If an 87-kg baseball pitcher wearing frictionless roller skates picks up a 0.145-kg baseball and pitches it?

Question

If an 87-kg baseball pitcher wearing frictionless roller skates picks up a 0.145-kg baseball and pitches it toward the south at 32 m/s, how fast will he begin moving toward the north?

Answer should be ___ m/s

Answer 1

using conservation of momentum:

mb*vb-mp*vp=0

solve for vp

vp=(0.145 * 32) / 87 = 0.0533 north

Answer 2

( 0.145kg x 32 m/s ) / 87 kg = 0.0533333... m/s