How Humans Evolved to Play Hardball

Sid Perkins Nature
Baseball players reveal how humans evolved to throw so well. A catapult-like mechanism allows energy to be stored in shoulder and torso, a video study of pitchers reveals.

Why Chimps Don't Play Baseball

Although some primates occasionally throw objects, and with a fair degree of accuracy, only humans can routinely hurl projectiles with both speed and accuracy. Adult male chimpanzees can throw objects at speeds of around 30 kilometres per hour, but even a 12-year-old human can pitch a baseball three times faster than that

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