Re: [Phys-l] TV technology, the World Series and physics

[John Denker <jsd@av8n.com>]

On 10/20/2011 07:48 PM, Anthony Lapinski wrote:
> Again, football stadiums are all the same size (100 yards), and so
> baseball stadiums also should be,


Should be?  That value judgment is not self-evident.
I don't see any reason based on physics, logic, or
fairness that leads to any such requirement.

I'm pretty sure every game involves two teams, and
the size and shape of the field affects both teams
equally.

Besides, if small fields or large fields conferred
any systematic advantage, I reckon that would have
been discovered ere now, and there would have been
a rush to build optimal-size fields.

It may be that the details of the field can lead
to arrangements that favor the home team, such as
Yankee teams that have lots of lefty hitters.  This
is just one of eleventeen factors that produce the
observable home-team advantage.  However, this has 
little if any effect on fairness, since every team 
plays half its regular-season games on the road.

There is a great deal of randomness in baseball.
It's part of the game.  On any given day, the worst 
team in the league has a chance of beating the best
team in the league.

A baseball team that insisted that all fields should 
be the same would be like a poker player who insisted 
that every hand of cards should be the same ... or 
a physician who insisted that all patients and all 
ailments should be the same ... or a teacher who 
insisted that all students should be the same.  IMHO 
a master of the craft should be able to deal with 
whatever comes down the pike (within wide limits).

There's something about variety and spices ....