Posted by: BHL (Knight1285@aol.com) on Wed Apr 25 20:44:22 2007

> >>> Hi Jack,
>
> Here is my evidence: http://www.kettering.edu/~drussell/bats-new/grip.html. As the research studies suggests, the findings are just not exlusive to Adair, but the scientific community in general. This begs the following question: if the grip at contact is very light, how can one apply torque during that point of the swing? Although you argue that a batter must apply torque from initiation to contact, very little or torque can be applied at that stage of the swing for reasons precisely what I contend. Follow the Kettering link, and tell me what you think. <<<
>
> Hi BHL
>
> It is just as I predicted. I have read Dr. Drussell’s report several times and it does not even address the forces applied to the bat that induces its angular displacement rate “to contact.” His report (and Conclusion) only addresses the effects of the grip (or lack of) has on the ball’s exit speed during bat/ball collision -- As I stated, it does not address the forces applied to the bat that accelerates it to contact.
> ##
>
> Dr. Drussell’s Conclusion:
> Final batted-ball speed does NOT matter how you grip the bat
>
> So, what have we learned? Well, we've learned that while gripping a bat in the hands (loosely or tightly) has an affect on the damping rates of the ensuing bat vibration, it does not significantly alter the frequencies with which the bat vibrates - so that a hand-gripped bat behaves more like a free-free bat and not like a bat with a clamped handle.
> ##
>
> Dr. Drussell’s Conclusion does support what this site has always maintained. -- That since the bat is only in contact with the ball for less than 1/2000 sec, continuing to apply force (torque) at the handle during (or after) contact has no bearing on ball flight. –
>
> And, as I stated earlier, misreading the results from this and similar test (as you did), may have also led Professor Adair to believe that forces applied at the handle (torque) was not a factor in accelerating the bat to contact.
>
> Jack Mankin

Hi Jack,

Herein lies my concern. You reached the following conclusion on the Kettering issue: "Since the bat is only in contact with the ball for less than 1/2000 sec, continuing to apply force (torque) at the handle during (or after) contact has no bearing on ball flight."

I believed that Kettering also stated rather clearly that, at the point of impact, the grip on the bat is very light. From my understanding of the article, the hands are definitely too light for the hands to torque the bat at contact, as you argue. I will point out an instance that warrants dissention with your logic: "We've learned that while gripping a bat in the hands (loosely or tightly) has an affect on the damping rates of the ensuing bat vibration, it does not significantly alter the frequencies with which the bat vibrates - so that a hand-gripped bat behaves more like a free-free bat and not like a bat with a clamped handle." Whereas you read this finding as a gloss for adherents of the pop-the-whip theory to continue to postulate in this manner, I take the wisdom of the words to mean that the hands do not act like a clamp (or wrench); they contribute or add basically nothing at collision. If this is the case, then how can torque occur at contact, since the hands must have a decent stronghold on the bat before they can apply a force to it.

Best,
BHL