1

Science Fair ProjectDoes the Weight of the Bat Effect How Far The Ball Goes?

Sports Science

Davis Webb & Jackson Meyer

2

Statement of the Problem

Which bat will hit a baseball farther a heavier bat or a lighter bat?

3

Project Overview

We hit five baseballs off a tee with a heavier bat and five balls with a lighter bat. Then we measured how far each ball went. Then we

compared the results of each bat.

4

Research

Using heavier bats provides potentially more power but less bat speed.

Two advantages to using a lighter bat are an increased swing speed and more time to see the ball.

“Many players have tried to make their bats lighter by drilling a hole in the barrel and filling it with cork.”

A lightweight bat provides a hitter the opportunity to hit the ball farther and more consistently. Ed Campaniello a baseball hitting coach in Phoenix, Arizona and former professional baseball

player in the Cincinnati Reds organization recommends that recreational players use lightweight bats.

5

Materials

an composite bat 27oz a composite bat 23oz 20 baseballs 1 baseball tee 2 people baseball field measuring tape

6

Variables

Independent variable: Bat Weight Dependent variable: Distance the ball goes. Constant variables: batters age, gender, ability, field, temperature,

ball used, tee height, batting stance, and grip on the bat. Control group: Participants who bat with the heavier bat

7

Hypothesis

If we bat with the lighter bat the ball will go farther when swinging the lighter bat vs. the heavier bat.

8

Procedure

1. Go to Shaw Butte field 2. Find two people with the same age, size, and gender

3. Set up the tee at waist level 4. Hit five balls off a tee with a heavier bat

5. Mark where the ball lands 6. Measure distance of the ball

7.Hit five balls off the tee with a lighter bat 8. Mark where the ball lands

9. Measure distance of the ball 10. Compare Results

9

Photos

Add photos of your experiments.

10

Data/Observations (Analyzes)

Davis Meters23oz 27oz

Ball 1 59.74 18.5

Ball 2 49.8 56.42

Ball 3 51.39 47.46

Ball 4 37.76 43.29

Ball 5 20.9 39.72

Average 42.79 41.1

Johnny Meters

23oz 27oz

Ball 1 57.6 56.39

Ball 2 57.39 57.78

Ball 3 53.52 53.64

Ball 4 52.39 38.1

Ball 5 34.81 36.58

Average 51.14 48.5

11

Conclusion

Our hypothesis proved to be right. Davis had an average with the light bat of 42.79m and 41.1m with the heavy bat. Johnny had an average with the light bat 51.14m and 48.5 m with the heavy bat.

12

Possible Experimental Errors

If I did this experiment again there are two things that I would change.

The first possible error is that we would have more participants hit balls.

The second possible error is not hitting enough balls. If we would have hit more balls then our results would have been more accurate.

13

Applications and Recommendations

If we were to do this assignment again we would have each participant hit 10 balls with each bat. We also would have three

participants instead of two participants.

14

Works Cited

Adair, Robert Kemp. The Physics of Baseball. Third ed. New York Perennial, 2002. Print. Campaniello, Ed. "Questions about Bat Weight and Travel Distance of a Baseball." Personal interview.

26 Jan. 2011.

Kirkpatrick, Patrick. "Batting the Ball." American Journal of Physics. July 2005. Web. 25 Jan. 2011.

<http://ajp.aapt.org>.

Marcus, Adam. "Tip for Casey: To Swing a Faster Bat, Lighten Up That Lumber." Science News,

Articles and Information | Scientific American. 14 July 2009. Web. 25 Jan. 2011. <

http://www.scientificamerican.com/>.

Russell, Daniel A. "Bat Weight, Swing Speed and Ball Velocity." PAWS - Personal Accessible Web

Space - Kettering University. Web. 25 Jan. 2011. <

http://paws.kettering.edu/~drussell/bats-new/batw8.html>.

Watts, Robert ., and Steven Baroni. "Baseball Bat Collisions and the Resulting Trajectories of Spinning

Balls." American Journal of Physics. Jan. 1989. Web. 25 Jan. 2011. <http://ajp.aapt.org/