imaginary runner

[ ih-maj-uh-ner-ee ruhn-er ]

noun

, Baseball, Softball.

1. Also called ghost runner,. a provision of informal, usually childhood play in which a deficit of players allows a base runner to return to home plate for their at-bat while being replaced on base by an imaginary player, the advancement of whom is governed by various rules agreed to beforehand: also utilized in stickball, kickball, and other games related to baseball.

Word History and Origins

Origin of imaginary runner¹

First recorded in 1910–15