07.24.11 — Nine of Diamonds

The American National Game of Baseball, 1866, 

 a Currier & Ives lithograph depicting an early baseball game  

played at Elysian Fields, Hoboken, New Jersey 

————————

Sunday, July 24, 2011

NINE OF DIAMONDS, Puzzle by Kurt Mueller / Edited by Will Shortz

An enead of baseball terminology takes a hit with this winning Sunday crossword featuring nine clues that give those nine phrases of the game of the diamond a whole different meaning.

• BOX SCORES (23A. Cuts in a cardboard container?)
• CALLED OUT AT FIRST (31A. Yelled initially?)
• FAIR BALL (44A. So-so formal dance?)
• WALKED IN A RUN (46A. Went far too slowly during the 10K?0
• SWING FOR THE FENCES (63A. Piece of black-market playground equipment?)
• BATTING ORDER (83A. Wool or cotton purchase request?)
• FOUL TIPS (85A. Disgusting advice?)
• BOTTOM OF THE FIFTH (98A. Whiskey bottle dregs?)
• FULL COUNT (113A. Nobleman after a banquet?)

Ha, ha!

Other — A LITTLE (47D. Not much), ARTERY, AT LAST, BELIEF, CANADA, CHALET, DRY OFF, ENFIELD (77A. Northernmost borough of London), HARASS, IDEOGRAM (84D. Emoticon, e.g.), LOOPHOLE (27A. Tax lawyer’s find), NO EVIL, NOT OFTEN (14D. Seldom), OPEN IT, ORISON, O’TOOLE, RASCAL, REALTORS (109A. People whose jobs include giving tours), RESCUE, RENEWS, RUBS IT IN (51D. Adds insult to injury, say), SHIRTS, SLENDER, SMOOCH, SPEWERS, STOOP TO, STRIDE, TEENSY, TIME SLOT (39D. Schedule opening).

Five-letter — “I don’t give A DARN!”, ALOOF, AMBLE, ANTSY, AREEL, ARETE, ASCAP, ASTER and ASTOR, ATEAT, ATTYS, AVOIR, BRAGG, CARLA, CLANG, COBRA, CORAL, CROON, ELIOT, ENORM, ERNIE, EXXON, FED IN, FIEFS, FRUIT, GILDA (114A. Rita Hayworth‘s femme fatale title role of 1946), GLEEM, INANE, LEILA, LILAC, LOUTS, MISTS, NISEI, NOAHS, NOSSER, OBAMA, O’NEAL, OPRAH, PIN-ON, REORG, SHALT, SMART, SPLAT, TAPIR, TELLA, TETRA.

Short stuff — ACE, AMIN, APB, ASCH, CAPE, CEO, DOOR, EIN, ELMS, ENNE, ERI, FAS, FEZ, “What FOR?“, ICE, INK, IONA, KGS, LECH, LEE and LIE and LIP, “Use the Force, LUKE,” MAO, MRX, NANU, NAPA, NGO, ODE, ODOR, PDA, PLEA, PTS, RED and REED, ROPE, SALE, SER and SET, SOB, STAG, STEP, TIE, WAH, YEST.

————————

Click on image to enlarge.

Puzzle available on the internet at

THE NEW YORK TIMES — Crossword Puzzles and Games.

Remaining clues — ACROSS: 1. Crackerjack; 4. Org. fighting pirates; 9. Pink shade; 14. Wyle and Webster; 19. Many of mystery; 20. Stylish; 21. Mountain ridge; 22. Hit TV show that ended in 2011; 25. American-born Japanese; 26. Prefix with meter or ethylene; 28. Heel; 29. 7’1” former N.B.A. star; 30. Feminine suffix; 34. Nursery noise; 36. Empty; 27. 26 of the 44 U.S. presidents: Abbr.; 38. Instruction part; 40. Beach site, maybe; 42. It might be skipped; 54. State symbols of North Dakota and Massachusetts; 58. Leader who said “All reactionaries are paper tigers”; 48. Arizona is the only state to have one; 59. Attach to; 61. “Rocks”; 62. Certain helicopter; 69. Cousin of keypunch; 71. ___ for life; 72. Purple shade; 73. Press; 78. It comes out in the wash; 81. Freud’s one; 82. Antlered animal; 87. Way out; 88. 24 hrs. ago; 90. Isle of the Inner Hebrides; 91. Brown-___; 94. New York’s historic ___ Library; 97. Top of a ladder?: Abbr.; 103. Courtroom entry; 107. Corporate shake-up, for short; 108. Beyond ___; 111. To have, in Le Havre; 115. Effects of many waterfalls; ; 116. Felt bad; 117. Bind; 118. Toothpaste brand once advertised as having the secret ingredient GL -70; 119. Not settled; 120. Hits and runs; 121. Rev.’s address. — DOWN: 1. Mosey; 2. Perform Hawaiian music, say; 3. Shell alternative; 4. “Uncle Moses” novelist Sholem; 5. Smack; 6. French first lady __ Bruni-Sarkozy; 7. Staggering; 8. Game tally: Abbr.; 9. It was invaded in the War of 1812; 10. Prayer; 11. Airlift, maybe; 12. Really bugged; 13. Orphan girl in Byron’s “Don Juan”; 14. Seldom; 15. Urging at a birthday party; 16. I-5 through Los Angeles, e.g.; 17. Heckle, e.g.; 18. Thou followers?; 24. Some volcanoes; 25. Doesn’t stop, in a way; 32. Pitcher part; 33. Animal with a snout; 38. Urgent transmission, for short; 38. Result of a pitch, perhaps; 40. Trolley sound; 41. Distant; 42. Side in checkers; 43. Metered praise; 44. Tasseled topper; 46. Leader exiled in 1979; 47. Not much; 48. Nobelist Walesa; 49. Queen’s request, maybe; 50. Skin cream ingredient; 52. Land on the Sea of Asov: Abbr.; 53. Cultural org.; 59. Stomach area; 60. Deferential denial; 62. Junk bond rating; 64. Something on a hog?; 65. Stalk by a stream; 66. Feudal lands; 67. Ex-governor Spitzer of New York; 68. When repeated, a TV sign-off; 69. Kind of story; 70. Hi-tech organizer; 74. Sonoma neighbor; 75. Metric wts.; 77. Vast, in verse; 78. Vietnam’s ___ Dinh Diem; 80. Towel; 82. Reach at a lower level; 86. See 102-Down; 89. “___ tu” (Verdi aria); 91. Words following see, hear and speak; 92. 1972 Best Actor nominee for “The Ruling Class”; 93. Winning length in a horse race; 94. Finally; 95. Side in a pickup game; 98. Minute; 97. Swiss quarters?; 98. Confederate general who won at Chickamauga; 99. Noted 1991 Harvard Laaw grad; 100. Supplied, as data; 101. Slot machine symbols, often; 102. With 86-Down, what Washington purportedly could not do; 104. Boors; 105. Banks who was known as Mr. Cub; 106. Late bloomer; 110 Some notebook screens, for short; 113. Fourth notes.