A windmill style softball pitcher starts from rest and executes a pitch in 0.75 s. Her arm, from the axis of rotation to her hand, is 1.2 m long. The tangential speed of the ball just before release is 27 m/s.
a) What is the magnitude of the tangential acceleration acting on the ball at the instant just before release?
b) What is the magnitude of the radial acceleration acting on the ball at the instant just before release?
c) What is the magnitude of the total acceleration acting on the ball at the instant just before release?
d) Neatly sketch a diagram showing the position of the pitcher's arm at the release position. On this diagram, draw arrows to indicate tangential and radial acceleration vectors acting on the softball. Draw these arrows approximately to scale. Draw a third arrow to indicate the direction of the net (resultant or total) acceleration acting on the softball.
e) What implications do these acceleration values have for the potential for this softball pitcher to develop shoulder injuries?