cadillac v. in baseball, to run in an unhurried, showy way; generally, to perform or operate lackadaisically, carelessly, or without worry. Editorial Note: An older meaning of “cadillac” is “to drive a car; to drive someone around in a car.” Etymological Note: From the Cadillac automobile, seen by some as an ostentatious symbol of luxury or “taking it easy.” In The New Dickson Baseball Dictionary, an entry for “cadillac trot” suggests that “the term certainly can be traced to a famous line uttered by slugger Ralph Kiner in the 1950s: ‘Hitters of home runs drive Cadillacs, single hitters jalopies.’ On another occasion Kiner told a reporter that he never choked up on the bat because the Cadillacs were down at the end of the bat.” However, in 1956 Kiner himself credited the saying to Fritz Ostermueller, a pitcher with the Pittsburgh Pirates, according to a the Oakland Tribune of Mar. 15. Also, syndicated sports columnist Oscar Fraley wrote something similar in 1953 in a column mentioning Kiner, but it was not credited to him: “Guys with good averages eat with gratifying frequency—but guys who hit home runs ride in Cadillacs.” (May 4, 1953, Coshocton (Ohio) Tribune, p. 8). (source: Double-Tongued Dictionary)
Further reading
In 1971, when a new public library opened in Troy, Michigan, famous authors and artists were invited to write letters to the city’s youngest readers, extolling the many benefits of libraries. One of the loveliest was from E.B. White, author of...
There was a time when William Shakespeare was just another little seven-year-old in school. Classes in his day were demanding — and all in Latin. A new book argues that this rigorous curriculum actually nurtured the creativity that later flourished...