Can We Guess What Position You Played in Baseball?

By: Zoe Samuel
Estimated Completion Time
3 min
Can We Guess What Position You Played in Baseball?
Image: Shutterstock

About This Quiz

Baseball may be America's national pastime, but that makes it sound like any other sport, favored by any other nation. This is far from what baseball is. Baseball is one of the few sports in the world that is not timed. In theory, a baseball game could go on forever. Furthermore, no baseball game ends in a tie. There is always a winner and a loser.

Baseball accommodates all types of physiques since certain positions call for very specific physical qualities, but not others. While a five-tool player will be appreciated in any position, no pitcher is expected to be a defensive savant, and no catcher is expected to steal a lot of bases.

 Baseball is most American in how it has roles for every kind of player, no matter what their physical makeup is. Quick hands may put you on the infield, and swift legs may put you in center field, but with some small tweaks to other defensive characteristics, those same qualities could sit a player behind the plate, or at third base. The chemistry of a baseball team is a mutable thing. Some teams sport tall, lanky shortstops, while others have diminutive shortstops in the mold of Mighty Mite, rather than Derek Jeter or A-Rod.

Baseball players' psychological makeups are similarly important to the positions they play. While many fans may think of catchers as bruised meatheads, most of them are the biggest intellectuals on their teams. In this ball of contradictions, we will sort out your past position from a few simple questions. Take this quiz, and we'll guess what post you had on the diamond.

What emotion do you prefer to experience when playing ball?
Rage.
Joy.
Fizzy excitement.
Zen calm.

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How tall are you?
Well over six feet.
About 5'10"
Pretty short.
About six feet.

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How strong is your throwing arm?
It's my best attribute.
Not strong at all.
It's good.
I can throw about as hard as our closer.

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What was your batting average?
Awful. I don't want to say how bad.
Over .400
In the high .300s
In the .200s, but I got on base a lot.

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How good was your slugging percentage?
Awful.
Fantastic.
Not bad.
Shocking.

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After your playing days, how's your back?
Fine.
A little beat up.
I have problems sometimes, when I sit.
It's the least of my troubles.

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How dexterous are you?
Very.
Not at all.
I'm not bad.
My hands are like two steaks, with fingers.

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How quick are your hands?
Quick-ish.
Not quick at all.
Pretty quick.
As quick as lightning.

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How fast can you transfer the ball from glove to throwing hand?
Pretty quickly.
Not fast enough.
Instantaneously.
In the blink of an eye.

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How many bases would you steal per game?
1
2
3
0

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Did you lay down a lot of bunts?
Loads.
No, never.
Occasionally.
Only to keep the other team guessing.

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How often did you hit for a sac-fly?
Almost never.
Frequently.
Rarely.
Occasionally.

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How accurate is your throw?
I could throw into a teacup.
I'm good at playing with horseshoes.
Pretty accurate, even on the move.
I can reach a player on command, but I can't necessarily hit their glove exactly.

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How hard can you throw?
Consistently hard.
Not very hard.
Hard, but I need a minute or two to recover after.
I can throw hard, but need several minutes to get my strength back.

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When talking about your hitting, what sort of language would people use?
Anemic.
Torrid.
Small-ball.
Consistent.

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After your playing days, how's your elbow?
Basically unusable.
I can still bend it.
A little twitchy.
Mostly okay.

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Did you often have to make diving plays?
No, never.
I did, all the time.
Only when I was taken by surprise.
Rarely.

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Were you prone to defensive errors?
Yes, very much so.
The only guy who made more defensive errors than me was the pitcher.
No, I was solid.
Never, no.

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Did you make a lot of errors on the basepaths?
Yes, quite a few, if I got on base.
No, never.
Rarely.
If I tried to steal, I would.

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How often would you catch a ball when the infield fly rule was in effect?
That was usually how I'd end up with the ball, unless I was covering first base.
Never. Not once.
Frequently.
About half the time.

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Did you hit a lot of doubles?
No, not one.
Yes, loads.
Doubles were about all I'd hit, other than singles.
I got a fair share of them.

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What would you do with your downtime during a game?
I'd watch film of batters.
I'd think about hitting.
I'd watch film of pitchers.
I'd read the scouting reports, or do crosswords in pen.

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What would you snack on during a game?
Sunflower seeds.
Peanuts.
Gatorade.
Cashews.

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What number did you wear?
9
4
2
3

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What era of baseball was the best one?
The Deadball Era.
The 1980s.
The 1990s.
The 1950s.

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How often have you crashed into a wall to make a play?
Never.
Frequently.
Rarely, but it happened.
Every once in a while.

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Other than your primary position, what other position have you played?
Left field.
Catcher.
Third base.
First base.

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How often would you be on the field when the game came to a close.
Never.
Rarely.
Most of the time.
Always.

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After your playing days, how are your knees?
Not what they used to be.
They're okay.
They're fine.
Ground into dust.

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What's the best method of cheating?
Vaseline.
Cork the bat.
Diving.
Steroids.

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You Got: