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automatic runner

American

[aw-tuh-mat-ik ruhn-er] / ˈɔ təˌmæt ɪk ˈrʌn ər /

noun

Baseball, Softball.

Also called ghost runner. a runner who is automatically placed on second base at the beginning of each half of an extra inning, before any pitch is thrown.

Etymology

Origin of automatic runner

First recorded in 1980–85; added to Major League Baseball rules of play in 2020

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.

See Examples For:

automatic runner

Kiké Hernández advanced Pages and automatic runner Michael Conforto to second and third with a sacrifice bunt.

From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 29, 2025

Seattle took advantage of the good fortune, taking lead in the top of the 10th on Crawford’s RBI single to score automatic runner Jorge Polanco from second.

From Seattle Times ● Apr. 21, 2024

The Mariners appeared to have picked off automatic runner Tim Anderson at second when Cal Raleigh fired down to Crawford after a pitch from Justin Topa.

From Seattle Times ● Aug. 23, 2023

With Bo Bichette on second base as the automatic runner in the 10th, Belt hit a liner into the right-field seats for his 14th homer, the third in two games.

From Washington Times ● Aug. 22, 2023

With Mike Moustakas as the Angels’ automatic runner at second base to start the 10th inning, Hunter Renfroe hit a home run into the Blue Jays bullpen.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 30, 2023

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