Connections Sports Edition Sept 30 Hints & Answers #372

If you’re playing the NYT Connections Sports Edition #372 (September 30, 2025), you’ll notice today’s grid leans heavily toward baseball culture and terminology. Unlike some sports editions that mix football, basketball, and tennis, this puzzle celebrates America’s pastime with three of the four groups rooted in baseball. From ballpark purchases to pitching statistics, and from World Series MVPs to types of fly balls, every group reminds players that October baseball is just around the corner.

As usual, the challenge lies in moving from hints to answers. Some words may look unrelated at first, but with careful attention to athlete surname wordplay and diamond-specific lingo, the connections come together. Below, you’ll find a step-by-step guide to solving today’s puzzle — complete with category breakdowns, explanations, and context that go beyond the grid. Let’s dive in.

Yellow Group: Baseball Game Purchases

When you step into a ballpark, the first things fans buy are food, drinks, and memorabilia. The yellow group in today’s Sports Edition represents those baseball game purchases:

• Food
• Program
• Souvenir
• Ticket

These items aren’t just purchases — they’re traditions. For instance, peanuts and hot dogs have been staples since the late 1800s, while a scorecard or program connects fans with the game’s rhythm. Meanwhile, tickets are now digital, yet they still symbolize the start of a memory-filled day. Souvenirs, on the other hand, carry the legacy forward, whether it’s a foam finger or a championship hat.

Green Group: Pitching Statistics

The green group reflects the metrics used to judge pitchers. Baseball analytics thrives on numbers, and these four are cornerstones:

• Hold – A middle reliever maintains the lead but doesn’t finish the game.
• Save – A closer protects a late lead and secures the win.
• Strikeout – A batter fails to hit three pitches.
• Win – Awarded to a pitcher when their team holds the lead after their outing.

Each stat reveals a different role on the pitching staff. For example, Mariano Rivera’s career is synonymous with saves, while Nolan Ryan’s name echoes with strikeouts. These metrics aren’t just numbers; they define pitching dominance and shape careers【external link: Baseball Reference】.

Blue Group: World Series MVPs

The blue group celebrates legends who rose to the occasion on baseball’s biggest stage. Today’s answers are:

• Bench – Johnny Bench (1976)
• Dent – Bucky Dent (1978)
• Dye – Jermaine Dye (2005)
• Springer – George Springer (2017)

Each of these players earned the World Series MVP by delivering clutch performances. Dent’s unlikely home run against the Red Sox remains iconic, Springer’s five-homer series sealed Houston’s championship, Dye carried the White Sox in 2005, and Bench was already cemented as one of the greatest catchers of all time.

By grouping these MVPs together, the puzzle highlights how baseball immortality is often defined not by a season, but by a week in October【external link: MLB official site】.

Purple Group: Types of Fly Balls

Finally, the purple group features fly ball types — the airborne plays that change games:

• Big fly – A slang term for a home run.
• Infield fly – An automatic out rule preventing defensive trickery.
• Pop fly – A short, high fly ball, usually caught.
• Sacrifice fly – A productive out that scores a runner from third base.

Together, these terms reflect how one swing can lead to very different outcomes. A “big fly” ignites the crowd, while a “sac fly” earns applause for its teamwork. Strategy meets spectacle in these moments.

Progressive Hints and Baseball Strategy

If you approached today’s grid without baseball knowledge, it likely felt tricky. The Sports Edition hints often work in tiers:

• First, identify common purchases (ticket, food).
• Next, recognize statistics (strikeout, win).
• Then, notice proper names that tie back to MVPs.
• Finally, decode fly terminology for the last group.

This step-by-step solving strategy mirrors baseball itself: patience at the plate often pays off.

Baseball-Heavy Puzzle Solving Tips

For puzzles like #372, deep baseball knowledge is a clear advantage. Fans who understand terms like “hold” or recall MVP names can solve faster. For newcomers, it helps to:

• Study stat abbreviations in box scores.
• Review World Series MVP lists (great trivia practice).
• Learn ballpark culture terms like souvenir or program.

These strategies prepare solvers for future Sports Editions, which often revisit baseball themes.

Athlete Surname Wordplay Context

Another clever angle in today’s puzzle lies in athlete surnames. Words like Bench and Dent could easily be mistaken for everyday nouns rather than names. This wordplay challenges solvers to think beyond the literal — connecting common words with baseball legends.

Frequently Asked Questions

What are today’s Connections: Sports Edition #372 categories?

Yellow: Baseball game purchases (food, program, souvenir, ticket); Green: Pitching stats (hold, save, strikeout, win); Blue: World Series MVPs (Bench, Dent, Dye, Springer); Purple: Fly ball types (big, infield, pop, sacrifice).

Which World Series MVPs are featured in today’s puzzle?

Johnny Bench (1976), Bucky Dent (1978), Jermaine Dye (2005), and George Springer (2017).

What are the different types of fly balls?

Big fly (home run), infield fly (automatic out), pop fly (short fly), and sacrifice fly (productive out).

How do pitching stats work in the green group?

Hold (reliever maintains lead), Save (closer finishes), Strikeout (three-pitch out), Win (pitcher of record when team leads).

What makes this puzzle particularly baseball-focused?

Three of the four categories connect directly to baseball — from fan purchases to advanced stats — making it one of the most baseball-centric editions yet.

Conclusion

Today’s NYT Connections Sports Edition #372 (September 30, 2025) was a baseball showcase. The groups spanned purchases, pitching stats, MVP legends, and fly ball types, offering a puzzle that rewarded both casual fans and trivia experts.

With October baseball arriving, this edition feels like a timely celebration of the sport’s heritage. Whether you solved it quickly or needed the hints, today’s challenge connected America’s pastime with the joy of wordplay.