Record pitch speed46.7 m/s
5.2 hundredthsRifle bullet speeds
2,335Typing fingers
Aroldis Chapman, 2010; 105.8 mph measured at release
Photo from Wikimedia Commons
Fastest Baseball Pitch
A 5-ounce ball hurtling at 105+ mph toward your face/Sports
The fastest recorded pitch in MLB history was Aroldis Chapman's 105.8 mph (46.7 m/s) fastball in 2010. At that speed, the ball reaches home plate in roughly 375 milliseconds, giving the batter about 150 milliseconds to decide whether to swing. A baseball weighs between 142 and 149 grams, and at 105 mph it carries enough kinetic energy to break bones on impact. Batters are a different breed of brave.
Measurements
Ball mass1.4 tenths kg
2.42Chicken eggs
4.7 tenthsSneakers
1.4 hundredthsBicycles
Official MLB ball: 142-149 g (5-5.25 oz)
Kinetic energy at release158 J
226 quintillionCovalent bonds
105Popping kernels
790 millionthsCannonball shots
½ × 0.145 × 46.7² ≈ 158 J
Travel time to home plate3.8 tenths s
119 millionthsMicrocenturies
1.3 hundredthsPrinter warm-up cycles
29.8 billionthsSemesters
From release point (~16.8 m from plate) at ~46.7 m/s with deceleration
Pitching distance18.4 m
123 trillionthsAstronomical units
39.2 millionBlue light wavelengths
60 feet 6 inches from rubber to plate; the sacred MLB geometry
Ball circumference2.3 tenths m
7.7 millionSmoke particles
6.2 hundredthsKayaks
9-9.25 inches per official MLB specifications