This strikes me as a fairly simple question, but I’m unsure of the answer. Two situations:
I’m at bat against the 1984 Cubs. Rick Sutcliffe is pitching, Jody Davis catching. A 75 mph change-up comes my way, and I whack it full-force… A few innings later, Lee Smith is on the mound and he hurls a 95 mph fastball at me, and I smack it with exactly the same force, angle, etc, as the Sutcliffe pitch. Which ball goes farther?
My logic would assume the fastball would go further than the change-up. Is this correct? And how much of an effect is there, whatever the true case may be?
Of course, Keith Moreland would drop the routine fly, so in the end it doesn’t matter.
Although I can’t provide a technical explanation, as a person who played baseball for many years I can attest to the fact that you will hit the 95mph fastball further than the 75mph pitch, all other factors being equal. I faced a pitcher, Shawn Chacon, who was later drafted by a major league team who had a 93mph fastball, far and away the hardest thrower I’d ever seen. I was no power hitter, but through pure luck I hit a check-swing homerun (the only one of my high-school career)off this guy. I could never hit a ball that far against kids with mere mortal arms, even with a full, hard swing.
Try The Physics of Baseball - Momentum for a good explanation including the relevent physics equations.