Physics Of Baseball Essay

Chase Dahler

Advanced LA 11

Mrs. Rasmusson

May 10, 2023

Physics of Baseball

Foley’s baseball coach Mr. Beier once said, ”Are you studying for a physics test? Well, then you had better be studying baseball.” Even though he had declared this as a disciplinary reprimand, it still holds weight as a somewhat truthful statement. Sports and physics are obviously directly correlated in terms of motion and force, but more than ever in the sport of baseball. Physics in baseball, whether watching or playing, revolves around the ball, the bat, and the transfer of energy. The ball is the most important element of the game, but it is also the most unpredictable in terms of movement and forces acting upon the ball at all times. During baseball games,

The bat is the only other object used to propel the ball into motion. Typical bats used in high school and even major league games range between thirty and thirty-three inches; although, the longest that a regulation bat can be is thirty-six inches. These bats have a barrel width of two and one-half inches and weigh around thirty-two ounces which is around two pounds. All baseball bats are weighted on the end where the ball is supposed to hit. While each bat isn’t guaranteed to take all baseball players over the fence every plate appearance, they can use the advantages that their bat is designed with. Every bat is manufactured with a “sweet spot” that assists the batter in hitting the ball. The better you make contact with the spot, the better and farther the ball will travel. For best results, contact with the ball must be made within 1/8" of this special point (“The Physics of Hitting a Baseball”). If someone were to make contact far away from the sweet spot, their hands would never forgive them. Stinging sensation in the hands and the minimal distance that the ball travels would be enough to make most people frustrated with how baseball works. Most bats nowadays have a certain characteristic ascertaining to them, Coefficient of Restitution (COR). The COR is a ratio of a bat and a ball’s relative speed after collision over their prior speed (Williamson). Basically, it is a system of measuring how well the bat can

Energy is transferred in a variety of ways in baseball, from any throw to every swing of the bat. The way that the players move will determine whether their pitch is gas, or whether the swing is powerful enough to go yard. People generally assume that pitching is all in the arm, but the arm is only one of the many facets of an excellent pitching delivery. Honestly, it is the legs that provide the strength to whip the ball from mound to mitt. Every single Major League Baseball (MLB) pitcher uses to drive from their back leg and utilizes their forward motion and trunk rotation toward the plate to make the ball “jump” out of their hand. Someone who has great mechanics and a fluid energy transfer will be throwing the ball harder, although it may look like they are not putting much effort into the throw itself. Some coaches try to tell their players that their body is a rubber band. Nobody would stretch the rubber band only a half of an inch and let it go, but to stretch it out all the way as far as possible to build up energy. This logic can be applied to the pitching motion as well. Pitchers try to get extensions in their bodies to gain elastic energy throughout so that they can snap the ball down harder and have something propelling them in the process. Swinging the