Related Experiment Video
Updated: May 25, 2026

Comparison of Kinetic Characteristics of Footwork during Stroke in Table Tennis: Cross-Step and Chasse Step
Published on: June 16, 2021
The effect of pitch type on ground reaction forces in the baseball swing
Dave Fortenbaugh1, Glenn Fleisig, Arzu Onar-Thomas
1American Sports Medicine Institute, Birmingham, AL 35205, USA. davef@asmi.org
Abstract:
Coaches have identified the batter's weight shift as a critical component for promoting proper timing and balance in a baseball swing. Analysing the weight shift through maximum horizontal (Fx) and vertical (Fz) ground reaction forces (GRFs) of professional batters (N = 29; height = 185 +/- 6 cm; mass = 92 +/- 9 kg), the purpose of this study was to compare GRFs among swings against fastballs and changeups. General linear models were used to compare three conditions of interest: successful results against fastballs, successful results against changeups, and unsuccessful results against changeups. Batters had a similar loading mechanism and initial weight transfer from back foot to front foot regardless of pitch type, but peak front foot GRFx and GRFz occurred with significantly different magnitudes and at significantly different times, depending on the pitch type and hit result. Peak front foot GRFs were greater for successful swings against fastballs compared to both successful and unsuccessful swings against changeups. Peak front foot GRFs of unsuccessful swings against changeups occurred, on average, 15-20 ms earlier than successful swings against changeups and 30-35 ms earlier than successful swings against fastballs, quantifying how a changeup can disrupt the coordination of a hitter's weight shift.
Related Concept Videos
Motion of a Projectile
Horizontal motion, governed by the initial kick, maintains a constant velocity throughout the flight of the soccer ball.
Perceiving Loudness, Pitch, and Location
Place theory, or place coding, suggests that different pitches are heard because various sound waves activate specific locations along the cochlea's basilar membrane. The brain determines the pitch of a sound by identifying...
Variation in Acceleration due to Gravity near the Earth's Surface
The difference between the true and apparent weights is proportional to the square of the Earth's angular speed. Since the...
The Cochlea
Perception of Sound Waves
The pitch of a sound depends on the frequency and the pressure amplitude of the source. Two sounds of the same frequency...
Types of Friction Problems
The first type of dry friction problem involves situations where there is no apparent impending motion.

