Thread: Rising fastball
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Old Sun May 14, 2006, 11:40pm
SAump SAump is offline
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Join Date: Jun 2005
Location: USA
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Wink Yep, I said it before

"According to Newton's law of action and reaction, if the ball deflects the air to one side, the air will push the ball in the opposite direction."

Yep, if you throw a ball downward at a flat angle and the front end of the ball pushes the air downward, then the air will push the ball in the opposite direction, UPWARD. Now most pitches, due to inertia and LOW velocities, will continue their downward trajectory. But under the right conditions, very high velocities and warm stable sea-level air such as DODGER stadium in late-July, the AIR will push the bottom of the ball upward. It may not be detectable unless you LOOK for it, but it is there skimming across the plate. Now don't expect the baseball to FLOAT straight up with over a 90 mph horizontal velocity. But you may notice that it HANGS UP there for a moment, just before impact with the bat or mitt. You may even notice the catcher or hitter adjust the level of their glove or bat at the last milli-second. This same reaction is often caught on camera, especially on STRIKE THREEEEEEE.