Pitching the science of baseball physics

USA Today (Society for the Advancement of Education), June, 2008

[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

Big league hitters will tell you that a fastball rises, or that it has "hop." A Purdue University professor is not so sure.

The physics of baseball can throw fans a curveball, says a professor of health and kinesiology at Purdue University, West Lafayette, Ind. "What we think we see when watching baseball is not always what is really happening," declares Howard N. Zelaznik, who teaches "The Science of Baseball" each spring.

"For example, it's pretty clear that batters don't see the ball hit the bat. Players are told to watch the ball hit the bat because it helps keep their head down and they maintain proper body mechanics. If they didn't try to keep their 'eye on the ball,' then most likely they would turn their head too soon--but watching a fastball is just like watching a car at the Indy 500; when the car is right next to you, your eyes can't track it."

A specialist in human motor control, Zelaznik instructs 39 movement and sport science majors about the science of hitting and ball flight, even the "illusion" that a fastball can rise on its way to home plate. The class also focuses on understanding the mind of the hitter based on cognitive and sports psychology.

"One thing that surprises most students is what happens when an outfielder catches a baseball," reveals Zelaznik, who is the director of the Motor Behavior and Control Laboratory. "For example, many fans assume when a player catches a ball that the fielder is computing the flight of the ball. Instead, the player is really moving to control his perception of the ball."