Velocity

[braves_fan1025]

Will someone please explain to me how to calculate the velocity of a pitcher without a radar gun???

[caseyd123]

well, with a stopwatch:

time from the point of release to the point of impact on catcher's glove...convert this number to hours (60 seconds in a minute, 60 minutes in an hour)

convert 60.5 feet into miles (5,280 feet in a mile) which is 0.011458333333333 (3 repeating)

calculate: 0.0114583333333333 over (time converted to hours)

miles per hour

thats the best way i can think of without a radar gun

[CoachHenry]

You have to know how far the ball travelled and how long it took to get there. Distance (how far the ball travelled) is from the release point of the pitcher to the point it hits the catcher's glove. Time would require some sort of stopwatch or computer measurement.

v=d/t is the formula used. V = velocity, d = distance, t = time

Make sure your units of measure are right, convert, etc. All that depends on what units you use to measure distance and time to get your final MPH value.

[CoachHenry]

well, with a stopwatch:

time from the point of release to the point of impact on catcher's glove...convert this number to hours (60 seconds in a minute, 60 minutes in an hour)

convert 60.5 feet into miles (5,280 feet in a mile) which is 0.011458333333333 (3 repeating)

calculate: 0.0114583333333333 over (time converted to hours)

miles per hour

thats the best way i can think of without a radar gun

Ah you beat me to it.

[jbooth]

well, with a stopwatch:

time from the point of release to the point of impact on catcher's glove...convert this number to hours (60 seconds in a minute, 60 minutes in an hour)

convert 60.5 feet into miles (5,280 feet in a mile) which is 0.011458333333333 (3 repeating)

calculate: 0.0114583333333333 over (time converted to hours)

miles per hour

thats the best way i can think of without a radar gun

It's nearly impossible to be accurate. You'd be lucky to get within + or - 20% accuracy. If you're off by as little as one tenth of a second on the release/catch point you're going to be off by around 20%.

So, if the pitch was actually 80mph you're going to be calculating anything from 64 to 96 just being off by a tenth of a second. Even if you get within .025 seconds of accuracy you'll be lucky to be within 5 mph of the correct speed.

Plus you've given the calculation for the ball traveling 60.5 feet. The distance from the hand to the catcher's glove is probably not that distance. You can't even get an accurate distance, let alone an accurate time. 60.5 is the rubber to the front of the plate. The pitcher's release is closer and the catcher is behind the plate.