force play

American  

[fawrs pley] / ˈfɔrs ˌpleɪ /

noun

Baseball.

1. a defensive play in which the fielder holding the ball can make a putout by stepping on, or otherwise touching, the base that a runner is heading toward, having been forced to advance to that base because of a batter’s base hit.

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Etymology

Origin of force play

An Americanism dating back to 1895–1900

Example Sentences

The Dodgers had to settle for the force play, and Snell had to make an extra seven pitches to get out of the inning.

From Los Angeles Times • Oct. 30, 2025

The next batter, Steve Garvey, hit a shot to almost the same place, but Nettles grabbed it and threw to second for the force play and third out.

From Los Angeles Times • Oct. 23, 2024

Bryan De La Cruz had four hits for the Marlins, scoring twice and Jacob Stallings had two RBIs on an infield force play and a single.

From Washington Times • May 23, 2023

Heavy rain caused sufficient delays to force play into a fifth day in Dubai.

From BBC • Jan. 30, 2023

Throw it here!” yelled Collins, and Doyle, thinking that they were trying for a force play, increased his efforts to reach second.

From Pitching in a Pinch or, Baseball from the Inside by Mathewson, Christy