Softball Vs. Math: Softball Vs. Baseball

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Recommended: Conclusion of mathematics in sports

Orly Katz
Mrs.White
IB Pre-Calculus SL
18 November 2013
Softball vs. Math

The sport of softball has been played since the 1800’s, when it was first invented by George Hancock. As the game developed through the years, it became evident to not only the players, but the spectators as well, that mathematics was a crucial aspect of the beloved sport. As a softball player for many years, one begins to see the connections between the two very clearly. When investigating the degree of importance math has on the sport of softball, one can see that mathematics plays an important role in every part of the game. Mathematics is used in statistics of the game, reaction time, batting average, and on base statistics. However, what most people, even players, do not realize about mathematics in softball, is that it also applies to something as simple as throwing the ball to its destination.
A regulation fast pitch softball, at the high school level, has the circumference of 12 inches and a weight of 6.25-7.00 ounces. The ball has a leather surface and a raised seam that makes gripping the ball easier. These dimensions are different from that of any other ball and effect the shape of a softball throw.
When one throws a softball, it will always form some sort of a parabolic shape. However this shape is affected by the person throwing the ball and the distance at which the ball is thrown. The data that is shown in the graphs and equations below are from three different individuals, ranging in skill and distance. Two of these players were seasoned players and one was an inexperienced softball player. The distances from which they threw were 40 feet, 60 feet, and 80 feet. The three graphs below represent the softball throws done by a veteran softb...

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...does increase, proving the fact that the parabola not only become more definite in shape as the distance increases, but so does the trajectory and height.
All the math work, along with physics principles, aided in proving that math has a significant role in the game of softball. Although people know that math is included in softball, the degree of its inclusion is still a mystery to both the audience and players. As seen in the mathematics work and graphs above, an average throw of a regulation fast pitch softball is parabolic in shape. This parabola has a curvature known as the trajectory, or the bath of the flying ball. This trajectory and parabola increases as the distance of the throw increases, therefore, the maximum height of the throw increases. This proves that an average softball throw has many mathematical aspects that shape the way the sport is played.

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