Baseball Speed

Case Study Prompt

One of your project issues requires you to help the client determine how long it take for a baseball to travel from the shortstop to first base in professional baseball.

Assumptions:

• The base pads are 90 feet apart (you can ask).
• The distance from shortstop to fit base is about 120 feet.
• A major league pitcher can throw about 90-95 mph (you can ask).
• A major league shortstop can throw about 80 mph

How long does it take for a baseball to travel from the shortstop to first base in professional baseball?

Case Study Overview

In this ZS Associates example, you are being asked to solve a case interview math question to test your analytical skills. These Brainteasers are solved the same way you solve a Market Sizing question – by breaking the problem down into smaller pieces. Choose whether you will take a top-down or a bottom-up approach. Which do you think will help you answer this question?

Follow these 4 steps for solving Market Sizing cases:

1. Structure your approach (at least 5 steps is ideal)
2. Make assumptions
3. Do the calculations
4. Get to an insight

This is a beginner level ZS Associates case study question and will prepare you for a first round interview. The qualitative difficulty is 1 out of 4.

ZS Associates Interview Tips

ZS Associates is looking for candidates that are structured and have excellent communication skills. Can you articulate how you arrived at your solution?

When going through the question, make sure that your structure is crystal-clear and that you verbalize your process.

During this case, be aware and identify one takeaway or area you can improve.

For out-loud practice with an expert, book an hour with an ex-MBB coach.