go yard (1988)

[Chris Frazier]

I've still never seen or heard the phrase used. And 18,000 Google hits
doesn't necessaily make it so.

CF


Jonathan Lighter wrote:

>---------------------- Information from the mail header -----------------------
>Sender:       American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
>Poster:       Jonathan Lighter <wuxxmupp2000 at YAHOO.COM>
>Subject:      Re: go yard (1988)
>-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
>
>18,000 raw Google hits for "went yard" alone.
>
>JL
>
>Chris Frazier <magicalrealism at COMCAST.NET> wrote:
>---------------------- Information from the mail header -----------------------
>Sender: American Dialect Society
>Poster: Chris Frazier
>Subject: Re: go yard (1988)
>-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
>
>I've been an avid baseball fan since the age of three. I literally
>study the game (tactics, statistics, history, jargon), both by watching
>our minor league Washington Nationals affiliate (the Savannah Sand
>Gnats) and by reading baseball books and Baseball America, the "bible"
>(or one of them) of the major and minor leagues. I'm 58 years old, know
>the slang of baseball, mostly developed by players, scouts and
>sportswriters, and I've never heard or seen the term "go yard" used to
>describe any aspect of the game. (This term was also not mentioned in
>the 9-part baseball documentary by Ken Burns. He interviewed players
>from the old Negro League as well as many of the more articulate and
>eloquent sportswriters (e.g., Dan Okrent, Roger Angell) and observers
>(e.g., George Will, Stephen Jay Gould, Doris Kearns Goodwin, etc.) of
>the day.
>First, I can't believe all the chatter about this term on this
>website. Second, the phrase "go yard" sounds like something that a
>broadcaster may have improvised in a moment of great elation about a
>home team hitter getting a four-bagger in a clutch situation. My guess
>is that it was probably used only once or twice. There are, however,
>many colorful terms for hitting a home run that have found a permanent
>home in baseball's lexicon. (Did you know that in the early days of
>baseball, a fan was called a "crank"? The term "bleachers" referred to
>the "cheap seats" which were not covered. Because they were not covered,
>the sun "bleached" and warped them.
>
>Chris Frazier
>Savannah
>
>
>
>Benjamin Zimmer wrote:
>
>
>
>>---------------------- Information from the mail header -----------------------
>>Sender: American Dialect Society
>>Poster: Benjamin Zimmer
>>Subject: Re: go yard (1988)
>>-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
>>
>>On Sat, 15 Oct 2005 15:41:58 -0400, Benjamin Zimmer wrote:
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>>Sunday's "On Language" column about baseball lingo has a request for
>>>information about the origin of "go yard" meaning 'hit a home run'. I
>>>presume "go yard" is intended to be elliptical for "go the whole
>>>distance of the ballyard", or words to that extent.
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>Sorry... "words to that *effect*". I committed this same malaprop
>>(eggcorn?) on alt.usage.english not too long ago...
>>
>>
>>--Ben Zimmer
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>
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