It’s often said ‘the guy with the bigger stick always wins’, and it is safe to assume so in baseball ,seeing as the bat is the most vital aspect of the game since it embeds its sole purpose, to hit the ball. The excitement of baseball and what attracts fans the most is the ball- bat action. This relationship is established by the batter and the pitcher; their constant rivalry makes the game interesting as one tries to hit the ball, and the other tries to make him miss. The history of baseball is much like that of other sports; it originated from a group of people, soon it became popular and with time became a multi-million industry. As baseball became more popular and more people became interested in the game, competition drove investors to seek ways to gain certain advantage over their opponents and, so the need for better equipment arose. With the evolution of technology came development of materials which brought hand in hand the development of more efficient and effective bats. Wood was the starting material for bats, but then came the development of aluminum, and in the later years composite bats came into the field.
Though the sport is based mostly in talent, or how the athlete utilizes these tools, equipment is critical for the performance of the athlete. Athletes seek bats that will increase their probability for a home run, maximize their hitting power, decrease the amount of energy loss in the collision for a greater ball velocity, and allow for a quicker swing, seeing as these factors are crucial to the success of their careers. Decades and decades of testing and experimentation have gotten the baseball bat to where it is. It first started as a simple plank, but with the growing popularity of the sport along...
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...etes and companies are constantly seeking ways to include technology to better their equipment. Again, the development of computers, industrial equipment, measuring devices, testing equipment, and smarter engineers were all contributing factors to the evolution of the baseball bat.
Works Cited
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Braham, James. "Keep you eye on the batAmerican Society of Mechanical Engineers". 69. 13 (1997), 1-3, http://web.ebscohost.com/ehost/detail?sid=46cabc6b-475f-4fa3-8712-92f0739b70d4%40sessionmgr115&vid=1&hid=111&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZQ%3d%3d#db=a9h&AN=9708224665. (accessed March 23, 2011).
Albert G. Spalding created the first major league baseball glove. “Wearing a glove just wasn’t manly” said Smithsonian. It used to be that the strongest player on the field was whoever had the most broken fingers or blisters, but after a while, players realised they
Baseball has been of the longest living sports in our world today. The game started with the idea of a stick and ball and now has become one of the most complex sports known in our society. Several rules and regulations have been added to help enhance the game for everyone. Although baseball has endured several issues during its history and development of the game the game has still been a success throughout the world.
The safety of the players is the biggest concern in all levels of baseball. The belief that metal bats result in more injuries than wood contributes to the reasons MLB does not allow their use. One contribution to this belief is the difference in exit speed of the ball off the different bats. It was found that aluminum bats produce an average of 92.5 miles per hour exit speed, compared to wooden bats averaging an 88.6 miles per hour exit speed ("Baseball: Wooden Bats Vs. Metal Bats"). This is a difference of 3.85 miles per hour, which is significant considering the time it takes for players to react to a hit ball ("Baseball: Wooden Bats Vs. Metal Bats"). A study shows that it takes 0.4 seconds for a ball hit 93 miles per hour to travel 54 feet, and because the pitcher's mound lies at 60 feet-6 inches away from home plate, the pitcher has less than 0.03 seconds to react to a line drive hit to them (McDermott). While compared to the time it takes to blink an eye, 0.095 seconds, pitchers do not stand a chance against a line drive (McDermott). The use of met...
Torque is another key ingredient to a good power hitter, or even a good hitter. Torque is the result of two forces being applied to an object in opposite directions. In this case the two forces are being applied from the hands and wrists onto the bat. As you start your swing, instead of moving your hands directly at the ball, you want your hands to start a rotation. The top hand begins to move backwards while the lead arm drives the end of the bat towards the ball. The torque invloved is created around the point of the bat that lies between your hands. This torque greatly accelerates the head of the bat which will have act with a greater force when (or if ) it comes into contact with the ball.
My science report is about whether a corked aluminum bat hits a ball farther than a regular aluminum bat. But first before I get into that boring science stuff, I’ll tell you about the history of baseball. Baseball originated in American before the Civil War (1861-1865) the game was called rounders and was played in sand lots. The first professional team was founded in Cincinnati in 1869. During the 1950’s and 60’s the MLB really took off, it was a time for expansion for the American league and National league. Then new turf fields and new bigger stadiums changed the game forever in the 80’s, But in the 90’s it was all about getting home runs. There have been 245,913 home runs hit in MLB history, and that’s where the physics of cheating in baseball comes in.
Baseball is a fascinating sport that is exceptionally fun to play. This assignment is all about understanding the physics of a few key aspects of this sport. One might ask what physics could have to do with baseball? Like most sports baseball involves physical motion. Baseball encompasses all three planes of motion through throwing, hitting, and fielding. All of the classical laws of mechanics can be applied to understand the physics of this game.
ed. Vol. 2. New York: Harry N. Abrams, Inc., 1995. 973-974. Yaeger, Bert D. The
Louisville Slugger has impacted the evolution of the baseball bat by showing continued excellence through the years. They have shown this excellence by making changes to be current with the world. One change they have made is adding Maple bats into their product line even if they don’t agree with it. White Ash was the main source of what bats were made out of until Barry Bonds, in 2001, broke the single season home run record. His bat was made of Maple. Now the market is close to split on the type of bat sold. Both of the types of bats have positives and negatives. The positives of White ash are that it is a strong timber, it is lighter than Maple, and it has a flexible quality that Maple doesn’t have. The negative is that after extensive
Review by: J. T. Zimmer The Auk, Vol. 62, No. 4 (Oct., 1945), pp. 644-645
Or maybe alloy bats and composite bats The middle of the ball is called the “Cork”. The core of the ball is made of long fiber kapok, in 2004 high-visibility yellow optic covering. Alloy bat son the other hand, are thinner and have more responsive barrels. Alloy bats are also more durable because they are made of aluminum. Composite bats are made of a carbon fiber,graphite, and fiberglass, and some also have kevlar. Kevlar is a synthetic fiber of high tensile strength used especially as a reinforcing agent in the manufacture of tires and other rubber products and protective gear such as helmets and vests. There are many different parts of the bats which is a big part to make the player and who they are on the field. There is a knob which is the very base of the bat. Directly above that there is the grip for the players so they can grip the bat on the handle. Above the grip there is the barrel of the bat where the ball hits, it is also the thickest part of the baton top of that is the end cap on the end of the bat.
Greenblatt and M. H. Abrams. 8th ed. Vol. 2. New York: W.W. Norton, 2006. 1891
Grube, G. M. A., and C. D. C. Reeve. Republic. Indianapolis: Hackett Pub. Co., 1992. Print.
In the three articles that I chose to write about the concepts of physics are explained in each one. In every article there is the similarity that physics and technology are the reasons for the advances in the sports. In the first article it is evident by the statement, “High-tech bats have so enhanced players’ power that some leagues have taken to limiting the number of home runs a team can hit.” (Jay Greene 2,3) Even in the second article with the statement, “The higher we can get the COR, the faster the ball would shoot off from the “collision” – it would go further.” (Coefficient of Restitution 2,1) Lastly in the third article when the author stated, “Clearly, pole-vaulting is an example of a sport in which technology has been used to improve athletic performance.” (The Physics of pole-vaulting ) Without physics these technological advances could not be made. Although these technological advances dont come without some issues attached. With the new technology of the carbon and fiberglass bats, questions can be asked like, is there a point where advancements have gone too far? If bats are continuing to be modified and made to hit the ball farther, what will happen to the game of baseball? Already some bats are being banned from leagues and players feel they have to take more safety precautions because of the potential injury from the ball speed. I really believe that the bat industry...
Back then the bat resembled a modern day hockey stick, then changed to something that looked like a paddle, and finally in 1770 the cricket bat became roughly parallel with a maximum width of 4.25". This is still the same today, it was only until the 18th century the bats were made of willow wood which were very heavy, soon later found that