I want to start this by saying, I am not so idiotic as to think I actually would be able to hit a major league pitcher.
But when presented with the “do you think you’d be able to even make contact on 1 out of 100 pitches by a pitcher”, I’d like to understand why.
Like if they did nothing but pitch breaking stuff, couldn’t I just overcorrect? Same deal with fastballs? I’m sure they would mix it up, but out of 100 straight pitches, if you were a major-league pitcher, what would you do to make sure that they never made contact?
In: Other
There’s a massive difference between a major league pitcher throwing 100 pitches over the plate at speed and a major league pitcher trying to get you out.
In the first scenario you might be able to anticipate the timing and luck into some contact. In the second scenario you may not get the bat within a foot of the ball.
You might be able to do that….however odds are if you did it 20 times you’d be successful once or twice. Simply based on luck.
Without a lifetime of training that would give you a MLB-esque level of skill, you simply dont have the hand-eye coordination and associated reaction time to “overcorrect”, as you would have difficulty understanding what needed to be corrected in the first place.
And that statement holds for a situation where you see the same exact pitch 100 consecutive times. Once they start manipulating speed, placement, etc., you are now maybe seeing the same pitch 3-4 times total out of the 100.
This reminds me of the shower thought that “someone, somewhere ran the fastest 100m ever (like when being chased by a lion). We just didn’t measure it”
People don’t understand professional athletes and training.
ELI5 Answer: You’re too slow to swing a bat soon enough or hard enough to make contact. It takes you almost as long to swing the bat as it does for the pitch to get there, if you started the second the ball left the pitcher’s hand. Since you still have to aim and think about where and when to swing, by the time your brain does that, it’s too late.
Longer answer: The average MLB fastball is about 93-94 mph, and the average untrained player is probably swinging a bat like a mediocre high schooler at about 50mph. So the ball will get from the pitcher to you in about 0.4 seconds, and your swing will take about 0.25-0.3 seconds. So you’ll have 0.1 seconds to figure out pitch placement and start your swing. Which, for anyone who isn’t a trained athlete, is effectively no time at all. That’s assuming you have the coordination to know where the ball will come across the plate. Which you don’t, so even if you get the timing right (which you won’t, because you’re not fast, strong, or coordinated enough to), you’ll miss the location. And if you try to cheat and swing early, you’ll be way too early and miss completely. And have no chance to understand the location.
People are talking about reaction time and prediction based on pitcher grip & release, which is absolutely a factor, but the other factor is strength & skill. A lot goes into a swing, and for major league level pitching – to catch up with the pitch and put barrel on the ball – you need strong hands/wrists to get the bat through the zone in time plus strong movement in the hips. (And then of course, for a good hit, you need lower body strength & timing between your feet & hands.) Swinging a bat is similar to learning to swing in golf in that every part of your body needs to be synced up properly. Without at least some strength/skill you’ll just end up behind every pitch/swinging over it.
Plenty of minor league players who see 90+ mph fastballs in the minors still can barely hit major league pitching. The movement on the ball, location, etc. There’s also a whole psychological element to it.
If you ever watch a baseball game, pay attention to the batter. He starts kicking his leg before the pitcher even pitches the ball. Its coming in hot. How most pros circumvent this (making contact) is by realizing the status of the game; the variables.
For example, you’re taught really young that you always take a 3-0 count pitch, but as a pro, you know damn well that next pitch is most likely going to be right down the middle of that plate. In contrast, an 0-2 count usually means the next pitch is most likely going to be something to get the batter to “chase”, or an “eff it” pitch, so most batters will opt to not swing unless its “their pitch”. But youre also taught as a batter to protect the plate; dont go out looking. Different variables mean different things and some require certain inputs for the desired outputs.
I say all that to say that a lot of batters are guessing, because that’s all they have time to do. You wont be able to overcorrect; ball is coming in too fast. You rely on the situation and make your best guess: a full count of 3-2 with bases loaded and 2 outs means that pitcher is pitching to strike you out. As a batter, you’re looking for the man to throw his specialty or a heater, pick one and pick where.
I am going to attach this video here [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k5Xl4VvgU_w] . This is a game from the 1996 World Series between the Yankees and the Braves. This is widely considered the turning point of the series. IIRC, Jim Leyritz said that at a 2-2 count, 8th inning, down by 3, he was looking for a slider. He got the slider.
Baseball is a game of knowledge. People say it’s boring, and i can understand their sentiment, but if you KNOW the game, it’s much more fun to watch. It’s heavily based on probability and knowledge that every single person on the diamond NEEDS to be successful.
To answer your last question, what you’ll need is power, precision, and a little unknown advantage of HEIGHT. The closer you can step towards that plate the stronger your arm will appear. Aroldis Chapman has the fastest fastball ever recorded (105 mph), and even he gets smacked on.
Are we talking making contact/fouling a ball off? Are we talking putting a ball in play? Or are we talking actually getting a hit?
Unless you have played high level baseball, if they mixed it up and tried to make you miss, you would never make contact. They wouldn’t even have to throw strikes – you wouldn’t have time to figure out where the pitches are going before they were by you.
My question is if he is throwing 100 pitches without a break, why am I not able to hit one? I don’t even need to swing if I’m not confident and even a pro should burn out at 100
Latest Answers