Abstract

The following considers drag measurements of baseballs with backspin (spin axis horizontal and normal to trajectory) and gyro spin (spin axis parallel to trajectory) orientations. Balls were propelled through still air in a laboratory setting at 36 m/s and spin ranging from 1250 rpm to 1750 rpm. Balls were projected with backspin and gyro spin in the two- and four-seam orientations. Speed and position sensors measured the speed and location of the balls at three locations from which the coefficient of drag and lift were found. Drag was observed to depend on spin rate, spin axis and seam orientation. The largest and smallest coefficient of drag was found with the gyro four-seam and two-seam spin orientation, respectively. Drag was observed to correlate with seam height with back spin, but not with gyro spin. Lift was observed for baseballs with back spin, but not with gyro spin.

Highlights

  • Drag, FD, is the force acting in the direction opposing the ball’s trajectory

  • Balls with a four-seam and two-seam back spin had CD = 0.33 and CD = 0.32, respectively. These results indicate that the drag coefficient was sensitive to the ball orientation for gyro spin, but not for back spin

  • This study considered the lift and drag measurement of baseballs in four different spin orientations

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Summary

Introduction

FD, is the force acting in the direction opposing the ball’s trajectory. FL, is the force acting perpendicular to the ball’s trajectory [1]. The drag and lift coefficients, CD and CL, are defined by C = ,C = ρAV (1). The cause of the drag force on the ball is related to flow separation from its surface. The drag on a baseball is important to understand when describing long trajectories, such as home runs. Small changes in drag result in large differences in carry distances [2]. The seams are large, and influence drag and airflow around the ball. Previous studies have found that the drag coefficient of a baseball is not constant, but depends on the seam orientation [3]

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