"out of left field" (Why "left"?)

[James A. Landau]

In a message dated 2/28/01 7:58:17 AM Eastern Standard Time, bkd at GRAPHNET.COM
writes:

<< As I learned it, I was told that baseballs get hit to left field
 infrequently, so you stick your weakest fielder there.

 So, you have:

 a) a rare event
 b) a place to stick unwanted people
 and c) the odd instance of a ball being hit to left field, and your weakest
 player getting the ball and successfully throwing it in for an out... >>

You have things reversed.  A right-handed "pull hitter" will generally
deliver his long balls to left field.  ("Pull hitter" refers to a stance in
the batting box.  Most hitters who consistently deliver home runs and long
balls to the outfield are pull hitters.  "Spray hitters" who can hit to left
or right fields equally well generally hit singles rather than home runs.)

In amateur baseball, therefore, you exile your weakest player to RIGHT field.


It is rare for a runner to be thrown out by an outfielder, any field, on a
ground ball, because by the time the ground ball can get to the outfielder
(or vice versa) most runners will have had time to get to the next base.
However, if there is a runner on second and a FLY ball is hit to the
outfield, things are different.  If the ball is hit to right field, the
runner on second usually has time to get to third before a throw from the
right fielder can get to third, simply because the throw has to travel all
the distance from the outfield and then from second to third.  On the other
hand, if the ball is hit to left field, things are chancier because the left
fielder is so much closer to third base.

A throw from left field to third base on a fly ball is common, and frequently
will catch a runner or cause him to retreat to second.  A throw from right
field to third base that is in time to catch the runner is much rarer.  Hence
one would expect the prhase to be "out of right field", but it is not.
Scratch one explanation.

Another unlikely possiblity: a ball hit to the outfield, since it is
spinning, has a tendency to curve towards the nearer foul line.  Hence "out
of left field" refers to a ball that seemingly is going to land in left field
but which takes a blatant curve OUT of left field into foul territory. Since
more long balls are hit to left field than to right, the expression "out of
right field" did not develop.

The only other baseball metaphor that seems to fit is the fact that many
baseball fields built before World War II right fields that were smaller than
their left fields.  Hence there was a lot more left field to be out of than
there was right field.

My guess is that the metaphor "out of left field" does indeed come from
politics.
"People of left-wing views have crazy ideas" therefore  "crazy political
ideas come from the Left" and some baseball fan added the word "field".

          - Jim Landau