBP resulting from a wild pitch or a fatigued pitcher, a plunk is thought to occur on purpose.

What is the difference between hit by pitch and plunking?

A hit by pitch is a statistic applied whenever a batter gets hit by a pitch thrown by the pitcher. This statistic is used when the pitch hits not only the batter’s body, but any part of his clothing or his equipment that is not the bat. A hit by pitch can occur by accident or on purpose depending on the intentions of the pitcher.

A plunk is a specific type of hit by pitch. The term is used when it appears that the pitcher hit the batter with the ball on purpose. It is most commonly applied when the ball hits the batter’s lower back, though it may be used when other areas make contact with the ball. A batter is not plunked if they are hit by a wild pitch or accidentally step into the path of the ball.

For a batter, the outcome of a hit by pitch is the same as that of a plunk. When the batter gets hit by a pitch, they are then called a “hit batsman,” which is abbreviated as HB in the stat sheet. They are also allowed a free pass to first base.

Pitchers, on the other hand, may receive some form of penalty, such as being ejected from the game, if the umpire accuses them of egregiously plunking a batter. If the hit by pitch is due to an accidental wild pitch or a batter stepping into the ball’s path, there is no penalty from the umpire.

What is a synonym for plunked?

There are a few baseball terms which are closely associated with a hit by pitch or a plunk. Some of these terms include:

• Beanball: A beanball is a pitch thrown with the intention of hitting the batter in the head (or in the “bean”).
• Headhunter: Headhunter is a name used to describe a pitcher who often throws beanballs/plunks.
• Drilled: Drilled is a term used to describe how a batter is hit by a pitch (“drilled in the face,” for example).

What is the connotation of getting plunked?

Plunking often comes with a connotation of a pitcher retaliating against a specific player or the team as a whole. If the pitcher feels that they want to get some kind of payback for actions that happened earlier in the game, they may take it out on a batter in the form of a plunk.

Some examples of reasons that a pitcher has plunked a batter for as a form of retaliation include flipping the bat after hitting a homer or stalling to watch a dinger sail over the outfield before running the bases.

What is the purpose of plunking in baseball?

Besides retaliation, plunking may be used as an intimidation tactic. The pitcher may want to send a message to a specific player or to the entire team by hitting them intentionally. Their intention may be to send the player or team a warning based on earlier behavior in the game.

Plunking can also be used to minimize a talented player’s effect on a game. For instance, a pitcher may plunk a batter in the hopes that a potential injury might hamper their performance. Plunking could also take away a batter’s chances at hitting a home run and running up the score. While the batter still gets to advance to first base as a result of the hit by pitch, the pitcher may see this as a worthwhile tradeoff if a batter known for hitting homers steps up to the plate with other teammates on base.

What happens when a baseball player is plunked?

A plunk is counted as a hit by pitch. The result for a HBP is the batter being awarded first base immediately after being hit by the ball. This means that if there are already other runners on base, they will also advance one base if forced. For example, if a hit by pitch occurs with runners on first and second, those players would advance to second and third, respectively. With the plunked batter now on first, the bases would be loaded.

If the batter who is plunked gets injured when they’re hit by the forcible blow of the pitch, they may have to leave the field for medical treatment. In this case, a substitute player would take their place on the field.

Are pitchers penalized for plunking?

Typically, the penalty for plunking is only the disadvantage of having the batter automatically advance to first base. This could also potentially result in a run being scored for the opposing team if a player is plunked with the bases loaded.

Egregious incidences of plunking may result in more serious penalties, however. If an umpire deems that the hit by pitch was done with an intent to harm the batter with a hard blow from the ball, they may choose to punish the plunker with an ejection or suspension.

How often do batters get hit by a pitch?

The number of HBPs in Major League Baseball (MLB) has been increasing over the last decade. Statistic shows that in 2010 to 2013, the HBP rate was around 0.32. Since then, the HBP statistic has been on an overall rise:

• 2014: 0.34
• 2015: 0.33
• 2016: 0.34
• 2017: 0.36
• 2018: 0.40
• 2019: 0.41
• 2020: 0.46
• 2021: 0.43
• 2022: 0.42
• 2023: 0.43

There are a several possible factors contributing to this uptick in HBPs. For example, pitchers are generally facing more batters and throwing more pitches per game. In addition, many pitchers have increased their focus on throwing inside pitches as fast as possible.

The rates of HBPs have varied over the history of professional baseball. Some of the lowest rates (around 0.12 to 0.15) occurred in the 1930 and ‘40s, while highest rates (0.43 and up) have primarily occurred in the last few years and in the late 1800s.

What is the meaning of the word plunked?

Outside of baseball, the definition of plunk refers to an action that produces a quick, harsh sound, often with a hollow or metallic quality. This use of the word is applied primarily as a verb that produces the sound of plunking rather than a noun, adjective or adverb.

For example, plunking a banjo creates the imitative twanging sound of a banjo. An example sentence would be: “She plunked away on the banjo and produced loud twangs for hours.”

What does plunked down mean?

Another way to use the word “plunk” is to refer to dropping something down suddenly. Other thesaurus terms for this definition include plop and plonk.

What is the book “Plunked” about?

“Plunked” is a book by Michael Northrop which was published by Scholastic Paperbacks for middle grade readers. The story follows sixth grader Jack Mogens and his best friend on their Little League team and what happens after Jack gets plunked by a stray pitch.

There is also a children’s book called “Thump and Plunk” by Janice May Udry from HarperCollins Publishers. This book is tells the story of two squabbling siblings. Rated highly in many book review, it has full-color illustrations and is written for early readers.

Examples of how plunked is used in commentary

1. The pitcher plunks Bautista in retaliation for the bat flip he did after he hit a home run two innings ago.

Sport the term is used

1. Baseball

Also known as:

1. Plunking
2. Hit by pitch