southpaw
noun
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Southpaw is of obscure origin. A popular theory holds that it comes from the onetime position of ballparks in relation to the sun. Supposedly, late 19th-century ballparks were laid out so that the pitcher looked in a westerly direction when facing the batter. The throwing arm of a left-handed pitcher would then be to the south-hence the name southpaw. This theory of its origin is undermined, however, by the fact that the original use of southpaw does not involve baseball at all. Rather, the term was used as early as 1848 to describe, simply, the left hand or a punch or blow given with the left hand. Today, we often use southpaw as a good-natured term for a left-handed person, but the word is sometimes viewed as stigmatizing by left-handed people.
Examples of southpaw in a Sentence
Russel Honoré, Newsweek, 6 Mar. 2025
There, Gerrit Cole happened to see a healthy-looking southpaw who had added a two-seam fastball to his arsenal.
—Gary Phillips, New York Daily News, 3 Mar. 2025
The side-arming southpaw has agreed to a one-year, $2.85 million deal with the Yankees.
—Gary Phillips, New York Daily News, 4 Feb. 2025
Sean Sullivan The other southpaw starter high on the Rockies’ radar, Sullivan dominated in Spokane (2.16 ERA in 14 starts) and then pitched even better in the hitter-happy Eastern League in Double-A (1.97 in seven).
—Kyle Newman, The Denver Post, 8 Feb. 2025
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Cite this Entry
“Southpaw.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/southpaw. Accessed 12 Mar. 2025.
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southpaw
noun
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