You may already know this…Baseball is a huge part of Panamanian culture.
…And I’m sure you know that former New York Yankee, Mariano Rivera, is Panamanian, as is Hall of Famer Rod Carew – there is even a stadium in the city named after him!
…But did you know that Mariano Rivera was the last player to ever wear the number 42 (every day)? That number was retired league wide to honor Jackie Robinson.
…And you may already know this too; Panama has two leagues, the juvenile league, and the Mayor League.
…But what you probably didn’t know is that many of the words and phrases used in baseball are the same in both English and Spanish. So one of our students (who is an avid baseball fan) decided to sit down with one of our teachers (who is also an avid baseball fall) to translate several baseball words and terms.
| English | Spanish | Category |
|---|---|---|
| home plate | home plate | locations |
| Bullpen | Bullpen | locations |
| fastball | bola rapida / recta | pitching |
| curveball | curva | pitching |
| knuckleball | nudillo | pitching |
| slider | slider | pitching |
| sinker | sinker | pitching |
| changeup | cambio | pitching |
| cut fastball (cutter) | cutter / lanzamiento cortante / cortante | pitching |
| pitchers mound | monticulo | pitching |
| first base | primera base | positions |
| second base | segunda base | positions |
| third base | tercera base | positions |
| Shortstop | Campo corto / torpedero | positions |
| Left field | jardin izquierdo | positions |
| Center Field | jardin central | positions |
| Right Field | jardin derecho | positions |
| Pitcher | lanzador | positions |
| Catcher | receptor | positions |
| Manager | director | positions |
| Closer | cerrador | positions |
| Relief Pitcher | lanzador de relevo | positions |
| umpire | arbitro | positions |
| outfielder | jardinero | positions |
| Hit | imparable | scoring |
| Bunt | toque (toque is also a Canadian winter hat, pronounced different tho) | scoring |
| single | sencillo | scoring |
| double | doble | scoring |
| triple | triple | scoring |
| home run | cuadrangular / homerun / jonron | scoring |
| win | ganar | scoring |
| loss | perder | scoring |
| save | salvados | scoring |
| run batted in | carrera empujada | scoring |
| error | error | scoring |
| Strike Out | ponche | scoring |
| hit by pitch | golpeado | scoring |
| walk | base por bolas | scoring |
| double play | doble play | scoring |
| triple play | triple play | scoring |
| out | fuera / out | scoring |
| stolen base | base robada | scoring |
| sacrifice fly | elevado de sacrificio | scoring |
| sacrifice bunt | toque de sacrificio | scoring |
| balk | balk | scoring |
| intentional walk | base por bolas intentional | scoring |
| shutout | blanqueo | scoring |
| strike | bola buena | scoring |
| ball | bola mala | scoring |
| wild pitch | lanzamiento descontrolado | scoring |
| ground ball | batazo rodado | scoring |
| fly ball | elevado | scoring |
| bases loaded | bases llenas | terms |
| inning | episodio / inning | terms |
| full count | cuenta llena | terms |
| pickoff | sorprendido (correndor soprendido) | terms |
| runner | corredor | terms |
| pinch hitter | bateador emergente | terms |
| slide | deslizarse | terms |
| foul | foul | terms |
| glove | guante | terms |
| bat | bate | terms |
| cap/hat | gorra | terms |
| visitor | visitante | terms |
| home team | local | terms |
| rosin bag | bolsa de resina | terms |
| dugout | dugout / cueva (den) | terms |
| ball | pelota | terms |
| fan | aficianado | terms |
| batters box | caja de bateo | terms |
| no hitter | juego sin imparables | terms |
| perfect game | juego perfecto | terms |
| field | terreno o campo | terms |
And now you know! So next time you’re at the game or watching it on TV, you can follow along and understand what’s happening.
Hasta Pronto Amigos!
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