[Ads-l] Antedating of "Pinch Hitter"

[Dan Goncharoff]

How common was the practice of using shortened versions of names in sports,
or generally, at the end of the 19th Century? Or was this possibly a
telegram transcription mistake by the newspaper?

On Tue, Aug 9, 2022, 1:36 PM Ben Zimmer <bgzimmer at gmail.com> wrote:

> On Tue, Aug 9, 2022 at 12:39 PM Shapiro, Fred <fred.shapiro at yale.edu>
> wrote:
>
> >
> > pinch hitter (OED 1899)
> >
> > 1896 St. Louis Post-Dispatch 23 July 5/3 (Newspapers.com)  Doug is a good
> > "pinch" hitter.
> >
>
> The OED's 1899 cite (added in a 2006 update) is one that I shared on the
> alt.usage.english newsgroup in 2003 and on ADS-L in 2005:
>
> ---
> https://groups.google.com/g/alt.usage.english/c/h78qvfAQq9Y/m/4xxIP3-_PpcJ
> https://listserv.linguistlist.org/pipermail/ads-l/2005-May/049854.html
> DECIDED BY ONE SCORE; Senators Win a Ten-inning Game from Orioles.
> Washington Post, July 8, 1899, p. 8
> La Chance, who is one of McGraw's best "pinch" hitters this season, was
> permitted to walk, a clever move in strategy by Winnie and Kittridge.
> ---
>
> As we discussed back in '05, an early meaning of "pinch hitter" (as used in
> the 1899 cite) is equivalent to what we'd now call a "clutch hitter," i.e.,
> one who can deliver a timely hit in a high-pressure situation, based on the
> expression "in the pinch(es)" (equivalent to "in the clutch"). Even though
> the 1899 cite has been added to the OED entry, the definition hasn't been
> revised to reflect this historical usage. (The definition given is "a
> substitute batter, esp. one who (once substituted) replaces the scheduled
> batter for the remainder of the game.")
>
> Dickson (relying on Edward J. Nichols) has the now-familiar "substitute
> batter" meaning attested from 1902. The 1896 cite shared by Fred involves a
> substitution at the plate, so it's a bit ambiguous as to which meaning
> applies. Here's the full context:
>
> ---
> https://www.newspapers.com/clip/107268194/pinch-hitter/
> St. Louis Post-Dispatch, July 23, 1896, p. 5, col. 3
> Dowd's judgment in sending Douglas to the bat instead of Breitenstein is
> open to question. Doug is a good "pinch" hitter, but Breit is hitting the
> ball as hard as any of them. Then, if the game had been but tied, a new
> pitcher would have to go in. As Breit was warmed up and pitching good ball,
> he was the best man to put In the box.
> ---
>
> (That's St. Louis Browns player-manager Tommy Dowd substituting Klondike
> Douglass for the pitcher Ted Breitenstein.)
>
> --bgz
>
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>

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