Will we ever again see the likes of these true-blue Power Hitters ?

[frankbmd]

The Physics of Baseball (3rd Edition) [Paperback]
Robert K. Adair (Author)

This little book has been around for awhile (3 decades) and has been updated by the author (3rd edition in 2002). The physical limits of how far a baseball can be hit are discussed in one of the chapters. It is an interesting read and was written by a physicist for the non-physicists among us. It is still available on Amazon. Participants in this thread might enjoy it as well as the answers it tries to provide. Hint: An 800 foot HR ain't going to happen.

[t206blogcom]

I'm surprised nobody has mentioned Bryce Harper. Only Prince Fielder launched one longer than him in last year's home run derby (I know, not the same as regular season, just saying).

[bnorth]

This Glenallen Hill homer always impressed me. He hit the ball on top of the roof on the building across the street. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7wDrw76ieTs

[Big Six]

I have never believed that football is America's pastime...it has always been, and always will be, baseball...and here is why. Baseball is played by guys who look (or used to look) just like we do or did. Most baseball players look like normal, run-of-the-mill people. They don't have the height of basketball players and they aren't the mountain of men that most football players are. We see these guys play a game that looks sooo damn simple and trick ourselves in to thinking we could do it, too...if only we had stuck with it. You don't have to be fast, or strong, or smart to play baseball. Anyone can (and has) played the game at the highest level. Phil Rizzuto, Willie Keeler and Rube Waddell are all Hall of Famers but would have been NOTHING in basketball or football...

Add to this the fact that football players wear helmets w/ face masks and they might as well not even be human. We can't recognize them the way we do with baseball players. How many retired football players that aren't commentators can you recognize if you saw them walking down the street? I love football as much as the next guy but at the end of the day, its a bunch of guys who run around trying to decapitate each other. A lineman gets hurt and a new one takes his place...no one even notices! There are exceptions like Peyton Manning and Tim Tebow and Mean Joe Green who are just magnetic and larger than life that the fans know and love. But they are the exception, not the rule.

That ability to connect with the players is why we are so passionate about the game of baseball, the records, the numbers and the Hall of Fame. That's why it matters so much to us and so many others...

[tedzan]

An excellent observation between BB, FB, and BskB players.....very well stated.

Furthermore, throughout the years we have had personal connections with many of our "heroes of the diamond". At BB card shows, Hall of Fame weekends.....and,
like my experience growing up in the same neighborhood as Phil Rizzuto (Hillside, NJ).

And, as you noted about our similarity to some of these BB players, Phil and I are (were) of the same stature and build. However, I'll tell you this....for a small guy,
Phil had large hands (and a very strong handshake).

Thanks for posting your "$.02...."


TED Z