"unawares," by 1936, American English, from off (adv.) + base (n.); a figurative extension from baseball sense of a runner being "not in the right position" (1882) and vulnerable to being picked off.
also faceoff, 1886 in sports (hockey, etc., originally lacrosse), from verbal phrase in a sports sense, attested from 1867 (see face (v.) + off (adv.)); the off perhaps is based on stand-off or similar constructions.