[SAump]

Gravity cannot be used to explain UPWARD motion. I applaud your effort to include other forces. Aerodynamical terms MUST be considered.

1) Gravity is NOT identical on all round objects (outside a VACUMM). The atmosphere is definitely not a vacumm. A beach ball is much larger than a bowling ball. A bowling ball is much larger than a baseball. Gravitational comparisons must also take mass and surface area into consideration. So gravity doesn't act on all ROUND objects in an identical manner in our atmosphere.

2) PRIMARY forces provided by the pitcher (such as a 100 mph WIND RESISTANCE) generate LIFT, a small upward perpendicular force acting on a 5 ounce baseball. My concept of WIND RESISTANCE and LIFT have been CONSISTENT for some time now in the AIR I BREATH. Let me now correct some of the kids mistakes.

3) Wind resistance acts upon any moving object in a direction OPPOSITE to the direction of the moving object. Swing a ping pong paddle up and down or left and right. The wind resistance is quite noticable in the opposite direction. This is true with a tennis racquet and this is true with a 3 inch baseball traveling 100 mph.

4) Lift results from an air pressure gradient between the top half and bottom half of the baseball. The small DOWNWARD angle (remember gravity) of the baseball hitting the air at 100 mph provides sufficient LIFT for it to RISE a wee bit. Some people have actually seen it. I haven't.

5) There is such a thing as negative lift - downward DRAG acting on a baseball traveling at an upward angle.

6) "A plane has lift because the wind hitting the bottom of the wings is transferred perpendicularly to the wing itself - ie. up and back." That IS NOT true. If it was, the wings would be ripped off any airplane, and it would fall to the ground. A thin sheet of wing material cannot withstand the wind pressure. The wing actually cuts through the wind. The front edge is ROUND. The pressure DIFFERENCE creates a magical LIFT, one that doesn't rip the wings off a 747. Its only magical to those who do not understand how such a large heavy airplane made out of a thin SHEET METAL can move so slowly off the ground.

7) A spherical object has zero lift. ... (It should be noted that if the ball has an initial vector that is slightly downward, the "lift" calculated would be negative (i.e. downward)) Correction i.e Downward is NOT opposite of downward. UPWARD is, and that is why it is possible for a baseball to RISE ^ above horizontal. Negative and Zero lift at low VELOCITY is certainly possible, but negative, zero and positve lift is also possible at high VELOCITY.

8) You briefly mentioned seams. --> Seams add to WIND Drag and WIND DRAG adds to LIFT to a slower moving knuckle ball or a much faster RISING fastball. The principles are not entirely different because they are identical.

9) "We were talking about a fastball, which does spin. And it is spin which causes the movement of a baseball (ask anyone who has seen a curveball. Have you seen one?)" -> Wind resistance on the spinnning seams actually causes the curve you see. If a person could spin the ball fast enough, then the higher velocity of a RISING fastball would not be needed. A slow curve can be thrown at 50 mph.

I would love to say thanks for trying, I applaud the effort.