Editing Breaking ball (section)

==Physics==
Generally the [[Magnus effect]] describes the laws of physics that make a curveball curve. A fastball travels through the air with backspin, which creates a higher pressure zone in the air ahead of and under the baseball. The baseball's raised seams augment the ball's ability to develop a [[boundary layer]] and therefore a greater differential of pressure between the upper and lower zones. The effect of [[gravity]] is partially counteracted as the ball rides on and into increased pressure. Thus the fastball falls less than a ball thrown without spin (neglecting [[knuckleball]] effects) during the 60&nbsp;feet 6&nbsp;inches it travels to home plate.

On the other hand, a curveball, thrown with [[topspin]], creates a higher pressure zone on top of the ball, which deflects the ball downward in flight. Instead of counteracting gravity, the curveball adds additional downward force, thereby giving the ball an exaggerated drop in flight.