Idiom of the Week
Archive - January 2006
"His project was at a critical stage. He needed to be with his team, in there pitching their innovative methodology to an overly-cautious design group who had suddenly balked at incorporating Jey’s algorithm feature into the proposed product."
From Touch All the Bases, p. 42
 In there pitching – adj. Actively engaged; trying hard to sell or promote something; working hard.
- “If we want to win new customers, we’ve got to be in there pitching our expanded services.”
Balk – v. In baseball, an incomplete and illegal motion by the pitcher which allows base runners to advance one base; to refuse, to stop abruptly, to be stubborn.
- “The loan officer at the bank wanted to be helpful, but she balked when she was asked to approve a high-risk loan.”
"John said nothing. He wasn't about to pick a fight with Mike. After all, he wasn't in the movie High Noon, and John had a more important agenda: to finish the management course without bodily injury."
From Take the Bull by the Horns, p. 34
Pick a fight - v. To start a fight or argument, or to disagree strongly.
- "If we pick a fight with Immigration, they'll likely deny our visa application."
High Noon - A famous Western movie where the sheriff, on his wedding day, faces a gang of vicious outlaws who are arriving on a train at 12 o'clock noon. The outlaws intend to kill the sheriff as an act of revenge for sending them to prison, and he must face them alone, since the townspeople are too frightened to help him.
"Suddenly Jey didn’t feel hungry. On that very day he was scheduled to be in Tokyo for the critical meeting with his Japanese partner. How would he break the news to his son and wife that he would be a no-show at Sammy’s final game?"
From Touch All the Bases, p. 47
Break the news – v. tell someone difficult information
- “I hate to break the news to you, but your job is being eliminated.”
No-show – n. someone who doesn’t appear for an important engagement
- “My dentist charges me if I’m a no-show for my dental appointment.”
"Sammy threw down his batting helmet and walked off to retrieve his bat. To add insult to injury, the other team’s best player picked up Sammy’s bat, dusted it off, and smiled smugly as he handed it back to Sammy."
From Touch All the Bases, p. 6
 Batting helmet – n. Protective headgear for the batter to prevent injury from a pitched ball
Add insult to injury – v. To hurt a person’s feelings after doing him harm; to make a bad situation worse
- “To add insult to injury, the newly hired employee got the promotion that I had been promised.”
"His boss had ponied up a considerable amount of money to fly him to this exclusive, off-the-beaten-track ranch that served as a national training and conference site, where he was expected to compete with other promising managers, many from Fortune 500 companies."
From Take the Bull by the Horns, p. 4
 Pony up – v. a slang meaning to pay money, often in order to settle a bet or an account
- "If we don’t pony up the loan payment by Friday, the bank will send us a past due notice."
Off the beaten track – adj. out of the center of action, far away from civilization, or out of communication
- "This company is so far off the beaten track that no one has heard of it or its products."
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