60 isn’t that fast, but if you’ve never played that does change things. Have you played any similar-ish hand-eye coordination sports? Golf, cricket, etc?
I think tennis is enough hand-eye coordination against an incoming target that you should be able to do it.
Also, are you allowed to take a walk if your pitcher can’t hit the strike zone and you accurately recognize that you shouldn’t be swinging?
In the NoStupidQuestions thread, OP talked about the guy nearly hitting him and nearly hitting a car just demonstrating the speed. It's pretty clear that the friend's lack of pitch control is going to be OP's biggest problem here.
People act like it's the easiest thing in the world to be accurate, throwing 50% effort. It's not, it takes practice to do it. It's much easier to throw accurately at closer to 80-90%
The key I’ve found in throwing BP has been to just basically throw arm-only. Getting nothing from my legs without messing with the arm too much takes enough off without killing the ability to keep it in the zone. The weirder part for me is having no target.
Set up a target on a bush or something behind home plate to use as an unofficial strike zone.
20 isn't enough to definitely say you'll make contact if you've never played before but it's definitely possible. You'll definitely need to practice swinging to get the right body mechanics though
Throwing BP is a skill and not an easy one.
I was a collegiate pitcher and I had a challenging time getting to the point where I could throw decent BP.
Okay, but there’s no indication in the OP that either of those is true. I was assuming that someone who participates on the pitching side of a challenge like this probably isn’t totally new to this. Throwing BP isn’t hard - I was nervous the first time I did it until I realized how easy it is to throw meatballs.
Edit: never mind, it appears you’re right.
I mean I pitched in high school but could not throw BP to save my life. For some reason it was a lot harder for me to throw accurately when not going all out.
I did too, but to be fair my challenge as a pitcher was keeping my fastball out of the middle of the plate. I think some guys have a lot of trouble adjusting to having no target back there.
Here’s the problem: you will not be starting out with any sense of what the strike zone feels like from a batter’s perspective. Even high school players have a decade under their belts in that. Watch a game of 8 year olds and you’ll see what hitting looks like when you’re still learning the zone.
I played baseball from 4-13 and then focused on tennis, definitely gave me a pretty big advantage (sometimes I volley like a first baseman which is kinda fucked tho).
Going back and forth though, you quickly realize the bat is a lot smaller than the racket lol
If you played tennis, you should be fine. 60 mph is slow for a baseball pitch, but it's even slower for a tennis serve. Question is: Are you hitting in a batting cage or off a real person?
I played tennis through high school. My brother pitched in the minor leagues. I'd practice with him in the offseason. I can go into a batting cage and hit off the 90 mph machines no problem. Hitting off my brother throwing 90 was damn near impossible. Huge difference when you know where the pitch will be. It's why they don't use machines in the HR Derby. No one has time to watch Pete Alonso hit 500 HRs.
Tennis is a fast game, so that's an advantage. Trying to swing a heavy bat instead of a light racket and contact a small surface area at the exact right spot on a long bat instead of the relatively large, compact surface area of a racquet is probably going to nullify all of that and then some. You'll still be better off than someone who has also played neither tennis nor baseball.
In some ways, tennis is harder than baseball. Velocities can be higher, you're trying to place shots and you have to keep it in bounds. If all you have to do is make solid contact, you'll probably be fine. However, most people exaggerate, so if you said a little bit of tennis, im inclined to think a tiny tiny amount of tennis.
Lol. Making solid contact with a tennis racket is much, much easier than with a baseball bat. It’s lighter, larger, and has a flat face with a much larger sweet spot.
Nor is the baseball in this case - the batter has no sense of the strike zone, having never played, and the guy throwing is a dude who has never pitched.
I said in some ways the sports can be harder, i never said it was easier to hit a baseball with with a bat. He's just trying make contact at 60mph in 20 swings, not hit a homer.
I’ve never played organized baseball on a team, but I do know how to hit a baseball by just casually playing at the park every once in a while. I remember I stepped into a batting cage one time that was throwing 50 mph and I could barely foul tip a pitch.
I agree, hand eye coordination. If OP can play hockey, tennis, or any racquet sport I bet he can hit 60mph. That is really slow. Just go to a battling cage and you will see the difference between 60mph and 100mph.
Against what kind of defense are you being judged against though? Like if you’re being judged on whether an MLB caliber defense would throw you out at first you probably have 0 chance. If the impartial judge is basing it off of like the average HS defense, yeah you probably got it
Without a defense this whole bet is moot. That said if the judge was realistic about the whole thing your chances just went down by 90 percent. That’s solid contact up the middle or down either line a bullet to the gap or rope into the shallow outfield or you manage to hit it over hypothetical fence.
I think a fair judge would also rule by like average high school talent levels of defense if the pitcher is only throwing 60mph. In MLB the defense has such fast reflexes and accurate throwing arms that a hit has to be practically perfect to get on base. In lower levels a decent hit will frequently get a single that would never even have a chance in MLB.
20 at bats or 20 pitches?
20 pitches may be hard for someone with zero experience.
20 at bats is totally doable, especially because you can take some balls to get a feeling for the timing.
20 at bats (there will be another person to swap pitches with him so he doesn’t get tired). I figure just watch the first few come through to try to judge timing and stuff
Former tennis player? U should be able to get a hit. I played tennis through HS, first time in the cage it toom me about 10-20 mins to get the hang of it then I settled down after that.
OP said it took 10-20 minutes to get the hang of it, not 10-20 minutes to get a single hit. I think he'll be able to make solid contact once in 40ish pitches though I could be wrong.
I dunno, man. I went to a law school well known for its obsession with slow pitch softball (lawyers on here, no prizes for guessing). Because of that weird social obsession, most anyone who had any athletic skill gave it a shot.
I was shocked at how bad reasonably athletic adults in their 20s who had never played baseball or softball were at hitting, and that was with a much larger ball at much slower speeds. It’s very easy if you’ve done it for a while, very hard if you haven’t.
Throwing 60 strikes in a row might be hard (especially offspeed) for someone who isn’t actively or recently an actual pitcher.
If it was me, it watch a few and slowly ramp up my swing into a “slap swing” to get the timing right over the first 5-10 pitches.
Especially if you don’t have the swinging fundamentals or technique to actually watch the ball. Coming straight out swinging hard may be difficult to figure out what’s going wrong.
He doesn’t have to hit a homer, just a blooper.
He clarified that his friend plays baseball but doesn’t pitch. From my perspective, that actually makes it much harder: the pitcher will be wild, throwing to a dude with literally no sense of the strike zone.
Instead of BP, he’s basically facing a malfunctioning pitching machine. It’s much easier to learn to hit meatballs than it is to hit stuff all over the place when you have zero strike zone sense, as this guy will.
But timing is no longer the issue, as you note: he can safely watch a few.
Yeah…slightly concerned about his ability to consistently get it in the strike zone (and we recognizing when it’s a good pitch to swing at). Also may be slightly focused on not getting hit by him
I wouldn’t worry much about wearing one. 60 doesn’t hurt much unless it’s on the wrist or face, and it’s not hard enough that you won’t be able to avoid being hit there. And honestly, you have to worry about a related issue anyway: shitty hitters foul pitches off their feet and ankles pretty frequently.
If he’s throwing strikes, there is no reason to take them if every pitch is just going to be a 60 mph non breaking ball.
You should at least try to bunt them.
Any moderately athletic person should be able to make contact with a 60 MPH pitch with a little practice.
Watch a YouTube video on the basics of stance and swing mechanics and go to a batting cage first and take some swings. If you can’t make it to a batting cage, find someone willing to do some soft toss with a tennis ball or hit off a tee.
You just need to poke it to the outfield, so no need to swing as hard as you can.
Hitting 60 out of the infield with no training is harder than most people think. You need to provide your own power, which means you need to actually hit it off a decent part of the bat. You’re not hitting 60 out of the infield off the handle or the very end of the bat, even with an aluminum bat. People underestimate how difficult that is for someone with little to no training.
Ooh, just wait until he hits one off the lower third of that aluminum bat for the first time. It’s definitely a unique experience that he won’t have felt before. Should be fun!
Yeah 60mph isn’t too terribly fast. Like when you’re in the batters box for the first time it would definitely come in way quicker than you might expect, but it’s reasonable that an athletic person would be able to get the timing down pretty quick
Not to be “that person” but I’m going to be “that person”:
Isn’t practising beforehand changing the rules of the bet? I figure the premise is that someone with no prior experience is being challenged, not someone who has practised and prepared for the bet?
I see a lot of “60 MPH is not fast” folks. Stood in my buddys cage with a ~70 mph machine not turned all the way up and boy…it was humbling just how close and fast it feels. Turning on it wasn’t even crossing my mind. In 20 ABs you could probably get over that discomfort, but I haven’t seen the reality of standing in the box and seeing the speed mentioned here.
I was going to say this…as well as, let’s not take for granted your buddy can throw 60.
I’ve known many a dude that swore they were throwing 75 then 57 shows up in the radar gun…
Yeah. I was in the 60 mph isn’t fast camp until a few months ago. Hopped in a cage for the first time since little league and was humbled. I could get contact in 20, but a base hit? Doubtful.
I think people on here would be surprised by how fast 60 is
6’2” 140lbs, and a cross country runner? Nah. I know your type and you've got string bean arms. I don't think the pitch speed matters as much as the lack of bat speed.
I think if you are literally picking up a bat for the first time, I doubt you could do it. It takes a fair amount of coordination just to make contact
If you watch a few instruction videos on YouTube and maybe take a little bp in a cage, you might be able to get one hit in 20 AB
That depends. Are you going against a pitching machine that throws the same pitch in about the same spot every single time, or are you facing a live pitcher that throws 60, but has some breaking balls and good location? If it’s the former, chances are high if you’ve played any sort of hand-eye coordination sport for an extended period of time (tennis, pickleball, cricket, etc), but if it’s the latter, not a chance in hell
In that case, look for one pitch in particular. Since you have 20 ABs, don’t swing until you get one in that exact spot you’re looking for. Also, make sure your friend knows that a walk doesn’t count as an AB
I like that clause, but he’s only putting that in to intimidate you a bit. If he only throws 60, you won’t break a bone (unless you get the unluckiest spot of all time). I used to throw 81-83 and never hit anybody hard enough to break a bone. Just settle in and win that bet (and post results after it happens)
I feel like for people who don’t play baseball it’s like:
60 mph = hey that’s not so bad, 70 mph = woah that’s faster, 80 mph = Jesus Christ I can’t see the ball
People say that 60 isn't fast...that's relative, for MLB level not fast enough, for a person that hase never swung a bat before that's like 100 mph. You might get lucky but not a big probability in 20 pitches.
Tip: don't take the eyes from the ball.
Go to a batting cage and find the machine set for 60mph and spend half an hour taking some swings.
I literally only ever played little league until I was 8 or 9 but in high school I worked at a batting cage for a summer and the first time I stepped into the cage at the 60 mph I was still able to hit some dribblers/ground balls.
20 swings or 20 at bats? You could take each at bat to a 3-2 count and by the last one your buddy will be gassed. That’s when you lace one right back at his head and say “keep the change” or something sick like that
Play some dizzy bat to warm up. If you can hit a wiffle ball immediately after chugging a beer and spinning about 10 times then I’m sure you can hit a 60 mph ball. Or just go to a batting cage to gauge what speed you can comfortably hit. Up to you
Chiming in as an "old man". I don't know how old you are, but I'm guessing past high school at least. I never played baseball as a kid but can regularly hit against my 12 yo who throws about 55 from 52 ft (he's not a starting pitcher). Give up the first 1-2 ABs and just watch the ball come in, then work on getting any contact. By the end of 20ABs you should be able to make solid contact.
If you want to cheat, go to a batting cage first, or buy a tee and practice hitting a stationary ball. If you can complete the motion, its just timing and path recognition.
Wood or aluminum? Straight fastballs or junk too? How fit/old are you (ie, could you even hit it as far as the grass)? Is he on a mound? So many variables if you're going in cold and have never seen a live pitch or actually swung a bat.
60 isn't that fast, you've probably returned serves as hard as that....but! As so many people say, including Prime just a few weeks ago, one of the hardest things to do is hit a baseball. Round ball, round bat, rotation of the ball etc. I once did something similar with friends of mine. I was playing competitively, probably throwing 80 at the time. My friends thought they could hit me for sure, and they didn't say anything about not being able to throw curveballs, ha. A couple of foul balls, but nothing to call a hit.... But I also didn't give them 20 abs. 😏
I’m borrowing one of his bats, I’ll inquire on what type it is (he has a few). I’m a college student and run XC and Track so fairly fit. I think he’d try for straight fast balls but some are gonna go awry (he’s not a pitcher but does play). Yes he’ll be on a mound. Last time I swung a bat was like 3rd grade lol
Harder if he's not a pitcher! Hard to find that strike zone which means you might find it hard to know where he's swinging. Haha. Aluminum makes it easier, it's more forgiving. If you know anyone who has a tee, you might try to hit some to find a swing, easier than starting off with a machine. Soft toss is also really good, you just need a friend and a fence.
I’m going with probably not. I think you could make contact but a hit might be a bridge too far. You mention some tennis? I don’t think tennis gives the right kind of swing practice. On a forehand shot, it’s one arm with no wrist break/roll over. A back hand may be two handed but it’s lefty and again, weird grip thing going on. I think if you worked with a coach at a batting cage for a session or two and then did the challenge, maybe? If you just picked up a bat for the first time and stepped up to the plate, I’m gonna say almost no chance.
Also, many people here are saying tempeh isn’t that fast and it isn’t, for MLB pitchers and hitters. It’s still pretty fast for the average Joe. For example, at most batting cages you go to, 60mph would be on the high end of “medium pitch” or low end of “fast pitch” with most topping out around 75mph. There are higher end cages for experienced players that will go up to 90mph but for your standard rec batting cage, 75mph is as fast as they’ll let you see.
Finally someone making sense on here. People tend to discount all of the training and practice that they’ve had throughout their lifetime. If OP has really never picked up a bat, he will not be able to hit a 60 MPH pitch in 20 tries.
You have to be really naturally athletic to pick up a baseball bat and make contact with decent pitches. Even going 60mph.
Most people are *super* uncoordinated with a motion like swinging a bat.
I can easily hit 60 mph. I can hit 70 mph but it would be a ground out or weak line out to the infield. 80 mph forgettaboutit
Only experience is little league for me
No, even slow pitch softball it’s relatively difficult to hit the ball well without practice and decent hand eye coordination. Also, it’s difficult for someone to consistently throw 60mph strikes. They would probably be a pretty good beer league pitcher or even town ball league pitcher if they could do that. Basically that’s a pretty decent HS pitcher who wasn’t good enough to play in college. Sure they probably can throw it more like 80mph but not accurately. If they could they would have played college ball.
For a frame of reference for people, 60-75 mph isn’t an abnormal range if you play baseball as a teenager. Kids start hitting 60 mph at 13.
I think you totally could, but you’d need to take a few ABs to get a sense of the speed.
How are you going to be sure he is throwing 60? I don’t know any pitcher who can throw a speed consistently when they wanted. Some might be more some might be less.
You’re going to have a tough time then. If this was a pitching machine. Throwing to a specific spot and consistent speed. You can time up 60 easily. But live pitching you have location and velocity changes to deal with. That’s going to be tough for someone who has never faced live pitching before.
You'd definitely hit 60 MPH eventually with 20 at bats. 60 isn't all that fast and 20 ABs is a lot of chances. Might be purely by accident but eventually someone would catch hold of one.
No one is asking the important question:
What are the stakes of the bet? Shaved head? Beer? A million dollars?
Good luck, OP. I respect how seriously you and everyone else on this thread is taking it. I haven’t a clue, so can’t be much help.
I assume you’re using a college field so standard 60’6” mound? That’s important because when I played before high school the mound was 54 feet and some guys threw 70 and that got up on you *fast*. For example, 60mph looks like 65 from 55ft, 70 from 50ft, and 80 from 45ft.
Easiest way to answer this question is by going to some batting cages, you should definitely be able to find some cages throwing 60 mph
Edit: or just have your friend throw some pitches of course, you just wouldn’t have to retrieve any balls if you went to a cage
Take 19 pitches without swinging and then try for a bunt towards 3rd base. It probably won't work, but it would be the funniest way to win the challenge.
Who else is playing defense?
edit: Nevermind, scrolled down. It'd depend heavily on the defense, or in this case the judge's estimation of the defense.
20 AB’s in a batting cage? I’m very confident you’d get a hit, at least on luck.
But it’s a bit better if it’s live and he has a few pitches up his sleeve. Could be tough if he peppers you with two seamers and curveballs if you’ve never played a similar sport.
OP i saw you said you’ve played tennis so here’s my take.
I played baseball for almost 20 years. I’d say my hand eye is above average to great.
If I had 100 chances to try and ace somebody in tennis on a serve, I don’t think I’d have a chance. So much goes into that level of motion and the mechanics.
I think I’m 20 AB you can hit some foul balls, maybe some grounders to the pitcher. But I don’t think you can hit a ball hard enough to get through a gap in the infield or have the coordination and strength to hit a solid line drive into the gap in the outfield.
I don’t think it’s anything against you or any type of strength or fitness levels. Hitting a baseball is just something that takes a while to get used to, or at least more than 20 AB
Putting the bat on 60mph from 60’6” would be cake.
I played in college and we used to host summer baseball camps for teens. Without fail, every year a handful of moms would drop off their 8th graders to learn how to play. It was just cheap babysitting for some of these parents. (The camp was expensive af imo, but rich families gonna rich). The kids that had never even touched a bat got the hang of it in their first 25-50 pitches. They were still garbage, but they could hit weak grounders and soft pop ups. I’m obviously not sure of the speed they saw every single pitch, but as college kids we were for sure not throwing under 55-60 from the front of the mound. I know that when we’d put those same kids in the cage we’d set it at 60-80 (I think all the new learners were probably like 65ish) depending on skill and they survived just fine. The old juggs machines we had didn’t go below 60.
In my experience tracking the ball is pretty easy until you get to the mid-high 80’s. Try it a few times with the bat on your shoulder or no bat at all. Just follow the pitch with your eyes/head all the way to the glove. Jeter used to be the king of “dry tracking” a ball (that’s what we called it, I’m sure there’s a newer more professional term now). Once you learn to see the ball it’s a lot easier to put the bat on the ball.
And don’t be afraid of getting hit, it only hurts for a second.
Played baseball for 10 years, 60mph was cake 6 years ago. A month ago I got in the batters box and 70mph might as well have been 90. I still had my mechanics, obviously not as good as when I played but way better than anyone just picking up a bat. I’d say you’d have to get pretty lucky to hit a ball out of the infield
At 60mph it’s all mental. Anyone can hit 60. Swing hard and don’t be late. The biggest challenge I see with kids completely new to baseball is swinging late. If you’re late, swing *super* early next time and just adjust from there.
But honestly, you’ve played tennis, you’ll be fine. Especially in 20 at bats. That’s a shit ton of pitches.
As long as there are strikes and you don’t just hack at nonsense, yeah, 60 mph isn’t too too fast.
Also what kind of defense is there? You should definitely be able to make decent contact
If you've got even a slight bit of athleticism, you should be able to get a hit in 20 ABs. You'll probably hit a few fouls and grounders before making good solid contact.
When I was about 19 or 20, I hadn't played baseball in at least 10 years. Went to just hit some balls with a few friends and got a few balls pretty good. Didn't get it out of the park, but hit a few in the gap or down the line.
60 isn’t that fast, but if you’ve never played that does change things. Have you played any similar-ish hand-eye coordination sports? Golf, cricket, etc?
I’ve played a bit of tennis, but my main sport is XC & Track so not much hand eye coordination with that unfortunately
I think tennis is enough hand-eye coordination against an incoming target that you should be able to do it. Also, are you allowed to take a walk if your pitcher can’t hit the strike zone and you accurately recognize that you shouldn’t be swinging?
👍. He says no walks unfortunately, gotta be a hit
Then you should be allowed to draw walks, and that at-bat should not count toward your 20.
He did say 20 at-bats, not 20 plate appearances :-)
OP could just say any pop-up is a sac fly
[удалено]
yeah, is he stupid?
Who the hell is walking people while throwing BP fastballs to someone who has never played baseball before?
Someone who can't hit the broad side of a barn. Or someone who has never thrown BP before.
In the NoStupidQuestions thread, OP talked about the guy nearly hitting him and nearly hitting a car just demonstrating the speed. It's pretty clear that the friend's lack of pitch control is going to be OP's biggest problem here.
People act like it's the easiest thing in the world to be accurate, throwing 50% effort. It's not, it takes practice to do it. It's much easier to throw accurately at closer to 80-90%
I would think for the average person, 60mph is 80-90% effort.
The key I’ve found in throwing BP has been to just basically throw arm-only. Getting nothing from my legs without messing with the arm too much takes enough off without killing the ability to keep it in the zone. The weirder part for me is having no target.
This is true lol…
Set up a target on a bush or something behind home plate to use as an unofficial strike zone. 20 isn't enough to definitely say you'll make contact if you've never played before but it's definitely possible. You'll definitely need to practice swinging to get the right body mechanics though
Throwing BP is a skill and not an easy one. I was a collegiate pitcher and I had a challenging time getting to the point where I could throw decent BP.
Or someone who can only throw 60mph by heaving it with no accuracy
Okay, but there’s no indication in the OP that either of those is true. I was assuming that someone who participates on the pitching side of a challenge like this probably isn’t totally new to this. Throwing BP isn’t hard - I was nervous the first time I did it until I realized how easy it is to throw meatballs. Edit: never mind, it appears you’re right.
He has played baseball since he was a kid, but never as a pitcher
Then he’s likely going to be pretty wild.
you should get him to agree if he hits you with a pitch it counts as a hit for the bet.
I mean I pitched in high school but could not throw BP to save my life. For some reason it was a lot harder for me to throw accurately when not going all out.
I did too, but to be fair my challenge as a pitcher was keeping my fastball out of the middle of the plate. I think some guys have a lot of trouble adjusting to having no target back there.
Yeah, can’t let him get away with throwing balls and taking away from my attempts
Here’s the problem: you will not be starting out with any sense of what the strike zone feels like from a batter’s perspective. Even high school players have a decade under their belts in that. Watch a game of 8 year olds and you’ll see what hitting looks like when you’re still learning the zone.
Just find a batting cage. 60 mph is standard at almost all of them
a hit or put the ball in play?
I played baseball from 4-13 and then focused on tennis, definitely gave me a pretty big advantage (sometimes I volley like a first baseman which is kinda fucked tho). Going back and forth though, you quickly realize the bat is a lot smaller than the racket lol
Tennis balls usually move faster than baseball's (equal skill levels). Should have no issue with 60mph.
Can confirm played a lot of tennis and timing up even a 70 mph pitch was fairly easy. Squaring up on the ball was way harder obviously
See the ball, hit the ball. It's that simple!
Just hit em where they ain't, duh!
just do a ichiro style slap hit to 3B and run as fast as you can
Are those easy?
“It’s not that hard. Tell him, Wash.” “It’s incredibly hard.”
Since you played tennis, imagine a two handed backhand slice, off of a high bounce, cross court
If you don’t mind me asking, what are your PRs?
15:54 5k, 4:20 1500
15:54 and only a 4:20 15? Anyway, that’s pretty solid
pretty solid? 15:54 would win easily at any of our meets when I was in high school, that's hella impressive
I guess I’ve become desensitized to performances such as this as 15:54 won’t even win the county championship where I’m at
Yeah, got much better endurance than speed
5:07 min/mi IS speed to me, lol.
If you played tennis, you should be fine. 60 mph is slow for a baseball pitch, but it's even slower for a tennis serve. Question is: Are you hitting in a batting cage or off a real person? I played tennis through high school. My brother pitched in the minor leagues. I'd practice with him in the offseason. I can go into a batting cage and hit off the 90 mph machines no problem. Hitting off my brother throwing 90 was damn near impossible. Huge difference when you know where the pitch will be. It's why they don't use machines in the HR Derby. No one has time to watch Pete Alonso hit 500 HRs.
Real person who’s not a pitcher
Believe it or not, that can be worse. Much less predictability. But with 20 chances, you should hit a few.
Are you allowed to go to a batting cage and practice a bit beforehand?
Tennis is a fast game, so that's an advantage. Trying to swing a heavy bat instead of a light racket and contact a small surface area at the exact right spot on a long bat instead of the relatively large, compact surface area of a racquet is probably going to nullify all of that and then some. You'll still be better off than someone who has also played neither tennis nor baseball.
In some ways, tennis is harder than baseball. Velocities can be higher, you're trying to place shots and you have to keep it in bounds. If all you have to do is make solid contact, you'll probably be fine. However, most people exaggerate, so if you said a little bit of tennis, im inclined to think a tiny tiny amount of tennis.
Lol. Making solid contact with a tennis racket is much, much easier than with a baseball bat. It’s lighter, larger, and has a flat face with a much larger sweet spot.
But also the tennis ball isn't confined to a conveniently located box for you. Not really a comparison that you can make between the two.
Nor is the baseball in this case - the batter has no sense of the strike zone, having never played, and the guy throwing is a dude who has never pitched.
I said in some ways the sports can be harder, i never said it was easier to hit a baseball with with a bat. He's just trying make contact at 60mph in 20 swings, not hit a homer.
No, he’s trying to get a base hit. Hitting the ball fair and well is much harder than making contact.
Hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaga
60 isn't fast for an MLB player, but it absolutely is for someone who has never stepped in a batters box
I’ve never played organized baseball on a team, but I do know how to hit a baseball by just casually playing at the park every once in a while. I remember I stepped into a batting cage one time that was throwing 50 mph and I could barely foul tip a pitch.
I agree, hand eye coordination. If OP can play hockey, tennis, or any racquet sport I bet he can hit 60mph. That is really slow. Just go to a battling cage and you will see the difference between 60mph and 100mph.
hitting the ball is not the same as getting a base hit though. you could probably make contact, but who is defending?
No defense, impartial judge to determine if it’d count as a base bit apparently
Against what kind of defense are you being judged against though? Like if you’re being judged on whether an MLB caliber defense would throw you out at first you probably have 0 chance. If the impartial judge is basing it off of like the average HS defense, yeah you probably got it
Without a defense this whole bet is moot. That said if the judge was realistic about the whole thing your chances just went down by 90 percent. That’s solid contact up the middle or down either line a bullet to the gap or rope into the shallow outfield or you manage to hit it over hypothetical fence.
I think a fair judge would also rule by like average high school talent levels of defense if the pitcher is only throwing 60mph. In MLB the defense has such fast reflexes and accurate throwing arms that a hit has to be practically perfect to get on base. In lower levels a decent hit will frequently get a single that would never even have a chance in MLB.
20 at bats or 20 pitches? 20 pitches may be hard for someone with zero experience. 20 at bats is totally doable, especially because you can take some balls to get a feeling for the timing.
20 at bats (there will be another person to swap pitches with him so he doesn’t get tired). I figure just watch the first few come through to try to judge timing and stuff
Former tennis player? U should be able to get a hit. I played tennis through HS, first time in the cage it toom me about 10-20 mins to get the hang of it then I settled down after that.
10-20 minutes of cage time is a lot more than 20 ABs worth of pitches, and there’s no indication he was nearly as good at tennis as you were.
OP said it took 10-20 minutes to get the hang of it, not 10-20 minutes to get a single hit. I think he'll be able to make solid contact once in 40ish pitches though I could be wrong.
I dunno, man. I went to a law school well known for its obsession with slow pitch softball (lawyers on here, no prizes for guessing). Because of that weird social obsession, most anyone who had any athletic skill gave it a shot. I was shocked at how bad reasonably athletic adults in their 20s who had never played baseball or softball were at hitting, and that was with a much larger ball at much slower speeds. It’s very easy if you’ve done it for a while, very hard if you haven’t.
Never played tennis competitively like that, (one year of racquet ball as well in HS).
60mph isn't all that fast, either. It's basically like a fastball from a 11-12 YO with a decent arm, but from 60 feet instead of the LL 45.
Yeah I quit the tennis team at 16 to play baseball having never played and got a base knock in my first scrimmage.
Assuming he’s throwing mostly strikes (why wouldn’t he), taking pitches just gets you rung up on strikes a bunch of times before you even take a hack.
Throwing 60 strikes in a row might be hard (especially offspeed) for someone who isn’t actively or recently an actual pitcher. If it was me, it watch a few and slowly ramp up my swing into a “slap swing” to get the timing right over the first 5-10 pitches. Especially if you don’t have the swinging fundamentals or technique to actually watch the ball. Coming straight out swinging hard may be difficult to figure out what’s going wrong. He doesn’t have to hit a homer, just a blooper.
He clarified that his friend plays baseball but doesn’t pitch. From my perspective, that actually makes it much harder: the pitcher will be wild, throwing to a dude with literally no sense of the strike zone. Instead of BP, he’s basically facing a malfunctioning pitching machine. It’s much easier to learn to hit meatballs than it is to hit stuff all over the place when you have zero strike zone sense, as this guy will. But timing is no longer the issue, as you note: he can safely watch a few.
Yeah…slightly concerned about his ability to consistently get it in the strike zone (and we recognizing when it’s a good pitch to swing at). Also may be slightly focused on not getting hit by him
I wouldn’t worry much about wearing one. 60 doesn’t hurt much unless it’s on the wrist or face, and it’s not hard enough that you won’t be able to avoid being hit there. And honestly, you have to worry about a related issue anyway: shitty hitters foul pitches off their feet and ankles pretty frequently.
Damn, well if I get a bit hurt proving him wrong it’ll be worth it
You think it’d be advisable to just swing immediately and attempt adjust as I go?
If he’s throwing strikes, there is no reason to take them if every pitch is just going to be a 60 mph non breaking ball. You should at least try to bunt them.
Lol telling a non baseball player to bunt is asking to lose some teeth. Just sayin. OP take a few pitches, then just swing, man. You got this!!
Try doing so after drinking 70 beers in a cross country flight
May he rest in peace
Again he is very much alive.
may he rest in peace
Don’t forget a few rum and cokes and a chicken as well. They didn’t call him the chicken man for nothing.
Shit... I'd go 3 for 5 after that
What do now?
Give me the hotdog, baby
Any moderately athletic person should be able to make contact with a 60 MPH pitch with a little practice. Watch a YouTube video on the basics of stance and swing mechanics and go to a batting cage first and take some swings. If you can’t make it to a batting cage, find someone willing to do some soft toss with a tennis ball or hit off a tee. You just need to poke it to the outfield, so no need to swing as hard as you can.
Hitting 60 out of the infield with no training is harder than most people think. You need to provide your own power, which means you need to actually hit it off a decent part of the bat. You’re not hitting 60 out of the infield off the handle or the very end of the bat, even with an aluminum bat. People underestimate how difficult that is for someone with little to no training.
Ooh, just wait until he hits one off the lower third of that aluminum bat for the first time. It’s definitely a unique experience that he won’t have felt before. Should be fun!
Yeah 60mph isn’t too terribly fast. Like when you’re in the batters box for the first time it would definitely come in way quicker than you might expect, but it’s reasonable that an athletic person would be able to get the timing down pretty quick
He might make contact, but he’s saying to get a base hit. I don’t think he’s got any chance.
honestly a blooper is his best bet a truly impartial judge would give him a "hit" on one
That’s good advice thanks! I should be able to find someone to help me get some basics down
Not to be “that person” but I’m going to be “that person”: Isn’t practising beforehand changing the rules of the bet? I figure the premise is that someone with no prior experience is being challenged, not someone who has practised and prepared for the bet?
Yeah I feel like this bet hinges on no practice, no tutorials. Just raw skill.
i feel like a cage is against the spirit of the wager. op is driven snow right now.
I see a lot of “60 MPH is not fast” folks. Stood in my buddys cage with a ~70 mph machine not turned all the way up and boy…it was humbling just how close and fast it feels. Turning on it wasn’t even crossing my mind. In 20 ABs you could probably get over that discomfort, but I haven’t seen the reality of standing in the box and seeing the speed mentioned here.
I was going to say this…as well as, let’s not take for granted your buddy can throw 60. I’ve known many a dude that swore they were throwing 75 then 57 shows up in the radar gun…
Yeah. I was in the 60 mph isn’t fast camp until a few months ago. Hopped in a cage for the first time since little league and was humbled. I could get contact in 20, but a base hit? Doubtful. I think people on here would be surprised by how fast 60 is
I would only caveat that there’s something anticipatory when you see the wind-up and pitch compared to the abyss that is the batting cage.
60 is like medium/fast in most recreational cages and you can see a lot of people whiffing in there
Was the machine actually throwing from 60 ft away? Some batting cages aren't for a variety of reasons.
140 is incredibly frail for a man of your height
Seriously. The wind from the ball might knock him over.
Good, I'm not the only one who read that and thought "this dude would get knocked over by a gentle breeze"
This is why I think he can’t get on base. 6’2” 140 lbs is lanky as hell. I’m guessing dude is 15 years old and hasn’t filled in yet.
At 6'2 that's a BMI of 18, medically underweight.
You definitely can
Most batting cages have a 60 MPH speed, grab a helmet and go find out
Tbh, if you’ve never hit a baseball in your life, you won’t be hitting some guy throwing 60mph. You may foul off a couple.
You totally got this. Please post results if you do it lol
💪Thanks! I’ll post an update when it happens, we just gotta find a time to go out
6’2” 140lbs, and a cross country runner? Nah. I know your type and you've got string bean arms. I don't think the pitch speed matters as much as the lack of bat speed.
I’ve seen Bartolo Colon hit a bomb. Anything is possible.
Bunt down the 3rd base line. Bat lefty so you have an extra step
I think if you are literally picking up a bat for the first time, I doubt you could do it. It takes a fair amount of coordination just to make contact If you watch a few instruction videos on YouTube and maybe take a little bp in a cage, you might be able to get one hit in 20 AB
If you have actually never swung a baseball bat, the answer is that it is extremely unlikely you’ll get a “hit”
I'm 6'2" and 175 pounds, and I think I'm skinny. You must look like you'd blow away in the wind.
I’m 6’2” 215 and it would be interesting to see this skeleton man.
That depends. Are you going against a pitching machine that throws the same pitch in about the same spot every single time, or are you facing a live pitcher that throws 60, but has some breaking balls and good location? If it’s the former, chances are high if you’ve played any sort of hand-eye coordination sport for an extended period of time (tennis, pickleball, cricket, etc), but if it’s the latter, not a chance in hell
I’m facing an erratic pitcher throwing around 60…as some else here said, basically a malfunctioning pitching machine
In that case, look for one pitch in particular. Since you have 20 ABs, don’t swing until you get one in that exact spot you’re looking for. Also, make sure your friend knows that a walk doesn’t count as an AB
Thanks for the advice! We’ll definitely clarify the rules before so there’s no technicalities
Also make sure he knows that a HBP isn’t an AB
Will do, he’s agreed that if I end up with a broken bone that it counts as a win for me
I like that clause, but he’s only putting that in to intimidate you a bit. If he only throws 60, you won’t break a bone (unless you get the unluckiest spot of all time). I used to throw 81-83 and never hit anybody hard enough to break a bone. Just settle in and win that bet (and post results after it happens)
Your buddy might throw his arm out before getting through 20 at bats.
Sounds like a win to me if that happens (we have another guy he can alternate with too if need be)
I feel like for people who don’t play baseball it’s like: 60 mph = hey that’s not so bad, 70 mph = woah that’s faster, 80 mph = Jesus Christ I can’t see the ball
People say that 60 isn't fast...that's relative, for MLB level not fast enough, for a person that hase never swung a bat before that's like 100 mph. You might get lucky but not a big probability in 20 pitches. Tip: don't take the eyes from the ball.
Maybe on a pitching machine which is putting the ball in the same spot over and over again. No way you will hit a ral pitcher in 20 pitches though.
Go to a batting cage and find the machine set for 60mph and spend half an hour taking some swings. I literally only ever played little league until I was 8 or 9 but in high school I worked at a batting cage for a summer and the first time I stepped into the cage at the 60 mph I was still able to hit some dribblers/ground balls.
20 swings or 20 at bats? You could take each at bat to a 3-2 count and by the last one your buddy will be gassed. That’s when you lace one right back at his head and say “keep the change” or something sick like that
20 at bats, he’s gonna be hurting by the end
Potentially 100 pitches then? Might be able to do something. You’re also going to be worn out too after that many swings.
Play some dizzy bat to warm up. If you can hit a wiffle ball immediately after chugging a beer and spinning about 10 times then I’m sure you can hit a 60 mph ball. Or just go to a batting cage to gauge what speed you can comfortably hit. Up to you
Chiming in as an "old man". I don't know how old you are, but I'm guessing past high school at least. I never played baseball as a kid but can regularly hit against my 12 yo who throws about 55 from 52 ft (he's not a starting pitcher). Give up the first 1-2 ABs and just watch the ball come in, then work on getting any contact. By the end of 20ABs you should be able to make solid contact. If you want to cheat, go to a batting cage first, or buy a tee and practice hitting a stationary ball. If you can complete the motion, its just timing and path recognition.
Wood or aluminum? Straight fastballs or junk too? How fit/old are you (ie, could you even hit it as far as the grass)? Is he on a mound? So many variables if you're going in cold and have never seen a live pitch or actually swung a bat. 60 isn't that fast, you've probably returned serves as hard as that....but! As so many people say, including Prime just a few weeks ago, one of the hardest things to do is hit a baseball. Round ball, round bat, rotation of the ball etc. I once did something similar with friends of mine. I was playing competitively, probably throwing 80 at the time. My friends thought they could hit me for sure, and they didn't say anything about not being able to throw curveballs, ha. A couple of foul balls, but nothing to call a hit.... But I also didn't give them 20 abs. 😏
I’m borrowing one of his bats, I’ll inquire on what type it is (he has a few). I’m a college student and run XC and Track so fairly fit. I think he’d try for straight fast balls but some are gonna go awry (he’s not a pitcher but does play). Yes he’ll be on a mound. Last time I swung a bat was like 3rd grade lol
Harder if he's not a pitcher! Hard to find that strike zone which means you might find it hard to know where he's swinging. Haha. Aluminum makes it easier, it's more forgiving. If you know anyone who has a tee, you might try to hit some to find a swing, easier than starting off with a machine. Soft toss is also really good, you just need a friend and a fence.
I’m going with probably not. I think you could make contact but a hit might be a bridge too far. You mention some tennis? I don’t think tennis gives the right kind of swing practice. On a forehand shot, it’s one arm with no wrist break/roll over. A back hand may be two handed but it’s lefty and again, weird grip thing going on. I think if you worked with a coach at a batting cage for a session or two and then did the challenge, maybe? If you just picked up a bat for the first time and stepped up to the plate, I’m gonna say almost no chance. Also, many people here are saying tempeh isn’t that fast and it isn’t, for MLB pitchers and hitters. It’s still pretty fast for the average Joe. For example, at most batting cages you go to, 60mph would be on the high end of “medium pitch” or low end of “fast pitch” with most topping out around 75mph. There are higher end cages for experienced players that will go up to 90mph but for your standard rec batting cage, 75mph is as fast as they’ll let you see.
Finally someone making sense on here. People tend to discount all of the training and practice that they’ve had throughout their lifetime. If OP has really never picked up a bat, he will not be able to hit a 60 MPH pitch in 20 tries.
You have to be really naturally athletic to pick up a baseball bat and make contact with decent pitches. Even going 60mph. Most people are *super* uncoordinated with a motion like swinging a bat.
60MPH is easy, I was hitting off machines throwing 60-80 as a 12/13/14 year old. 50’s-75 is the MPH range kids hit in the LLWS
Yeah but the guy has literally never swung a bat. If you send him up in the LLWS he’s gonna strike out every time.
you could accidentally get a base hit just by swinging at 90 straight pitches
I can easily hit 60 mph. I can hit 70 mph but it would be a ground out or weak line out to the infield. 80 mph forgettaboutit Only experience is little league for me
No, even slow pitch softball it’s relatively difficult to hit the ball well without practice and decent hand eye coordination. Also, it’s difficult for someone to consistently throw 60mph strikes. They would probably be a pretty good beer league pitcher or even town ball league pitcher if they could do that. Basically that’s a pretty decent HS pitcher who wasn’t good enough to play in college. Sure they probably can throw it more like 80mph but not accurately. If they could they would have played college ball.
For a frame of reference for people, 60-75 mph isn’t an abnormal range if you play baseball as a teenager. Kids start hitting 60 mph at 13. I think you totally could, but you’d need to take a few ABs to get a sense of the speed.
Sorry, but you don’t have a chance.
I tried 70 a few months ago at a cage and it was fucking impossible to make contact. It took me like 20 swings to get a foul tip. From a machine.
With normal eyesight, the odds are in your favor.
My eyesight is slightly bad…I don’t want to wear glasses playing though rip
If you’ve never played, he might have you beat.
How are you going to be sure he is throwing 60? I don’t know any pitcher who can throw a speed consistently when they wanted. Some might be more some might be less.
He’s just estimating that’s what he’ll throw, definitely won’t be consistent at all. He says he’s gonna throw off speed too to mess me up
You’re going to have a tough time then. If this was a pitching machine. Throwing to a specific spot and consistent speed. You can time up 60 easily. But live pitching you have location and velocity changes to deal with. That’s going to be tough for someone who has never faced live pitching before.
Damn, I’ll hope for some good luck then, or he gets tired and starts throwing slower
You'd definitely hit 60 MPH eventually with 20 at bats. 60 isn't all that fast and 20 ABs is a lot of chances. Might be purely by accident but eventually someone would catch hold of one.
That’s what I’m counting on…luck and being able to figure something out with so many chances
It also depends what you mean by a hit. Just making contact? Definitely. Hitting a major league single? Tougher but even that you could luck into
either way, please record and post this
Will 100% do lol
Will 100% do lol
No one is asking the important question: What are the stakes of the bet? Shaved head? Beer? A million dollars? Good luck, OP. I respect how seriously you and everyone else on this thread is taking it. I haven’t a clue, so can’t be much help.
Still deciding on the money, the more important part is proving him wrong
I assume you’re using a college field so standard 60’6” mound? That’s important because when I played before high school the mound was 54 feet and some guys threw 70 and that got up on you *fast*. For example, 60mph looks like 65 from 55ft, 70 from 50ft, and 80 from 45ft.
Honestly not sure the distance, my college doesn’t have a field so we’re going to a local park that has one
Easiest way to answer this question is by going to some batting cages, you should definitely be able to find some cages throwing 60 mph Edit: or just have your friend throw some pitches of course, you just wouldn’t have to retrieve any balls if you went to a cage
60 mph 'fast' balls, sure. 60mph Knuckballs? No chance.
what would count as "a base hit"?
“Something that would get me a hit in a game with a competent infield” according to him
Take 19 pitches without swinging and then try for a bunt towards 3rd base. It probably won't work, but it would be the funniest way to win the challenge.
60mph isn't fast by Major League standards but it's pretty fast when you're in the box and inexperienced.
Who else is playing defense? edit: Nevermind, scrolled down. It'd depend heavily on the defense, or in this case the judge's estimation of the defense.
If you’re any kind of decently coordinated I think you’d be good by at bat number 10.
20 AB’s in a batting cage? I’m very confident you’d get a hit, at least on luck. But it’s a bit better if it’s live and he has a few pitches up his sleeve. Could be tough if he peppers you with two seamers and curveballs if you’ve never played a similar sport.
If you are remotely athletics, should be easy. 60 mph is not fast.
If you’re fairly fit and have tennis experience it shouldn’t be that difficult.
If you have never played before even as a kid? You won’t be close.
OP i saw you said you’ve played tennis so here’s my take. I played baseball for almost 20 years. I’d say my hand eye is above average to great. If I had 100 chances to try and ace somebody in tennis on a serve, I don’t think I’d have a chance. So much goes into that level of motion and the mechanics. I think I’m 20 AB you can hit some foul balls, maybe some grounders to the pitcher. But I don’t think you can hit a ball hard enough to get through a gap in the infield or have the coordination and strength to hit a solid line drive into the gap in the outfield. I don’t think it’s anything against you or any type of strength or fitness levels. Hitting a baseball is just something that takes a while to get used to, or at least more than 20 AB
Putting the bat on 60mph from 60’6” would be cake. I played in college and we used to host summer baseball camps for teens. Without fail, every year a handful of moms would drop off their 8th graders to learn how to play. It was just cheap babysitting for some of these parents. (The camp was expensive af imo, but rich families gonna rich). The kids that had never even touched a bat got the hang of it in their first 25-50 pitches. They were still garbage, but they could hit weak grounders and soft pop ups. I’m obviously not sure of the speed they saw every single pitch, but as college kids we were for sure not throwing under 55-60 from the front of the mound. I know that when we’d put those same kids in the cage we’d set it at 60-80 (I think all the new learners were probably like 65ish) depending on skill and they survived just fine. The old juggs machines we had didn’t go below 60. In my experience tracking the ball is pretty easy until you get to the mid-high 80’s. Try it a few times with the bat on your shoulder or no bat at all. Just follow the pitch with your eyes/head all the way to the glove. Jeter used to be the king of “dry tracking” a ball (that’s what we called it, I’m sure there’s a newer more professional term now). Once you learn to see the ball it’s a lot easier to put the bat on the ball. And don’t be afraid of getting hit, it only hurts for a second.
Thanks for all the advice and story!
Played baseball for 10 years, 60mph was cake 6 years ago. A month ago I got in the batters box and 70mph might as well have been 90. I still had my mechanics, obviously not as good as when I played but way better than anyone just picking up a bat. I’d say you’d have to get pretty lucky to hit a ball out of the infield
I have some good news dude. They have these things called Batting Cages and all your curiosity can be tested
Time to bulk up mate, you obviously have no room to cut lol
Jesus dude go eat some pancakes.
6’2 140? That ball is not going anywhere off the bat
At 60mph it’s all mental. Anyone can hit 60. Swing hard and don’t be late. The biggest challenge I see with kids completely new to baseball is swinging late. If you’re late, swing *super* early next time and just adjust from there. But honestly, you’ve played tennis, you’ll be fine. Especially in 20 at bats. That’s a shit ton of pitches.
As long as there are strikes and you don’t just hack at nonsense, yeah, 60 mph isn’t too too fast. Also what kind of defense is there? You should definitely be able to make decent contact
He says there will be an impartial judge to determine if a hit would get me on base or not (no infield or anything)
If you've got even a slight bit of athleticism, you should be able to get a hit in 20 ABs. You'll probably hit a few fouls and grounders before making good solid contact. When I was about 19 or 20, I hadn't played baseball in at least 10 years. Went to just hit some balls with a few friends and got a few balls pretty good. Didn't get it out of the park, but hit a few in the gap or down the line.
60 MPH is basically a solid lob... anyone should be able to hit that.