breaking ball

American

[brey-king bawl] / ˈbreɪ kɪŋ ˈbɔl /

noun

Baseball.

any pitch in which the ball deviates from a straight path as it approaches the batter.

If you’re not sure if it was a slider or a curve, just say it was a breaking ball.

Etymology

Origin of breaking ball

First recorded in 1905–10

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

His only other hiccup came in the third inning, when he hit Jason Matthews with a stray breaking ball on a full count.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 10, 2026

Needing another weapon to complement his fastball and breaking ball, his college pitching coach suggested he attempt to add a splitter to his repertoire.

From The Wall Street Journal • Oct. 30, 2025

“I’ve been able to land it for strikes the last couple of starts,” Glasnow said of his big breaking ball.

From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 16, 2024

He has good life on his low 90’s fastball, and advanced feel for locating his breaking ball and changeup.

From Seattle Times • Feb. 2, 2024

“The breaking ball was pretty good tonight, and he threw some pretty good change-ups, some swing-and-miss change-ups,” Kotsay said.

From Washington Times • Aug. 17, 2023

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023