The ball a pitcher throws at 130 to 150 kilometers (80–93 miles) per hour reaches a batter in 0.4 second. It takes about 0.2 second for the batter to catch the ball trajectory and swing his bat by intuition. The ball that a batter exactly hits on the sweet spot of the bat crosses the fence, flying in an arc with a ‘penk’ sound. It’s a home run, the centerpiece of a baseball game.
The sweet spot is the optimal point that makes a ball go far and fast to the direction the batter wants. The point where a round ball touches a round bat is a mere spot. But a home run hit in harmony with all the conditions such as the position of the hands holding the bat, the weight of the bat, the timing, and the ball speed is like a miracle.
Babe Ruth, a baseball player of the United States, hit such miraculous home runs about 714 times while playing 22 seasons in the Major Leagues. He won the honor of the home run king 12 times. At the same time, however, he even won the title of the strikeout king, five times. While hitting 714 home runs, he struck out 1,330 times, which is about twice the number of hitting home runs.
Despite countless strikeouts, the title he won lastly was the Home Run King. It was not because he did not fail, but because he overcame the fear of failure.
“All strikeouts are the way to home runs!” Babe Ruth