Baseball Pitch Velocity: Find Out How Far the Ball Falls!

[phantomcow2]

Alright, I am really stumped. Was wondering if somebody could point me in the right direction, because I am lost.

"The fastest recorded pitch in Major League Baseball, thrown by Nolan Ryan in 1974, was clocked at 100.8mph (45.06163m/s). If a pitch were thrown horizontally with this velocity, how far would the ball fall vertically by the time it reached home plate, 18.3m away?

 

[Dorje]

This is a projectile motion problem. The baseball has two components to its velocity as it flies through the air: a horizontal component that stays the same (since there are no forces that act horizontally) and a vertical component that changes (because of the force of gravity). You are given the horizontal velocity (45.06 m/s) and the horizontal distance (18.3 m). From this, compute the time. Then, compute how far the baseball fell vertically in that same time.

Related animation: http://www.physicsclassroom.com/mmedia/vectors/hlp.html

 

[tealish]

100.8 mph is the fastest pitch you say? That's complete shuttlecock! Just the other day, I saw a Yankee closer throw a high heater at 103mph.