There ain't no such rising fastball
It turns out that the old chestnut about keeping your eye on the ball is not the best advice. And standing under a pop fly is not the optimal solution for catching it. Some eggheads have analysed the matter, and discovered that it is frankly impossible to keep your eye on the ball - when it gets to within a couple yards of the plate, the baseball's angular motion is to fast for anyone's eye - even those of a major league hitter - to track. What really happens is that they follow the ball until that point, and then jump to the place where they expect the ball to cross the plate.
And in that short distance, magic happens. A well thrown curve ball can drop as much as a foot in that short distance, which is why even major league hitters miss most of the time. And the reason people think that there is such a thing as a rising fast ball is that if you think you're facing an 80 mile fastball, you will expect the ball to drop as it nears the plate. If it is in fact a ninety mile fastball, its velocity will ensure that it doesn't drop nearly so much, creating the illusion of rising over the plate.
A fascinating article, and well worth a read.
[wik] The Maximum Leader is quick to note that there is a whole book of eggheads poking at baseball, called, "The Physics of Baseball (3rd Edition)". I haven't read it, but the Ol' Maximum Leader is a sharp guy, so go buy the book, already.
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Have you ever read "The
Have you ever read "The Physics Of Baseball" by Robert K Adair?
If you haven't you should. Many myths busted in that little book. Many things explained.
I will have to check that out
I will have to check that out. Thanks for the tip.
A real hard fastball has a
A real hard fastball has a lot of backspin. While not enough to make it actually rise, it will make it drop a little less than a hitter would otherwise expect. So they swing under the pitch and strike-out or pop-out.