swing and a miss

An allusion to unsuccessful physical actions in such sports as cricket, baseball or boxing, as when swinging a bat at a pitched ball or when throwing a punch at an opponent.

• "A letter arrived from then Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, the Vatican's enforcer of the faith, instructing him to behave as a Roman Catholic politician and vote No. . . . And, of course, Mr. Koopmans voted Yes on the legislation. . . . A swing and a miss for Cardinal Ratzinger, now Pope Benedict XVI."
• "Beef carpaccio with walnuts, lemon and pecorino is a swing and a miss: almost flavorless."
• "In her defense, she's not ever been at this level of national politics before but Tuesday night's speech felt like a swing and a miss for Ayotte."