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The Science Behind Breaking Baseball Bats
livescience.com — The broken barrel of a maple bat whacked fan Susan Rhodes, 50, in the head as she sat four rows behind the visitors' dugout at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles on April 25. She didn't see it coming. She suffered a concussion and the blow fractured her jaw in two places.
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- hughtopia, on 07/15/2008, -3/+12Once again, it's Barry Bonds' fault...
- trousercustard, on 07/16/2008, -7/+1Why don't they just put a screen in a semi circle behind the batter. I know its a bit drastic and obscures the feeling of being so close, but it would solve the problem. That or everyone has to wear full riot gear.
- DeskFlyer, on 07/16/2008, -0/+8Uh.....they do.
- homah, on 07/16/2008, -2/+4I think he's talking about stretching it all the way around to protect the seats behind the dugouts as well.
- DeFex, on 07/16/2008, -0/+10No! they need giant lasers to vaporize the bat before it hits anyone.
- IKORKYI, on 07/16/2008, -0/+1because of pass balls
- DeskFlyer, on 07/16/2008, -0/+8Uh.....they do.
- YURGAY, on 07/16/2008, -12/+1GAY
- DannyDriffs, on 08/25/2008, -3/+6Real Reason: Mariano Rivera
- IKORKYI, on 07/16/2008, -5/+2Real Reason: The Bitch Wasn't There To Watch Baseball
- leerayIG88, on 07/16/2008, -8/+3I heard hitting someone over the head with Baseball bat breaks.
- sivart84, on 07/16/2008, -2/+23You've paid to get seats close enough to the field to catch a broken bat in the face, the least you can do is pay attention to the actual game.
- briLo, on 07/16/2008, -2/+1Very true, but drunkards still have a hard time concentrating!!!!
- sgtbutterscotch, on 07/16/2008, -0/+9Problem is it's hard to focus both on the ball and the bat. Pretty sure most people are focusing on the ball.
- DeFex, on 07/16/2008, -0/+20A thing hitting another thing too hard makes it break.
- thatguyfred, on 07/16/2008, -2/+3Just have them use bats that won't break.
Do I have to solve every problem? - davdev, on 07/16/2008, -1/+7The problem is most of the players are now using Maple bats which explode when they break, unlike the Ash bats that have always been used in the past.
- sgtbutterscotch, on 07/16/2008, -0/+11You should work for Cliff's Notes.
- rukeypoo, on 07/16/2008, -1/+5So. The lighter/less dense the bat, the easier it will break? Riveting.
- briLo, on 07/16/2008, -0/+2Somewhat. The Ash bats tend to splinter when they crack but the usually remain intact. Maple bats tend to break clean often with the handle in your hands and the barrel flying towards a dugout from the swing.
It is riveting really.
- briLo, on 07/16/2008, -0/+2Somewhat. The Ash bats tend to splinter when they crack but the usually remain intact. Maple bats tend to break clean often with the handle in your hands and the barrel flying towards a dugout from the swing.
- cirquo, on 07/16/2008, -0/+5this has to be one ofthe best pictures of a person in the process of getting hit in the face with a wild basebal bat.
http://flickr.com/photos/adam-the-barber/376962085 ...- briLo, on 07/16/2008, -1/+2So much ***** going on there, it's hard to say what is best.
Is it the 4 year old girl trying to catch the bat? The guy on the far left catching a glimpse at the girls rack just a row back? The latin kid with his first beer at the ballgame? Nope, I think it's the guy enjoying it all in the black t-shirt.- gerbco, on 07/16/2008, -0/+1that response is lifted word for word from the last time this pic was on digg..
god I need a new hobby. - briLo, on 07/16/2008, -0/+0Wait....me too as I think I was the one who originally wrote it. I read a lot of highlight magazines when I was a kid so I now I look at everything in a picture besides the object point. I'm great at the naked lady photo hunt games as a result of it!
- gerbco, on 07/16/2008, -0/+1that response is lifted word for word from the last time this pic was on digg..
- briLo, on 07/16/2008, -1/+2So much ***** going on there, it's hard to say what is best.
- MeetMyBackhand, on 07/16/2008, -4/+0Kind of interesting... but how did this make the front page again?
- Anubis2051, on 07/16/2008, -0/+1...people dugg it?
- Barackalypse, on 07/16/2008, -0/+6Of course she didn't see it coming, she was too busy talking to someone instead of watching the game. Also I suspect she was probably planning on leaving during the 7th inning too.
- cirquo, on 07/16/2008, -0/+1All I have to say is, location, location, location.
- mrzack, on 07/16/2008, -0/+2Made in China
- briLo, on 07/16/2008, -0/+3Maple wood is found in Canada, with the US being the highest producer of bats, it's safe to say they're made in North America.
- Tyrghast, on 07/16/2008, -0/+5You're going to a sporting event, be prepared to handle whatever consequences.
- johnnall, on 07/16/2008, -1/+1I know baseball is all about tradition and all that but how about reinforcing the handle with fiberglass. I know it makes the handles of yard tools much stronger. The barrel could still be just wood. Just seems like it shouldn't take a whole lot to resolve the problem. As for having to watch the game through a net... I like NASCAR and although having to look through a fence while watching a race sucks, it sucks a lot less than catching a tire to the head at 200 mph.
- briLo, on 07/16/2008, -0/+1They do make composite bats which are basically wood & synthetic bats reinforced with Fiberglass wraps but they don't feel nearly the same when you're hitting. Kinda like going bareback on your girlfriend versus wearing a condom, one is much more natural than the other.
- 4midwestacademy, on 07/16/2008, -0/+0There's always a risk with having fun...it never hurts to pay attention
- gimmeslack12, on 07/16/2008, -0/+1It is an interesting Physics problem to see when the baseball hits the non-sweet spot of a bat. The vibrations cause displacement at the hands, this does two things. First it stings the hell out of your hands cause those vibrations are dampened by your hands, and Second (if the ball hits a very poor spot) the vibrations cause so much displacement between the head of the bat and stiffness of a batters hands that the structural integrity of the bat is exceeded (aka it breaks).
- rickyroca, on 07/16/2008, -0/+1I havent swung a wooden bat in 25yrs. Do you still have to hold the bat so the label lines straight up? I was told then that hitting the ball any other way was a sure way to break the bat.
- steger, on 07/16/2008, -3/+1I beat a biter down with an aluminum bat.
/it's the joint - theImmodiumGuy, on 07/16/2008, -0/+1This is a simple equation - weaker wood in bats + stronger players on steroids = more broken bats. QED
- diggenerate, on 07/16/2008, -0/+1it all depends on what side of the bat hits the ball, that's it, there is nothing else to it.
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