Baseball: How It Works (The Science of Sports (Sports Illustrated for Kids))
The physics behind baseball is the focus of this title in the Sports Illustrated: The Science of Sports series. A “Balls and Bats” section includes explanations of velocity and inertia, for instance, while an “Offense” section links discussions of gravity with base-stealing techniques. A chapter on “Defense” uses pitching examples to discuss concepts such as torque and topspin, while many other topics, including equipment, injury risks, and the grass-versus-turf debate, are also creatively explored. The well-designed layout, featuring glossy color visuals, including action photos, diagrams, and sidebars, is visually stimulating, and the concepts are further reinforced in brief definitions that appear at the bottom of many pages and in an appended glossary. Students may need more explanation than what is offered here to grasp some of the more challenging math and physics, but the clever approach will help draw interest and build understanding. Reading suggestions and an index close this natural choice for curricular use. Grades 6-9. --Shelle Rosenfeld--This text refers to theLibrary Bindingedition.