Baseball Physics In-Pense-ified

Image: San Francisco Chronicle

I nearly flunked physics in high school.

Had it not been for the kindness of my teacher, Mr. Farris, who also was my neighbor, I may not have survived.

I hated the subject back then, mostly because I laothed (read: was intimidated by) math.

Shortly after high school, I became interested in baseball physics. I'm a behind-the scenes kind of guy, so the science behind the game I loved fascinated me.

However, having missed my opportunity in high school to grab the necessary tools to explore the topic, I had about as much chance of understanding baseball physics as I had catching up to a Dwight Gooden fastball.

That's just like me: swinging and missing way too late.

Regardless or my knowledge, or extreme lack there of, I'm still fascinated by the topic, and I'm nuts today over the Hunter Pence three-hits-in-one-swing story.

A guy who does know baseball physics very well, University of Illinois Physics Professor Alan Nathan, has chimed in with an explanation on his web site. Enjoy!