Long fly ball

[Guest Johnson]

Batter hits long fly ball that goes out of the playing field as a home run.  However, the ball was hit exceptionally well and orbits the earth, coming back into the field of play where the CF makes the catch.  If this could happen, this would be judged as an out, correct?

[Replacematt]

 

[maven]

No: it left the field of play fair and in flight. The ball is dead at that point, no matter what it orbits, and cannot be caught for an out.

Good question. Have a puff for me.

[Aging_Arbiter]

..............and it's the end of days

[Willis]

Seeing as even the fastest orbits take about 90 minutes, I'm thinking that a HR would be awarded and the game would proceed...and since the ball would have to be moving at about 18,000 MPH, I don't think there would be much left of the center fielder who tried to catch it. 

[noumpere]

10 minutes ago, Guest Johnson said:

Batter hits long fly ball that goes out of the playing field as a home run.  However, the ball was hit exceptionally well and orbits the earth, coming back into the field of play where the CF makes the catch.  If this could happen, this would be judged as an out, correct?

I think I saw this in a bugs bunny cartoon.

 

Sr.  Azul will be along soon to show that I was wrong -- it was an xxxxx cartoon, and provide a cut-an-paste of what is currently being taught at the animators-union trade school.

[Willis]

Semi-relevant XKCD What If:  https://what-if.xkcd.com/1/

Don't let pitchers throw above 25% of light speed or bad things happen.

[Rich Ives]

34 minutes ago, Guest Johnson said:

Batter hits long fly ball that goes out of the playing field as a home run.  However, the ball was hit exceptionally well and orbits the earth, coming back into the field of play where the CF makes the catch.  If this could happen, this would be judged as an out, correct?

No. It left the field in flight. It's a HR.

[beerguy55]

The question is moot.

At a typical MLB HR exit velocity of 100-110 mph, and assuming the ball could ignore gravity/friction and maintain that speed, it would take almost ten days for the ball to circle the Earth.   There would be practical matters at hand if the rest of the game continued while the ball circled the Earth...

OR, it would have to travel at a velocity so high that when it did hit the fielders glove, or the ground, or anything for that matter, it would leave a smoking crater.

 

And to those who say it is an HR - an outfielder can reach over the fence and catch a ball in flight...crossing the boundary of the HR fence does not preclude it from being catchable.

I would have an out, the same way I'd have an out if Mr. Fantastic was playing CF and was able to reach hundreds of feet beyond the fence to catch a ball that was still in flight.

The ball left the field in flight, but it's still in flight.

If we choose to play and officiate baseball in this fantasy land that defies the laws of physics....

[Replacematt]

7 hours ago, beerguy55 said:

The question is moot.

At a typical MLB HR exit velocity of 100-110 mph, and assuming the ball could ignore gravity/friction and maintain that speed, it would take almost ten days for the ball to circle the Earth.   There would be practical matters at hand if the rest of the game continued while the ball circled the Earth...

OR, it would have to travel at a velocity so high that when it did hit the fielders glove, or the ground, or anything for that matter, it would leave a smoking crater.

 

And to those who say it is an HR - an outfielder can reach over the fence and catch a ball in flight...crossing the boundary of the HR fence does not preclude it from being catchable.

I would have an out, the same way I'd have an out if Mr. Fantastic was playing CF and was able to reach hundreds of feet beyond the fence to catch a ball that was still in flight.

The ball left the field in flight, but it's still in flight.

If we choose to play and officiate baseball in this fantasy land that defies the laws of physics....

You know, this is similar to what I wanted to say, but I really didn't want to reward the question.

[Aging_Arbiter]

.......as the aliens begin to chant in their own language (or communicate via ESP)...............Throw it back! Throw it back! Throw it back!

[maven]

15 hours ago, Rich Ives said:

No. It left the field in flight. It's a HR.

I wish I had said that.

[Rich Ives]

3 hours ago, maven said:

I wish I had said that.

Gee - I responded before I scrolled down.  And 29 whole minutes after you. I'm a really really bad dog.

[Lou B]

Why didn't the CF just use his jet pack and fly up and catch the ball before it went over the fence?

[beerguy55]

30 minutes ago, Rich Ives said:

Gee - I responded before I scrolled down.  And 29 whole minutes after you. I'm a really really bad dog.

 

3 hours ago, maven said:

I wish I had said that.

Children, don't fight.   You're both equally wrong.  Celebrate that.  

[beerguy55]

1 minute ago, Lou B said:

Why didn't the CF just use his jet pack and fly up and catch the ball before it went over the fence?

It had a Ford motor...wouldn't start in time.

[stkjock]

you're all wrong...  Buzz Aldrin would have intercepted it in orbit and given it to his grandson. 

[Aging_Arbiter]

2 minutes ago, stkjock said:

you're all wrong...  Buzz Aldrin would have intercepted it in orbit and given it to his grandson. 

..............roll the window down Gus!..........MINE! MINE!! MINE!!!BALL!  BALL!!  BALL!!!

[WilsonFlyer]

20 minutes ago, stkjock said:

you're all wrong...  Buzz Aldrin would have intercepted it in orbit and given it to his grandson. 

Ah. That would be Mike Collins. Aldrin was too busy just walking around.