Pitcher

Pitcher is American slang for the insertive partner during anal sex, borrowed from baseball and paired with catcher, who takes the receptive role. It maps onto the more widely used terms top and bottom. The metaphor has circulated in gay male culture for decades as a coded, playful shorthand for sexual roles. Like much sexual slang, it reflects both the inventiveness of community language and a cultural habit of defining gay sex by position. In practice these labels describe preference rather than personality, and many people are versatile, comfortable in either role depending on the partner and the moment.