Round-Tripper

At Science 2.0, Hank Campbell investigates just how far a home-run can be hit, and who probably hit the longest one.

Although there was much talk in days of yore about 500-foot blasts, Campbell suggests that they were rarer than believed, and 500 feet was probably the limit. In today's game, which includes a stadium in Denver's rarified air, the great Mickey Mantle might have sent one 580 feet at the outer limits of earthly conditions.

Based on his math, measurements and suppositions, Campbell figures that Mantle or Babe Ruth probably holds the unofficial record for the longest hit ball. That seems about right, although I think that Josh Gibson should be in the mix, and Bo Jackson in his all-too-brief prime might have managed that or a little more.

Either way, it's always nice to see science applied to the higher arts.