How to Use pickoff in a Sentence

pickoff

1 of 2 noun
Definition of pickoffnext
  • Gilbert even flashed his quickness with an inning-ending pickoff move in the fifth.
    — Joshua Thornton, NOLA.com, 3 Mar. 2018
  • Earlier in the inning, Duvall was called safe on a pickoff attempt at first.
    — Cincinnati Enquirer, Cincinnati.com, 1 May 2018
  • After a pickoff attempt at second base, the umpires intervened as the two players argued.
    — Andrew Joseph, For The Win, 22 Apr. 2018
  • The only issue was a few poor pickoff moves to second, which Shields said were the result of trying to switch from his changeup grip while stepping off the mound.
    — Paul Sullivan, chicagotribune.com, 8 Mar. 2018
  • Artigues reached on a fielder's choice and scored the tying run from second when a pickoff attempt at first base hit Witherspoon and rolled down the right field line.
    — NOLA.com, 24 Nov. 2017
  • Sophomore second baseman Jonathon Artigues was hit by a pitch, moved to third on an errant pickoff throw and a wild pitch, and scored on the flyout.
    — NOLA.com, 28 Apr. 2018
  • After that, Verlander caught Anderson with a pickoff at second base.
    — Scott Gleeson, USA TODAY, 21 Apr. 2018
  • With Cubs first baseman Rizzo charging the plate in anticipation of a sacrifice bunt, Quintana tried a pickoff throw.
    — Bill Shaikin, latimes.com, 9 Oct. 2017
  • Haase, Brieske said, was the one who called for the pickoff.
    — Tony Garcia, Detroit Free Press, 17 June 2022
  • Kershaw fired a pickoff throw to first that caught Ohtani off the bag.
    — Beth Harris, Baltimore Sun, 20 July 2022
  • Cueto has one of the game’s great pickoff moves, and the news about the step-off rule caught him off guard.
    — John Shea, San Francisco Chronicle, 11 Mar. 2021
  • This wasn’t the first time Báez stole home on a pickoff throw to first this season.
    — Tom Verducci, SI.com, 9 July 2018
  • Lyles' errant throw on a pickoff attempt in the fifth helped the D-backs push to a 3-0 lead.
    — Nick Piecoro, The Arizona Republic, 23 Sep. 2020
  • But then the left-hander picked off Ohtani, the first pickoff in an All-Star Game since 2008.
    — Jack Harris, Los Angeles Times, 19 July 2022
  • That’s a pickoff percentage of 0.7, which is tops in the NFL.
    — Jeff Miller, Los Angeles Times, 14 Nov. 2021
  • The Giants scored a third as a runner scored from third on a pickoff throw to first.
    — Charlie Goldsmith, The Enquirer, 18 May 2021
  • Giolito, now alert to the threat, tried a pickoff that was too late.
    — Peter Abraham, BostonGlobe.com, 24 June 2023
  • The team does 30 minutes of bunting in each practice, and the pitchers all spend a chunk of time on their pickoff moves.
    — Mike Hutton, chicagotribune.com, 12 June 2021
  • With Jose Trevino at the dish, down 1-2 in the count, Strahm attempted a pickoff.
    — Julian McWilliams, BostonGlobe.com, 23 Sep. 2022
  • Urías then went to third when Bell let a pickoff throw get past him at first base for an error.
    — Noah Trister, Star Tribune, 23 July 2021
  • The first pickoff, by Jaire Alexander, came when Dallas was backed on its own end of the field late in the first quarter.
    — USA TODAY, 14 Jan. 2024
  • Smith then stole second and got to third when Peacock threw the ball away on a pickoff attempt.
    — Bob Condotta, The Seattle Times, 13 Apr. 2019
  • How will teams use the pickoff throw strategy and how will teams try to exploit it?
    — Dallas News, 8 Feb. 2023
  • Henry County tied the game in the bottom of the fourth after a pickoff attempt to third base went wild.
    — Cameron Teague Robinson, The Courier-Journal, 9 June 2021
  • Jose Siri led off the third with a single, stole second and went to third on an errant pickoff throw by Quantrill.
    — Joe Noga, cleveland, 25 May 2022
  • Luke Edgecomb scored and Salinas went to third on an errant pickoff throw to first.
    — Rick Kretzschmar, Dallas News, 17 May 2023
  • With two outs and runners on first and third, Castillo stepped off the mound and attempted a pickoff at first base.
    — Charlie Goldsmith, The Enquirer, 15 May 2022
  • Covey was saddled with the third error, in the third inning, when his pickoff throw to first bounced by Jose Abreu.
    — Colleen Kane, chicagotribune.com, 18 June 2018
  • Ohtani suffered a right hamstring bruise when he was hit by a pickoff throw from Reds left-hander Brent Suter on May 16.
    — Mike Digiovanna, Los Angeles Times, 3 June 2024
  • Takamura scored on an errant pickoff throw at first base and Madonna came home on a sacrifice fly to right hit by Truman Beaudoin.
    — Glenn Reeves, The Mercury News, 20 Mar. 2024
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pick off

2 of 2 verb
  • The Dash was either picked off by Current field players or lobbed shots off target.
    — Kylie Volavongsa, Kansas City Star, 29 June 2024
  • And then, boom, blackout and ruination reign as humans are picked off en masse by blind, sound-chasing monsters.
    — Ryan Lattanzio, IndieWire, 24 June 2024
  • Many antivirus utilities start picking off the samples immediately, while others wait until just before each program launches.
    — PCMAG, 14 June 2024
  • Mom picks off bad guys in the desert with her sniper rifle.
    — David Fear, Rolling Stone, 15 May 2024
  • The Colts can pick off the 49ers in a close one if Wentz continues that trend.
    — Scott Horner, The Indianapolis Star, 22 Oct. 2021
  • The Browns went for it on fourth-and-2 on their next drive and Flacco was picked off again.
    — Kristie Rieken, Baltimore Sun, 14 Jan. 2024
  • Wolves tend to pick off the old and the weak of a herd, which benefits the health of the overall hunting stock.
    — Eleanor Cummins, The New Republic, 2 Aug. 2021
  • The Kraken entered the game as a nice target for the Stars to pick off on their way to the playoffs.
    — Dallas News, 3 Apr. 2022
  • When he was picked off a second time, the Irish had even less ground to cover.
    — Ryan Kartje, Los Angeles Times, 15 Oct. 2023
  • The ball popped into the air and was picked off by cornerback L’Jarius Snead.
    — Jeff Miller, Los Angeles Times, 22 Oct. 2023
  • Then in the third pitch of the next at-bat, Reds catcher Luke Maile picked off the runner on first base to end the inning.
    — Charlie Goldsmith, The Enquirer, 25 May 2023
  • Yam Banks picked off a pass for the Jaguars moments later, keeping it a tie game at the break.
    — Creg Stephenson | Cstephenson@al.com, al, 9 Sep. 2023
  • Let the native predators pick off scale, mealy bugs, thrips, etc.
    — Nan Sterman, San Diego Union-Tribune, 2 July 2022
  • The Rams got the ball back with 5:29 left, but Stafford's third-down throw into traffic was picked off by Lenoir.
    — Scott Thompson, Fox News, 18 Sep. 2023
  • Don’t prune or pick off the dry or wilted leaves as this will expose the inside of the plant to the harsh sunlight.
    — oregonlive, 19 Sep. 2021
  • Insects are drawn to the lights; bats are attracted to the insects; and, the worry is, owls pick off the bats.
    — Elizabeth Kolbert, The New Yorker, 6 June 2022
  • The leadoff runner was wiped away, though, when Jarvis was picked off by the catcher.
    — Nick Alvarez | Nalvarez@al.com, al, 10 June 2023
  • The Browns picked off Jackson twice and sacked him three times in their Nov. 12 win in Baltimore.
    — Childs Walker, Baltimore Sun, 8 Jan. 2024
  • At this point, Eckersley throws to first to try and pick off Mike Davis.
    — Houston Mitchell Assistant Sports Editor, Los Angeles Times, 30 Apr. 2021
  • Watt put his hands up on a rush just in time to pick off Stafford's pass and returned it 19 yards for a touchdown in the first quarter.
    — Larry Lage, Chron, 26 Nov. 2020
  • Watt put his hands up on a rush just in time to pick off Stafford’s pass and returned it 19 yards for a touchdown in the first quarter.
    — oregonlive, 26 Nov. 2020
  • That proves to be a tough task given more monks keep getting picked off and the killer looks to be whittling it down to Shardlake.
    — Randy Myers, The Mercury News, 1 May 2024
  • Goodall explained how chimpanzees take sticks, pick off the leaves, and use them to poke into termite nests to get a snack.
    — Dallas News, 20 May 2022
  • Pet hair is a pain to pick off fabrics before washing and to clean from your machines.
    — Carolyn Forte, Good Housekeeping, 17 Aug. 2021
  • After White led off with a double he was picked off second base.
    — Tom Murphy, arkansasonline.com, 19 Feb. 2024
  • During a protest, she was picked off by an Israel Defense Forces sniper.
    — Hamilton Cain, Washington Post, 30 Mar. 2023
  • His pass intended for the tight end was picked off by rookie safety Jaquan Amos in the end zone near the tail end of practice.
    — Mike Preston, Baltimore Sun, 27 July 2023
  • That depends on them picking off, say, Sherrod Brown in Ohio.
    — Michael Tomasky, The New Republic, 9 Aug. 2023
  • The Dolphins were down 5 points and driving, and Bell was in perfect position to pick off his second pass of the game.
    — Charlie Goldsmith, The Enquirer, 30 Sep. 2022
  • The first of them, early in the fourth quarter, was picked off by Cowboys safety Jayron Kearse, who returned the ball 32 yards to the Jets’ 17-yard line.
    — Ken Belson, New York Times, 18 Sep. 2023

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'pickoff.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

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