Q. A baseball (m = 147 g) approaches a bat horizontally at a speed of 40.5 m/s (90.6 mi/h) and is hit straight back at a speed of 51 m/s (114 mi/h). If the ball is in contact with the bat for a time of 1.36 ms, what is the average force exerted on the ball by bat? Avoid the weight of the bat, since it is so much less than the force of the bat. Select the direction of the incoming ball as positive direction.