Final answer:
The question involves Newton's third law of motion as demonstrated by Mariano Rivera's signature cutter pitch, which exerted force on bats, often causing them to break due to the equal and opposite reaction of the forces at play.
Step-by-step explanation:
The question touches upon the effects of force in the context of sports, specifically in baseball with the example of pitcher Mariano Rivera's signature cutter pitch. The cutter is designed to break bats by applying a force at a critical spot where the bat cannot withstand the impact.
This concept is best explained by Newton's third law of motion, which states that for every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction. When Rivera threw his cutter and the ball made contact with the bat, not only did the bat exert a force on the ball (changing its velocity and direction), but the ball also exerted an equal force on the bat, which could lead to the bat breaking.
This scenario is a real-world example validating that a force applied by a moving object (like a baseball) not only affects the moving object upon collision (the ball changes direction and speed) but also the stationary object (the bat potentially breaks due to the impact). A pitcher's skill in applying force precisely can have a strategically significant impact on the game. Rivera's ability to consistently apply the force at the right point made his cutter particularly effective at damaging bats.