Question

the correlation between temperature and the likelihood that major league baseball batters will be hit by pitched balls is: near zero. negative. inverse. positive.

Explanation:

• A positive correlation means that as one variable (temperature) increases, the other variable (likelihood of batters being hit by pitched balls) also tends to increase.
• In baseball, when it's warmer, pitchers' fingers might be less stiff (less likely to control pitches precisely), and batters might wear thinner gloves (less dexterity to avoid pitches), increasing the likelihood of being hit. This shows a positive relationship.
• A negative correlation would mean as temperature increases, likelihood decreases, which isn't the case here. Inverse is similar to negative. Near - zero would imply no real relationship, but there is one as explained.

Answer:

positive.