Baseball (ball)

A typical baseball

A baseball is the ball used in the sport of baseball. It consists of a rubber or cork center wrapped in yarn and covered with white natural horsehide or cowhide, or a synthetic composite leather. A regulation baseball is 9 to 9.25 inches (229 to 235 mm) in circumference i.e. 2.86 to 2.94 inches (73 to 75 mm) in diameter, with a weight of 5 to 5.25 ounces (0.142 to 0.149 kg).[1]

The leather cover is commonly formed from two saddle-shaped pieces stitched together, typically with red-dyed thread. There are 108 stitches on a regulation baseball. That stitching plays a significant role in the trajectory of a thrown baseball due to the drag caused by the interaction between the stitching and the air. Controlling the orientation of the stitches and the speed of the ball's rotation allows a pitcher to affect the behavior of the pitched ball in specific ways. Commonly employed pitches include the curveball, the slider, the two-seam fastball, the four-seam fastball, the sinker, the cutter and the changeup.[2]

  1. ^ Official Baseball Rules (2021 ed.). Chicago, Illinois: Major League Baseball. 2021. p. 5. ISBN 1-62937-893-3. OCLC 1199124942.
  2. ^ Baseball Explained, by Phillip Mahony. McFarland Books, 2014. See www.baseballexplained.com Archived 2014-08-13 at the Wayback Machine