Posted by: Andy (andy_paulus@yahoo.com) on Mon Oct 3 20:42:29 2005

I wasn't a physics major, but I've experimented quite a bit with the speedcheck radar. The pitch speed will add some velocity to a batted ball, but the number one factor is definitely batspeed (As well as hitting the ball squarely). I measure hitters, including myself, off a tee on a regular basis. These are the typical "exit velocity" readings I have found :

10 year old: 50 avg, 60 is good.
12 year old: 60 avg, 70 is good.
Freshman in HS: 70, 80 is good.
Varsity: 80 avg, 90 is good.
College: 85-90 avg, 90's is good.

Keep in mind this is ball speed, not batspeed. If you take the same swing speeds and throw a ball, say 25 mph at them, it will add a few mph's (less than 5% increase). I would say that a 90 mph fastball would be hit about 10% harder than it would off a tee (given same batspeed). And there would be virtually no difference between hitting a good MLB fastball (90-95) and a typical HS fastball (75-80). The ball would leave at nearly identical velocities. So the speed of the bat is a much more important factor than the speed of the ball.


> That would depend on what normal bat speed is. Someone with a physics major will be able to answer this one.