My name has been thrown under the hat

This one comes from the tv reality series, “Survivor”. Jeff Kent, who was a Major League baseball player, was also a contestant on the show “Survivor: Philippines”. At Tribal Council, there was a discussion about people who could be voted out, and Kent said, “my name has been thrown under the hat”. This appears to be a triple conflation of “throw (one) under the bus” (to harm one through deceit or treachery), “throw (one’s) name around” (to mention casually the name of someone important to impress others), and “throw your hat into the ring” (announce that you will be competing for something).

For you baseball fans, Kent hit 351 home runs as a second baseman, the most in MLB history in either league; he is one of only two second baseman to hit 300 home runs at the position of second base.

A big thanks to Steve Hubbard for hearing this one and sending it in!