eephus

E1E1P3H4U1S1

noun

An off-speed pitch with unusually low velocity, intended to catch the hitter off guard.

OriginHebrew אפס →
Scrabble 11
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Meanings

nouneephus (plural not attested)

alternative eephus pitch · alternative ephus

  1. no pluralball gamesAn off-speed pitch with unusually low velocity, intended to catch the hitter off guard.

    Sewell was determined to live or die by the eephus.

    2003, Michael Seidel, Ted Williams: a baseball life
    2 more examples

    He figured that, if it were another eephus, he'd have time to react.

    2004, Fred Cicetti, Saltwater Taffy: A Summer at the Jersey Shore

    When, on his first pitch, Sewell served an eephus, Williams almost broke his back trying to get to it.

    2005, Randy Roberts, The rock, the curse, and the hub: a random history of Boston sports

Origin

  1. Hebrewאפס“nothing, zero”
  2. Englisheephus

The naming of the pitch is generally credited to Maurice Van Robays in 1942, who said "it's a nothin' pitch, and eephus ain't nothing'". However, it is not clear what the source for the name is; possibly Hebrew אפס (“nothing, zero”).

More words from Hebrew

Full word history & related roots →

Rhymes & wordplay

Anagrams

pushee
Cite this entry
APA

eephus. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/eephus

MLA

“eephus.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/eephus. Accessed November 3, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “eephus,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/eephus.

Source: eephus on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.