hard ball
No-mercy competitive approach
Hardball is baseball, as distinguished from softball.
The figurative sense dominates: aggressive, uncompromising tactics in competition or negotiation.
To play hardball is to pursue victory without gentleness or concession: The union decided to play hardball with management.
The opposite is softball—easy, accommodating, gentle.
- assertivenessConfident self-expression quality
- baseballBat-and-ball team sport
- major leagueHighest competitive tier
- ruthlessLacking any compassion
- take no prisonersPursue victory without mercy
confrontation · winner-take-all · strategy · competition · resilience · cutthroat · determination · negotiation · high-stakes · full court press · fastball · power play · pressure · gloves off · brass knuckles · toughness · pitcher · bare-knuckle
hard ballkid gloves
Fine leather handwear
diplomacy · soft touch · velvet glove · playing nice · compromise
hard ballsoftball
Variant with larger ball
wiffle ball · nerf ball · foam ball · beach ball · rubber ball
hard ballkid gloves
Fine leather handwear
easy going · accommodating · pushover · yielding · conceding