--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The best place to catch a baseball hit by…" description: "\"The best place to catch a baseball hit by (Mark) McGwire is definitely not within the confines of the playing field, or sometimes even the ballpark. Ot..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a3f/thomas-boswell-16231_asks_the-best-place-to-catch-a-baseball-hit-b_2211634.png" --- # The best place to catch a baseball hit by (Mark) McGwire… ![“The best place to catch a baseball hit by (Mark) McGwire is definitely not within the confines of the playing field, or sometimes even the ballpark. Other players dial '1' for long distance. McGwire has to ask for an international operator.” quote by Thomas Boswell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a3f/thomas-boswell-16231_asks_the-best-place-to-catch-a-baseball-hit-b_2211634.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a3f/thomas-boswell-16231_asks_the-best-place-to-catch-a-baseball-hit-b_2211634.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a3f/thomas-boswell-16231_asks_the-best-place-to-catch-a-baseball-hit-b_2211634.png) > “The best place to catch a baseball hit by (Mark) McGwire is definitely not within the confines of the playing field, or sometimes even the ballpark. Other players dial '1' for long distance. McGwire has to ask for an international operator.” [Thomas Boswell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-boswell/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The quote humorously suggests that McGwire’s home runs are so powerful they would need an international phone call to be reached, implying they travel far beyond the stadium. **In simple terms:** McGwire’s hits are exaggerated as extremely long. Key Takeaway Recognize hyperbole in sports commentary. Themes humor exaggeration baseball Mood playful ironic Type humorous satirical When to use this quote - sports commentary - fan discussions - media analysis Key Concepts hyperbole sports myth media rhetoric Questions to Reflect On - How does exaggeration affect perception of athletes? - When is hyperbole appropriate in reporting? A Different Perspective The joke may overstate reality, misleading casual listeners. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Asks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/asks/) [Ballparks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ballparks/) [Baseball](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/baseball/) [Baseball Hit](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/baseball-hit-1904209/) [Best place](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/best-place/) [Catch Baseball](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/catch-baseball-4899204/) [Distance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/distance/) [Fields](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fields/) [International](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/international/) [Long](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/long/) [Long distance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/long-distance/) [Mark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mark/) [Mark Mcgwire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mark-mcgwire-1387976/) [Operators](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/operators/) [Place Catch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/place-catch-4899205/) [Player](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/player/) [Playing field](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/playing-field/) [Playing fields](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/playing-fields/) [Sometimes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sometimes/) ## Related quotes > [The hardest thing to do in baseball is to hit a round baseball with a round bat, squarely.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ted-williams/the-hardest-thing-to-do-in-baseball-is-to-hit-a-round-baseball-with-a/) [Ted Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ted-williams/) > [I was born to hit a baseball. I can hit a baseball.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barry-bonds/i-was-born-to-hit-a-baseball-i-can-hit-a-baseball/) [Barry Bonds](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barry-bonds/) > [You don't last too long in baseball if you can't hit the curveball.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jason-sehorn/you-don-t-last-too-long-in-baseball-if-you-can-t-hit-the-curveball/) [Jason Sehorn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jason-sehorn/) > [In baseball you hit your home run over the right-field fence, the left-field fence, the center-field fence. Nobody cares. In golf everything has got…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-harrelson/in-baseball-you-hit-your-home-run-over-the-right-field-fence-the-left/) [Ken Harrelson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-harrelson/) > [I'm so bad at baseball, I can't even hit now.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-cormier/i-m-so-bad-at-baseball-i-can-t-even-hit-now/) [Daniel Cormier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-cormier/) > [Decades after a person has stopped collecting bubble gum cards, he can still discover himself collecting ballparks... their smells, their special seasons, their moods.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-boswell/decades-after-a-person-has-stopped-collecting-bubble-gum-cards-he-can/) [Thomas Boswell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-boswell/) > [ “\[B\]aseball is diffracted by the town and ballpark where it is played... Does baseball, like a liquid, take the shape of its container?” ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-boswell/b-aseball-is-diffracted-by-the-town-and-ballpark-where-it-is-played/) [Thomas Boswell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-boswell/) > [The fans love the home runs, the home run competition between Mark McGwire and Sammy Sosa.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jose-canseco/the-fans-love-the-home-runs-the-home-run-competition-between-mark/) [Jose Canseco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jose-canseco/) > [It's going to be unbelievable, you know. There's going to be a lot of people cheering for Mark McGwire and me. And, hey, we'll…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sammy-sosa/it-s-going-to-be-unbelievable-you-know-there-s-going-to-be-a-lot-of/) [Sammy Sosa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sammy-sosa/) > [I'm not sure Mark McGwire was a Hall of Famer to begin with.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pete-rose/i-m-not-sure-mark-mcgwire-was-a-hall-of-famer-to-begin-with/) [Pete Rose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pete-rose/) > [You can't put a price on what Mark McGwire brings to the Cardinals organization. The responsibility he accepts is as great as any number…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-la-russa/you-can-t-put-a-price-on-what-mark-mcgwire-brings-to-the-cardinals/) [Tony La Russa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-la-russa/) > [You don't protect Mark McGwire. The only way to protect him is hit 70 homers yourself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-davis/you-don-t-protect-mark-mcgwire-the-only-way-to-protect-him-is-hit-70/) [Eric Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-davis/) > [There's only one Mark McGwire. The man walked over 160 times. Just think. If he walks 60 times, he might hit 100 homers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-davis/there-s-only-one-mark-mcgwire-the-man-walked-over-160-times-just/) [Eric Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-davis/) > [Mark (McGwire), you know I love you. It's been unbelievable. I wish you could be here with me today. I know you are watching…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sammy-sosa/mark-mcgwire-you-know-i-love-you-it-s-been-unbelievable-i-wish-you/) [Sammy Sosa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sammy-sosa/) > [A brilliant idea without action is like Mark McGwire playing baseball without a bat.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-canfield/a-brilliant-idea-without-action-is-like-mark-mcgwire-playing-baseball/) [Jack Canfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-canfield/) ## More by Thomas Boswell > [An almost inexorable baseball law: A Red Sox ship with a single leak will always find a way to sink No team is worshipped…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-boswell/an-almost-inexorable-baseball-law-a-red-sox-ship-with-a-single-leak/) [Thomas Boswell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-boswell/) > [Football is played best full of adrenaline and anger. Moderation seldom finds a place. 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Ballplayers are tale tellers who have polished their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-boswell/conversation-is-the-blood-of-baseball-it-flows-through-the-game-an/) [Thomas Boswell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-boswell/) > [“Familiarity, and a few dozen cheap flyballs off the Monster, breed contempt.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-boswell/familiarity-and-a-few-dozen-cheap-flyballs-off-the-monster-breed/) [Thomas Boswell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-boswell/) > [I think baseball is a great support to people who have emotional voids, gaps, emotional difficulties. That is to say: all of us. Those…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-boswell/i-think-baseball-is-a-great-support-to-people-who-have-emotional/) [Thomas Boswell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-boswell/) > [Baseball is not necessarily an obsessive-compulsive disorder, like washing your hands 100 times a day, but it's beginning to seem that way. We're reaching…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-boswell/baseball-is-not-necessarily-an-obsessive-compulsive-disorder-like/) [Thomas Boswell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-boswell/) > [Born to an age where horror has become commonplace, where tragedy has, by its monotonous repetition, become a parody of sorrow, we need to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-boswell/born-to-an-age-where-horror-has-become-commonplace-where-tragedy-has/) [Thomas Boswell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-boswell/) > [In and of itself, sports may be trivial, but as a symbol of the American way of life, it has enormous weight. 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And suddenly forever seems like too short a time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-andreas/there-is-nothing-more-i-ask-of-this-life-than-this-moment-exactly-so/) [Brian Andreas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-andreas/) > [Success will come when the societal attitude changes and not a single woman in America asks herself the question 'What did I do?'.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-biden/success-will-come-when-the-societal-attitude-changes-and-not-a-single/) [Joe Biden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-biden/) > [The most fundamental question we can ever ask ourselves is whether or not the universe we live in is friendly or hostile.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-einstein/the-most-fundamental-question-we-can-ever-ask-ourselves-is-whether-or/) [Albert Einstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-einstein/) > [The rich people are apparently leaving America. They're giving up their citizenship. 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