Why don't soldiers throw grenades like a baseball?

Question

They tend to keep their arm straight and throw over their head with their shoulder, rather than just wind up and pitch it, which I would expect would make the grenade go farther.

Answer 1

Most of the time a grenade is thrown over an obstruction (cover) otherwise you would just shoot a rifle since with a clear line of fire the enemy would hit you in the time it takes to arm and throw.
So the procedure is taught so that the grenade will not bounce back. A modern M67 grenade is lethal within 16 feet, which means it's lethal reach is 32 feet side to side, and can wound 100 feet from side to center to side, sending razor sharp shards of metal into any exposed flesh. (at 100 feet one must remember that the shards are far more spread out, meaning a larger chance of "slipping" through them, still not a something I'd like to bet on)
Also you do NOT want the enemy to have time to evade, or in the worst case, throw back a grenade (it has an approx 4 sec. fuse and weighs less than 1 pound- fairly light). So the grenade falls within torso height about the time it explodes.

But in the heat of battle a true soldier will do what it takes, although conditioning and muscle memory are a strong influence, so if you have to through a grenade like a baseball you will do it, procedure be damned. But for the most part it is for the better.

Answer 2

The grenade lob is designed to allow you to toss the grenade with some accuracy into a covered spot. The bad guys are usually in a hole, or you could just shoot them otherwise. The lob will come down onto them and they may not see it coming. The second reason is that should you get shot, your momentum will (Hopefully) carry your toss forward and the grenade won't kill friendlies. PS, if you ever tried to pull a pin with your teeth, you'd be throwing a bloody grenade and be known as "gummy" afterwords.

Answer 3

It's angle not distance grenades are thrown OVER an obstruction 99% of the time and it has to come DOWN on its target not just hit it directly. Also a grenade is heavy, try to throw more than one like a baseball and what you'll throw out is all the muscles in your arm and shoulder.

Answer 4

Soldiers have to clear many obstacles between themselves and their targets such as their own troops so throwing grenades the way they do baseballs would not work.

Additionally, you do not want to throw a grenade horizontally to hit a small target the way you want to throw the baseball at the catcher's mitten but you want it (the grenade) to fly overhead and fall on the the ground near and among the enemies to damage as many of them as possible.

Answer 5

The other answer is LINE of Sight you are trying to throw it to a general area, If you could see and throw it like a baseball you could be shot at. Think of the Batter having an AK 47. You want to be hidden and Lob the granade. As a Girl I can tell you it is f'ing heavy!

Answer 6

Besides all of the good answers above, you want that grenade to hit in the area you want and bounce around like crazy, so any bad guys in that location aren't able to pick it up and throw it back at you.

Answer 7

When the pin is pulled on a grenade, you are holding down a lever to prevent it from exploding immediately...you must continue to hold the lever down during the throwing process. You can't just chuck it like a baseball if you are holding the lever down with your thumb.

Answer 8

All of the previous answers were good but the real reason is to prevent you from injuring yourself. A grenade is much heavier than a baseball and of you throw it like one you can injure yourself.

Answer 9

Well if somethin goes wrong like it explodes early or you drop it, that motion gives maximum reaction time and minimum injury risk?- you know, maybe you don't want a live grenade whizzing by your skull?

Answer 10

cannot throw it like a baseball -
a good high school friend who joined the army
killed himself and his instructor

guess that's what he did wrong - or - maybe they had
a defective grenade