How to Use the strike zone in a Sentence

the strike zone

noun
Definition of the strike zonenext
  • The throw, however, was right in the middle of the strike zone.
    — Jack Harris, Los Angeles Times, 6 Sep. 2023
  • Drop them back and into the strike zone under the bridge.
    — Max Inchausti, Field & Stream, 24 Apr. 2024
  • Only one of them came on a pitch outside of the strike zone.
    — Shawn McFarland, Dallas News, 29 June 2023
  • The pitch was below the strike zone, crossing the plate just 17.4 inches above the ground.
    — Jesse Newell, Kansas City Star, 29 Apr. 2024
  • Betts struck out on a slider that was below and wide of the strike zone.
    — Dylan Hernández, Los Angeles Times, 12 Oct. 2023
  • The pitcher no longer has to throw four pitches out of the strike zone to walk the batter like in the past.
    — USA TODAY, 4 Feb. 2024
  • Getting some swings and misses up (in the strike zone) is key.
    — Evan Petzold, Detroit Free Press, 3 Mar. 2023
  • Hence, the pitchers’ counter-counter move: Hard four-seam fastballs up in the strike zone.
    — Gabe Lacques, USA TODAY, 7 July 2023
  • Great hitters hit pitches out of the strike zone … for base hits.
    — Nick Canepa, San Diego Union-Tribune, 10 Dec. 2023
  • Hitters tend to swing under it as the baseball glides through the strike zone.
    — Jaylon Thompson, Kansas City Star, 27 Mar. 2024
  • Like a pitcher with no feel for the strike zone, Fraction fired the ball all over the place — but with a purpose.
    — Dan Woike, Los Angeles Times, 1 Mar. 2024
  • But Lange struck out Royce Lewis with a curveball inside the strike zone to strand the bases loaded.
    — Evan Petzold, Detroit Free Press, 25 June 2023
  • So, too, did the percentage of his fastballs that landed in the strike zone, up from 41% to 50%.
    — Shawn McFarland, Dallas News, 11 Apr. 2023
  • On Wednesday, the art of the illusion extended to the strike zone, too.
    — Evan Grant, Dallas News, 31 May 2023
  • One way to measure the difficulty is to calculate the time the ball spends in the strike zone.
    — WIRED, 16 June 2023
  • Now ahead in the count, Mayer got another slider — this time in the strike zone.
    — Alex Speier, BostonGlobe.com, 7 July 2023
  • The 30-year-old located his pitches and filled up the strike zone from the onset of his outing.
    — Evan Petzold, Detroit Free Press, 20 July 2023
  • To that end, he’s spent his offseason working on getting to balls down in the strike zone.
    — The Arizona Republic, 1 Mar. 2023
  • With runners at first and second, Trevor Stephan struck out George Springer on a fastball at the bottom of the strike zone.
    — Joe Noga, cleveland, 10 Aug. 2023
  • With one out and the bases loaded, Mets pitcher Tommy Hunter wound up and threw a pitch that landed on the inside edge of the strike zone.
    — Victoria Hernandez, USA TODAY, 3 Apr. 2023
  • Ohtani started Trout off with an eighty-eight-mile-per-hour slider that slipped below the strike zone for ball one.
    — Louisa Thomas, The New Yorker, 22 Mar. 2023
  • Hebbert had the pitch count even at 2-2 before forcing the slugger to swing at an 80 mph pitch that was just outside the strike zone.
    — Victoria Hernandez, USA TODAY, 14 Mar. 2023
  • The 21-year-old infielder laid off two off-speed pitches outside the strike zone to get ahead and then jumped on the center-cut heater.
    — Jacob Calvin Meyer, Baltimore Sun, 4 Apr. 2023
  • Nine straight times, in a 15-pitch battle that lasted the better part of six minutes, Freeman swung at a pitch in or near the strike zone.
    — Iliana Limón Romero, Los Angeles Times, 13 Apr. 2023
  • Andrew Heaney nibbled at the strike zone for most of four innings Wednesday against his old team, the Angels.
    — Evan Grant, Dallas News, 15 June 2023
  • Ahead in the count 0-2 on Kyle Schwarber later in the inning, Burnes elevated a cutter that burned the top of the strike zone at 98 mph.
    — Journal Sentinel, 24 Mar. 2023
  • His fastball command was sharp, locating it to all corners of the strike zone.
    — Houston Mitchell, Los Angeles Times, 9 Aug. 2023
  • While working the edges of the strike zone and showing an improved slider, Overton battled through the fourth inning.
    — Charlie Goldsmith, The Enquirer, 4 Apr. 2023
  • Kopech stayed in the strike zone this time, getting Torkelson on a weak grounder to first and whiffing Kerry Carpenter.
    — Ryan Ford, Detroit Free Press, 10 Sep. 2023
  • Then, Muncy took his controversial third strike, rung up on an 0-and-2 splitter that was well below the strike zone.
    — Jack Harris, Los Angeles Times, 26 Aug. 2023

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'the strike zone.' 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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