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Student-Made Robot To Deliver First Pitch

Robot first pitch
Left to right: Ryan Barnhart, Zack Moore, Bryce Paputa -- all incoming juniors at Novi High School (credit: Tom Lang)

DETROIT (WWJ) - Cy Young will throw out the first pitch before Tuesday night's game against the Chicago White Sox at Comerica Park. But it's not the one whose name is on the trophy given to baseball's best pitcher every season.

Cyber Young is a robot built by four teams of students as part of the First Robotics Competition.

One of those students is Zach Moore, a junior at Novi High School.

"It's about 200 pounds and it throws an 108 mile-a-hour fastball," Moore said. "But we're pitching to Paws [the Tigers mascot], so it's going to be dialed back to about 30 miles-a-hour so he can catch it."

Moore said Cy has a 42-inch barrel with 106 degrees range of motion — all electric powered. Cy has a scuba tank on board and that's how it powers the air cannon. It's painted in Tiger colors: with orange on the barrel and a blue cover.

Learn about First Robotics HERE.

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