In baseball parlance, a pickle occurs when an overly zealous runner overestimates his chances of advancing to the next base. He realizes after it's too late and he's stranded between bases. He wants to retreat to where he came from, but by the time all this happens, the opponent’s team has players staged between the two bases. The runner runs back and forth between the bases, with the opponent shrinking his path lane. An out is inevitable, and he knows he is doomed.
Sound familiar? God, I do love baseball.