eephus means an off-speed pitch with unusually low velocity, intended to catch the hitter off guard. It carries an Arena rating of 1357, earned across 14 head-to-head judged battles.
Among words judged in Lexicurio's Arena, eephus ranks #143 of 17,163 for Funniest Words, #145 of 17,132 for Most Betrayed by Its Sound, #1,657 of 17,140 for Most Whimsical Words, #2,215 of 17,149 for Most Exacting Words.
Why “eephus” is a great word
A baseball pitch defined by its extreme slowness and precipitous parabolic arc, generally credited to Pittsburgh Pirates outfielder Maurice Van Robays in 1942, who said of the pitch, "Eephus ain't nothing," a name often suggested to derive from the Hebrew אֶפֶס (efes, "nothing, zero"). Unlike the fastball, a declaration of power meant to overwhelm, or the changeup, a subtle deception that mimics power before withholding it, the eephus is a public, almost theatrical surrender of velocity. It is the ball hanging in the sky like a stalled gull, the hitter buckling his knees in a futile, over-committed swing, and the collective, breath-held silence of the crowd as physics itself seems to pause—a momentary rebellion against the expectation that force must always be met with greater force.
Etymology
The naming of the pitch is generally credited to Maurice Van Robays in 1942, who said "it's a nothin' pitch, and eephus ain't nothing'". However, it is not clear what the source for the name is; possibly Hebrew אפס (“nothing, zero”).
noun
- An off-speed pitch with unusually low velocity, intended to catch the hitter off guard.e.g.“Sewell was determined to live or die by the eephus.” — 2003, Michael Seidel, Ted Williams: a baseball life:
Definitions & examples from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 3.0).
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