Balls flying farther — panel stumped

NEW YORK — Baseballs really have been getting extra lift since 2015, and it’s not from the exaggerated uppercuts batters are taking, according to a 10person research committee hired by the commissioner’s office.

“The aerodynamic properties of the ball have changed, allowing it to carry farther,” said committee Chairman Alan Nathan, professor emeritus of physics at the University of Illinois.

But the panel, which includes professors specializing in physics, mechanical engineering, statistics and mathematics, struck out trying to pinpoint the cause.

“We know the primary cause is the change in the drag, but we just simply cannot pinpoint what feature of the ball would lead to it,” Nathan said. “It probably is something very, very subtle in the manufacturing process.”

Physicist Leonard Mlodinow speculated “manufacturing advances that result in a more spherically symmetric ball could have the unintended side effect of reducing the ball’s drag.”

The major-league average of home runs per game for both teams combined climbed from 1.90 before the 2015 All-Star break to 2.17 in the second half, then rose to 2.31 in 2016 and a record 2.51 last season. The percentage of batted balls resulting in home runs rose from 3.2 percent in 2014 to 3.8 percent in 2015 to 4.4 percent in 2016 and 4.8 percent in 2017.

MLB announced five steps in response to the report. It will:

Monitor temperature and humidity of ball-storage areas at all ballparks and determine whether to mandate humidors throughout the majors in 2019.

Update production specs with Rawlings and add specifications for aerodynamic properties. Develop aerodynamic tests. Create standards for mud rubbing, enforced by the umpires.

Form a scientific advisory council.