What would happen if you tried to hit a baseball pitched at 90% the speed of light?

[Matty]

http://what-if.xkcd.com/1/

 

[kato]

A careful reading of official Major League Baseball Rule 6.08(b) suggests that in this situation, the batter would be considered "hit by pitch", and would be eligible to advance to first base.

 

[Matty]

We need Poloroid and MrX to weigh in on this.

 

[rito]

Too bad they are dead.

 

[Matty]

For those who can't be bothered to click and/or read the full explanation, here are the illustrations and the conclusion.

Suppose you’re watching from a hilltop outside the city. The first thing you see is a blinding light, far outshining the sun. This gradually fades over the course of a few seconds, and a growing fireball rises into a mushroom cloud. Then, with a great roar, the blast wave arrives, tearing up trees and shredding houses.

Everything within roughly a mile of the park is leveled, and a firestorm engulfs the surrounding city. The baseball diamond is now a sizable crater, centered a few hundred feet behind the former location of the backstop.

A careful reading of official Major League Baseball Rule 6.08(b) suggests that in this situation, the batter would be considered "hit by pitch", and would be eligible to advance to first base.

 

[mrquincy]

I guess if you farted at the speed of light, you would get basically the same outcome?

 

[wal66]

I would blanket the UNDERS on any and all games where a pitcher pitcher at the speed of light was scheduled to start.

 

[Mudcat]

I bet if you hit it up the handle, it would sting.

 

[Archie]

Back in college I threw almost that fast

 

[xpansive]

Nice...

 

[Saulty]

If a ball travels 270,000 km per second then it will most likely burn in the air before it reaches the plate. Not sure if there is going to be anything left for the hitter to hit.

 

[Matty]

Pavy :

 

[MonkeyF0cker]

I'm gonna try this tomorrow.

 

[roguejuror]

That's what must have happened at Tunguska.

 

[Saulty]

We need to work first on the pitcher who is going to deliver this fastball.

 

[MonkeyF0cker]

I'll do it. I've done it before.

 

[roguejuror]

If a ball travels 270,000 km per second then it will most likely burn in the air before it reaches the plate. Not sure if there is going to be anything left for the hitter to hit.

Pavy :

 

[Saulty]

four nationalities represented in that car and no one speaks English..lol