OT: Interesting Story On Pete Rose and Corked Bats

[HRBAKER]

Pete Rose a cheater and liar, I find all this extremely hard to believe.

[ChiefBenderForever]

A friend of mine was in Vegas 7-8 years ago and was in line at a sports book waiting to place a bet. The guy in front of him was at the window for a long time and finally turned around with a stack of slips about two inches thick and a menacing grin on his face, it was Pete Rose !!

[M's_Fan]

I thought this was interesting, from the article:

It's simple physics: a bat that's been hollowed out with a drill, its innards replaced with cork, will be lighter without sacrificing power. Lighter bat, quicker swing, better contact on the pitch. That's how the thinking goes, anyway; MythBusters looked into it and found that the ball comes off a corked bat markedly slower, and concluded that the cheaters have only been cheating themselves.

[mr2686]

I'm not sure I believe Myth Busters findings on that. Players at all levels have been screwing around with corked bats (even for fun) for as long as I can remember and as a player you notice a difference. The rule of thumb is have the most mass (largest bat) that you can swing without slowing down your swing. Adding cork would allow you to swing a "heavier" bat "faster". Of course, you also weaken the bat when you do that and it wouldn't last as long. In softball, companies have made billions by coming up with stronger, lighter aluminum so that you can swing faster but the bat is as strong as a heavier type of aluminum allowing the ball to travel farther...or velocity times mass equals distance (or momentum)

[william_9]

It doesn't really matter if it made the bat more powerful or not. All Pete was trying to do was put the ball in play out of the reach of a fielder for a single. A lighter bat helped him hold onto his career and reach his ultimate goal. It also doesn't matter, in the grand scheme, because of his greater offense. If he didn't get caught and eventually made the Hall, this story would be pretty damaging. Yet another fallen hero in the world of baseball. Fortunately, Pete took care of his own PR and did himself in in the reputation department. Thanks Pete!

[JasonL]

Originally Posted by mr2686

I'm not sure I believe Myth Busters findings on that. Players at all levels have been screwing around with corked bats (even for fun) for as long as I can remember and as a player you notice a difference. The rule of thumb is have the most mass (largest bat) that you can swing without slowing down your swing. Adding cork would allow you to swing a "heavier" bat "faster". Of course, you also weaken the bat when you do that and it wouldn't last as long. In softball, companies have made billions by coming up with stronger, lighter aluminum so that you can swing faster but the bat is as strong as a heavier type of aluminum allowing the ball to travel farther...or velocity times mass equals distance (or momentum)

replacing the wood with cork means they are no longer swinging a heavier bat...

[mr2686]

true, it's not heavier but it does have the same mass as the heavier bat and that's where the difference comes in...in my opinion.

[D. Bergin]

Pete Rose really is incorrigible.

Not only does he cork his bat, but he uses the corked bat to break Cobb's record..............and then sells the corked bat to a collector along with who knows how many other corked bats from the same season to other collectors, never believing anybody would ever notice that there is something wrong with the bats.

Pete may have gotten an "A" in woodshop, but he certainly failed at ethics and common sense.

[shimozukawa]

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