How Do Curveballs Work?

Josh Welch

Illustration of a curveballSpring is in full operation, summer is just around the corner and like the weather, baseball season is just getting warmed up. 

Have you ever been sitting at the ballpark or in front of the television watching a baseball game, when all of a sudden you see a pitch where the ball drops right before it gets to home plate and wondered "How did they do that?" 

You probably know that the pitch is often called a curveball, or breaking pitch, but that does little to tell you how it works. 

Well the short answer is "physics", but the long answer is much more satisfying. 

Check out the SciShow video below to learn the in's and "outs" of curveball physics and leave me a comment to let me know what you thought!