Man who can hit 250-mph pitches challenges MLB stars

Hey, baseball sluggers, watch out: Stanley Anderson's coming for you.

Anderson - a security guard in Detroit and a former college baseball player - wants to square off against some of Major League Baseball's best hitters. There's a catch, though: The superstars have to hit pitches upwards of 250 mph while standing 17 feet away from the pitching machine - something the 53-year-old does to perfection.

"A friendly challenge to anybody - (Miguel) Cabrera, Bryce Harper, Mike Trout, any of 'em," Anderson told Jason Carr of FOX 2 Detroit. "I don't think they would be able to out hit me - at that range."

(Video courtesy: FOX 2 Detroit)

For reference, professional hitters have approximately 0.4 seconds to react to a fastball coming from 60 feet, 6 inches away, according to a 2013 piece by KQED's Lauren Sommer. Since Anderson stands between 17 and 22 feet away from the pitching machine, he's hitting pitches with one-third less reaction time than big leaguers have.

"Physics dictates that being that close - 17 feet - the miles per hour, from regulation, would be 266 mph," he said.

While a professional career is likely out of the question, Anderson thinks he could hit a major-league fastball if given the chance. He's also adamant that he could out-slug baseball's best mashers from his preferred distance.

"I'm not saying I'm a better hitter than them," he explained. "I'm saying at that range, though, they're not used to being able to react that fast."