The baseball park effects hitting in many different ways. After a few obvious dimension issues, we will explore some of the more subtle effects.

The height of and distance to the wall are the first two obvious variables affecting hitting. Batters must hit the ball harder and at a higher angle to get it out of the park when the wall is both high and far away. Very high walls are as hard to scale even when they are close. Fenway Park's Green Monster has eaten many a would-be home run.

The shape of the stands affect the volume and direction of the crowd noise, a huge distraction to batters. Stands also affect the size and shape of foul territory. Hitting a foul ball in a park with a large foul area is dangerous. Hitters prefer smaller foul territory.

Open baseball parks have many variables, such as air flow from the shape of the stands and wall, air quality based on elevation, distance from large bodies of water, direction and strength of the wind and air temperature. Each of these variables effects the way that the ball travels. Hitters must adjust their stance and swing to account for changes in the air flow.

Domes make a huge difference in hitting. With less air movement and consistent temperature, hitting is as close to perfect as possible. The ball will fly from the bat exactly as it is hit. This makes the ball without home run punch easier to catch.

All of these factors are taken into consideration by the pitcher. Compensation by the pitcher for these variables impacts hitting (or lack of hitting) as much or more than the variances themselves. Hitters must correct for the pitcher and the baseball park.

Learn more about this author, Russell Dwyer.
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