MLB Study Concludes Changes to Ball Contributed to Home Run Surge
stevek
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https://www.si.com/mlb/2018/05/24/juiced-ball-study-aerodynamics-home-run-surge
MLB Study Concludes Changes to Ball Contributed to Home Run Surge
A study commissioned by Major League Baseball has determined that changes to the baseball contributed to the rise in the home-run rate, the league announced Thursday.
In August 2017, in response to a recent surge in home runs, MLB empaneled a committed of physicists, statisticians and mathemeticians and other experts to examine the possible impact of the ball itself on the increase in homers.
The committee found that the ball as currently manufactured produces less drag as it flies through the air, allowing it to travel farther.
..........Baseball fans and media members have long suspected that the increase in home runs could be due to a change in the baseball itself. Observers also postulate that hitters may have changed their approaches at the plate to hit more fly balls and take advantage of the fact that fly balls are now more likely to be home runs.
Comments
I remember back in the McGwire, Sosa, Bonds heyday people were saying the balls must be juiced. Perhaps it is the same today. It's not the balls that are juiced.
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Ralph
I wouldn't rule that out. The possibility of a new PED that isn't detected yet with today's testing.
It's rumoured that Babe Ruth used horse steroids. Mantle and the hitters of his day popped amphetamines like candy. Players are always looking for an edge, sometimes anyway they can find it, especially with all the money out there today.
One thing is certain...these PED's often make the users die at a much too early age. It's like a Faustian pact with a pill.
Brick, it is a foregone conclusion that there are players using banned substances that help them at the plate. it should also be understood that the ball has been physically changed as outlined by the OP. the major change is that the lacing/seams have been reduced or made tighter, the result being less drag and the potential for a longer flight.
that also reduces the pitcher's ability to throw pitches which "Move" like they used to.