# Is there a baseball or basketball term equivalent to football's "Hail Mary"? **URL:** \ **Category:** The Game Room\ **Created:** [January 15, 2010, 7:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-baseball-or-basketball-term-equivalent-to-footballs-hail-mary/525109 "2010-01-15T19:22:03Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Munch](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/munch/32/5281_2.png) [@Munch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Munch)\ **Post date:** [January 15, 2010, 8:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-baseball-or-basketball-term-equivalent-to-footballs-hail-mary/525109/21 "2010-01-15T20:35:14Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > How does one hit a five-run homer? A grand slam is only 4. It’s an expression for someone who’s trying specifically (and usually too hard) to hit a home run - as if it goes far enough they’d award you more runs for it. ---
**Author:** ![StusBlues](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/dc4da7/32.png) [@StusBlues](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/StusBlues)\ **Post date:** [January 15, 2010, 8:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-baseball-or-basketball-term-equivalent-to-footballs-hail-mary/525109/22 "2010-01-15T20:39:48Z")
> [@Darth\_Sensitive](#): > > In basketball, you’ll throw up the buzzer beater as time expires. There will be some absolutely absurd clips on YouTube of people bombing it full court (of course every example of failure won’t make it on). I think “buzzer beater” is as close an alternative as I can think for basketball. ---
**Author:** ![Munch](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/munch/32/5281_2.png) [@Munch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Munch)\ **Post date:** [January 15, 2010, 8:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-baseball-or-basketball-term-equivalent-to-footballs-hail-mary/525109/23 "2010-01-15T20:57:59Z")
> [@stuthehistoryguy](#): > > I think “buzzer beater” is as close an alternative as I can think for basketball. It’s definitely basketball-specific. But does it connote success? Does anyone say, “he missed the buzzer beater”? ---
**Author:** ![ElvisL1ves](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/5daacb/32.png) [@ElvisL1ves](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ElvisL1ves)\ **Post date:** [January 15, 2010, 9:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-baseball-or-basketball-term-equivalent-to-footballs-hail-mary/525109/24 "2010-01-15T21:04:04Z")
The hockey equivalent would be pulling the goalie. ---
**Author:** ![Jack\_Batty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jack_batty/32/3201_2.png) [@Jack\_Batty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jack_Batty)\ **Post date:** [January 15, 2010, 9:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-baseball-or-basketball-term-equivalent-to-footballs-hail-mary/525109/25 "2010-01-15T21:04:33Z")
I don’t think you can say there is a baseball equivalent at all, because there’s no buzzer to beat. A team could be down by 30 runs in the bottom of the ninth with two out, and the batter down 0-2, and they can still take the next hour and a half to come back and win. With 31 two-strike bloop singles if they can manage it. ---
**Author:** ![astorian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ad7895/32.png) [@astorian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astorian)\ **Post date:** [January 15, 2010, 9:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-baseball-or-basketball-term-equivalent-to-footballs-hail-mary/525109/26 "2010-01-15T21:43:17Z")
I’ve given this lecture before, but will again. The first pass that popularized the term “Hail Mary” was a deep pass from Roger Staubach to Drew Pearson, late in the 4th quarter against the Vikings in the 1976 NFC playoffs. Staubach joked at the time that he just threw the pass and started saying “Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee…” And Pearson came down with the ball, to score the go-ahead touchdown. Sidebar: Minnesota fans are STILL angry about this play, and will STILL give you an earful about how the refs SHOULD have called offensive interference against Pearson. In any case, the Cowboys made it to the Super Bowl that year, where they lost 21-17 to the Steelers. But interestingly, that pass was NOT what we now think of as a Hail Mary pass. This was a designed play, after all, and Staubach was looking specifically for Drew Pearson. And it was NOT on the last play of the game, though the clock was winding down (as I recall, the Vikings had time for another possession of their own). Usually, a modern “Hail Mary” happens on the last play of the 2nd or 4th quarter, and it involves sending EVERY eligible receiver to the end zone, then having the quarterback chuck it deep, in hopes that either a) ONE of the receivers (who cares which?) will come down with it (directly or after a deflection, what’s the diference?), or b) One of the defenders gets flagged for pass interference. As others have noted, a basketball team occasionally throws up a desperation full-court (or nearly full-court) shot at the buzzer, and once in a blue moon it goes in. That’s very close to a Hail Mary. But in baseball? There’s really no equivalent. There CAN’T be, since there’s no clock. If you’re down by one run, with two outs in the bottom of the ninth and there’s nobody on base, well… maybe the batter will hit a homer, maybe he won’t. Maybe you’ll stage a rally, maybe you won’t. But there’s no such thing as a special “What the hell, let’s go for broke and hope we get lucky” play in baseball. ---
**Author:** ![robardin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/43a26b/32.png) [@robardin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/robardin)\ **Post date:** [January 15, 2010, 9:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-baseball-or-basketball-term-equivalent-to-footballs-hail-mary/525109/27 "2010-01-15T21:55:34Z")
> [@Jack\_Batty](#): > > I don’t think you can say there is a baseball equivalent at all, because there’s no buzzer to beat. I was surprised to read three pages before someone pointed this out in so many words. In theory a game of baseball could go on forever. As the first Mets manager Casey Stengel famously pointed out, _“You gotta have a catcher, otherwise you’re gonna have a lot of passed balls”_ (in reference to the team’s first drafted player, catcher Steve Chilcott). A corollary is that the pitcher has to throw strikes, or you could have a never ending parade of walks and forced-in runs. An impressive turnaround from losing to winning is simply referred to as a “comeback victory”. As it gets more and more unlikely and dramatic, you add on more adjectives like “stunning”, “historical”, “unbelievable”, “amazing”. There are gold standards for comeback victories, though, such as “[The Impossible Return](http://www.baseball-almanac.com/box-scores/boxscore.php?boxid=200108050CLE)”, which unlike many historic baseball feats, happened very recently (August 5, 2001). After the seventh-inning stretch, the Cleveland Indians (playing at home) came back from a 14-2 deficit to score 3, 4 and 5 unanswered runs to force extra innings, followed by winning the game in the 11th inning. This loss especially came back to haunt the Mariners when they ended up with a all-time record-_tying_ number of wins for the regular season (116). That one “sure” victory would have put them alone in the record books for Most Regular Season Wins Ever. (Then again that other team was the 1906 Chicago Cubs, who did so playing 154 instead of 162 games.) The gold standard for a Post-Season Impossible Comeback is that pulled off by the 2004 Boston Red Sox. In deference to the Yankee fans on this board, … I will leave it to a Red Sox fan to recap that if necessary. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\ **Post date:** [January 15, 2010, 10:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-baseball-or-basketball-term-equivalent-to-footballs-hail-mary/525109/28 "2010-01-15T22:19:45Z")
> [@robardin](#): > > The gold standard for a Post-Season Impossible Comeback is that pulled off by the 2004 Boston Red Sox. In deference to the Yankee fans on this board, … I will leave it to a Red Sox fan to recap that if necessary. 😃 As much as I (a Red Sox fan) love the 2004 ALCS, that’s a series and not a single game. There was a great single game comeback in game 4, but it’s not the greatest. > **[ESPN.com: Page 2 : Yes, the impossible happened](https://www.espn.com/espn/page2/story?page=neel%2F060919&lpos=spotlight&lid=tab1pos1)** > > Page 2's Eric Neel is a Dodgers fan. And he just witnessed a game to remember forever. Back-to-back-to-back-to-back homeruns in the 9th is pretty hard to beat, even if it didn’t happen with 2 outs. ---
**Author:** ![robardin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/43a26b/32.png) [@robardin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/robardin)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2010, 6:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-baseball-or-basketball-term-equivalent-to-footballs-hail-mary/525109/29 "2010-01-17T06:13:26Z")
> [@Telemark](#): > > As much as I (a Red Sox fan) love the 2004 ALCS, _ **that’s a series and not a single game** _. But to me, that’s what MAKES that the greatest story: they went from being one out, heck one PITCH away from losing in an 0-4 series sweep (and facing the most consistent post-season closer ever in Mariano Rivera), to coming back to _win the seven game series_. On the road. Simply incredible. Then then managed to follow through by going on to win the World Series for the first time in 86 years, after generations of fans practically defined themselves as rooting for a franchise that Always Fails To Win It All. Seriously, anybody not a Yankees fan had to be pulling for the Red Sox that year. Well, sort of. I was actually hoping for a dramatic World Series Game 7 loss for the Red Sox just to keep the traditional spirit of things alive, but I wasn’t unhappy with the strange Brave New World that baseball suddenly became after a Red Sox championship. At least we still have the Cubs. ---
**Author:** ![notfrommensa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/f14d63/32.png) [@notfrommensa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/notfrommensa)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2010, 5:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-baseball-or-basketball-term-equivalent-to-footballs-hail-mary/525109/30 "2010-01-17T17:37:16Z")
> [@Munch](#): > > There’s no specific desperate play in baseball, but a successful come from behind win via homerun is called a walk-off homerun. Just FTR, I think a walk-off homerun can happen without coming from behind. Teams can be tied and a walk-off homerun can happen in the bottom of the 9th inning, (or extra innings). ---
**Author:** ![astorian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ad7895/32.png) [@astorian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astorian)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2010, 6:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-baseball-or-basketball-term-equivalent-to-footballs-hail-mary/525109/31 "2010-01-17T18:35:15Z")
But any way you slice it, football and basketball are inherently DIFFERENT from baseball. In football, if you’re down by 7 points with 1 second left in the 4th quarter, you KNOW this is the last play of the game, and that if you don’t score a TD on this very next play, you lose. In basketball, if you’re down by 3 points with 1 second left in the 4th, you may HAVE to take a desperation shot, because if you don’t, you’ll lose for sure. But in baseball, there’s NEVER one pitch that you KNOW will be the last pitch of the game. There’s NEVER one batter that you KNOW will be the last batter of the game. So, whereas a quarterback may HAVE to throw a desperation pass to the end zone at the last second, knowing, “If I don’t score NOW, there won’t be another chance”… well, suppose the Yankees are trailing by 2 runs in the bottom of the ninth. There are two outs, and nobody on, and Derek Jeter is batting with a full count, 3 balls and two strikes. A desperate situation? Sure, but Derek knows he doesn’t HAVE to hit a homer on the next pitch. He doesn’t have to hit a homer this at bat. He can foul off a few pitches, and wait til he gets the pitch he wants. He can try to draw a walk and hope the NEXT batter hits a homer. He knows that, even if he gets a hit, he’ll need some help from the next batter, if he wants to score. In baseball, there’s no “Hail Mary” because you never know what the last play of the game is going to be. ---
**Author:** ![Robot\_Arm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robot_arm/32/18280_2.png) [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2010, 10:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-baseball-or-basketball-term-equivalent-to-footballs-hail-mary/525109/32 "2010-01-17T22:25:19Z")
> [@astorian](#): > > In football, if you’re down by 7 points with 1 second left in the 4th quarter, you KNOW this is the last play of the game, and that if you don’t score a TD on this very next play, you lose. > > But in baseball, there’s NEVER one pitch that you KNOW will be the last pitch of the game. There’s NEVER one batter that you KNOW will be the last batter of the game. Yes, there is, but the desperation is for the defense, not the offense. Tie game, bottom of the ninth, one out, and a runner on third. If that runner scores, the game is over. The defense has to prevent that. It doesn’t matter if they give up a home run, or a single, or even a sacrifice fly. A ball hit deep to the outfield wins the game, whether it’s caught or not, so there’s no sense putting anybody back there to catch it. They bring the outfielders in close enough to hopefully get the runner out at home. That’s the equivalent of a Hail Mary; an all-or-nothing play with the game on the line. ( **Manduck** mentioned this upthread, but no one seemed to pick up on it.) ---
**Author:** ![Valgard](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/7feea3/32.png) [@Valgard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Valgard)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2010, 1:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-baseball-or-basketball-term-equivalent-to-footballs-hail-mary/525109/33 "2010-01-18T01:04:19Z")
For basketball the two terms I’ve heard are “buzzer beater” and “from downtown to the buzzer”; the latter being used not just for a last-second shot but one of those really spectacularly long shots; halfcourt(+) kinda throws. ---
**Author:** ![Philster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/13edae/32.png) [@Philster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Philster)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2010, 5:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-baseball-or-basketball-term-equivalent-to-footballs-hail-mary/525109/34 "2010-01-19T17:01:18Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > Note that a Hail Mary isn’t just a desperate last-second play in general, but specifically one involving a very long pass (the name comes from the notion that it’s in the air long enough to say a complete “Hail Mary” prayer). Depending on your players, you might also try a long run in a desperate situation. And you might also attempt a Hail Mary early in a game in a low-pressure situation, to try to put some points on the board quickly and turn it into a high-pressure situation for the other team (though this is probably less common than the desperate ones). Stick to science. People in the sporting biz reserve “Hail Mary” for use at the end of a half and the end of regulation. ---
**Author:** ![Kent\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kent_clark/32/105_2.png) [@Kent\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kent_Clark)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2010, 8:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-baseball-or-basketball-term-equivalent-to-footballs-hail-mary/525109/35 "2010-01-19T20:33:23Z")
I can’t resist it. [The “Hail Mary” explained for non-sports fans.](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iZd65eBc_Ag) ---
**Author:** ![mnemosyne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c4cdca/32.png) [@mnemosyne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mnemosyne)\ **Post date:** [January 20, 2010, 3:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-baseball-or-basketball-term-equivalent-to-footballs-hail-mary/525109/36 "2010-01-20T03:51:18Z")
The field goal equivalent to the Hail Mary in the CFL is the "[Thirteenth Man"](http://www.thestar.com/sports/football/cfl/greycup/article/732468--second-time-a-charm-for-alouettes-in-grey-cup) play, but it has only worked once in the history of the game, since it relies upon your opponents being unable to count past twelve. Sorry, I’m feeling a little silly tonight and just can’t help myself…! ---
**Author:** ![Antinor01](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecae2f/32.png) [@Antinor01](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Antinor01)\ **Post date:** [January 20, 2010, 5:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-baseball-or-basketball-term-equivalent-to-footballs-hail-mary/525109/37 "2010-01-20T05:32:35Z")
I’ve heard that term but never knew what it meant. Interesting. ---
**Author:** ![Troy\_McClure\_SF](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/troy_mcclure_sf/32/4150_2.png) [@Troy\_McClure\_SF](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Troy_McClure_SF)\ **Post date:** [January 21, 2010, 8:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-baseball-or-basketball-term-equivalent-to-footballs-hail-mary/525109/38 "2010-01-21T20:43:25Z")
> [@Oakminster](#): > > In baseball, a suicide squeeze may be the closest to a “do or die” play. That, or if you have your slugger up with a chance to tie or win, he’ll probably swing out of his shoes at the first pitch, and 3-0 pitches (depending on runners on base). ---
**Author:** ![astorian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ad7895/32.png) [@astorian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astorian)\ **Post date:** [January 21, 2010, 8:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-baseball-or-basketball-term-equivalent-to-footballs-hail-mary/525109/39 "2010-01-21T20:57:41Z")
> [@Oakminster](#): > > In baseball, a suicide squeeze may be the closest to a “do or die” play. Runner on third charges for home as the pitcher delivers the ball, hoping the batter can lay down a bunt so the runner can score. Well, opinions vary there. Phil Rizzuto, a great bunter, was of the opinion that IF you execute the suicide squeeze properly, it should ALWAYS work, no matter how well the infielders defend it. ---
**Author:** ![Freddy\_the\_Pig](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/a587f6/32.png) [@Freddy\_the\_Pig](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Freddy_the_Pig)\ **Post date:** [January 21, 2010, 10:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-baseball-or-basketball-term-equivalent-to-footballs-hail-mary/525109/40 "2010-01-21T22:40:36Z")
> [@astorian](#): > > Phil Rizzuto, a great bunter, was of the opinion that IF you execute the suicide squeeze properly, it should ALWAYS work, no matter how well the infielders defend it. If you execute it properly–those are the key words. But it exacts a high penalty for failure to execute–either the runner gets caught stealing home, or you pop into a double play. As it happens, the suicide squeeze is seldom if ever used in situations analogous to the Hail Mary. I can’t remember ever seeing it with the batting team trailing in the ninth inning. Mostly it’s used to bag an insurance run, or sometimes to win a tie game in a walkoff situation. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-baseball-or-basketball-term-equivalent-to-footballs-hail-mary/525109.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-baseball-or-basketball-term-equivalent-to-footballs-hail-mary/525109.md?page=3)