An in-between hop is that term in

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding t ...

which indicates a bounced baseball that reaches an infielder at the midpoint of its upward bounce. As a fielder in this instance typically cannot respond to the path of the ball quickly enough, players try to avoid encounters with in-between hops. While ground balls and throws in the dirt usually do not change direction, such factors as the spin of the baseball or imperfections of the playing surface can influence a bounce. An in-between hop contrasts with a ''short hop'', which refers to a baseball that reaches an infielder immediately after it bounces. The in-between hop is often responsible for errors in

infield Infield is a sports term whose definition depends on the sport in whose context it is used. Baseball In baseball, the diamond, as well as the area immediately beyond it, has both grass and dirt, in contrast to the more distant, usually grass-c ...

play. In a December 2003

Baseball Digest ''Baseball Digest'' is a baseball magazine resource, published in Orlando, Florida by Grandstand Publishing, LLC. It is the longest-running baseball magazine in the United States. History and profile It was created by Herbert F. Simons, a spor ...

interview, first baseman John Olerud cites the in-between hop as the toughest play for a fielder to handle.

External links

David Andriesen
Mariners relate each position's toughest plays: Seattle defenders discuss some of the most difficult fielding maneuvers in baseball - In Their Own Words.
Baseball Digest, Dec. 2003. {{Baseball Baseball terminology