ninth-inning

English

Etymology

In baseball, the ninth inning is the last period of the game.

Adjective

ninth-inning (comparative more ninth-inning, superlative most ninth-inning)

1. (baseball) Happening in the ninth inning of a baseball game.
2. (idiomatic) Happening as late as possible, eleventh-hour.
   • 1921. Kenneth D. Cassidy, "Teaching Truck Salesmanship", Michigan Manufacturer & Financial Record.

     The result has been that some truck manufacturers already have gone into bankruptcy, while many are making a ninth-inning attempt at re-organization in a desperate attempt to ward off failure.

   • 2011, November 11. Krystal Peak, "Zynga wants stock back, calls company meritocracy", Vator News.

     But we can chalk a lot of this ninth-inning scramble to the fact that Zynga issued 33 million in new stock for the 2010, which was just too much to offer out so early in the game.