A physics problem

[Saber]

I saw this on a Baseball Prospectus chat:

"In Ryan Howard's comment, he's accused of having outstanding power but less than great bat speed. I know my physics, and you can't have one without the other unless you're using Babe Ruth's bat. What does this really mean?"

So, does this guy know his physics? Is it possible to swing a bat slowly and generate power? Does a curveball really curve?

[DirtyKash]

I only watched a handful of Phillies games last year, but from what I saw, there's nothing really slow about his bat swing. It's no Gary Sheffield, but it's not exactly your everyday hack either.

[Fishercat]

I suppose it is possible, but I'd be led to believe that to provide the force given by a fast bat speed, a noticeably higher than normal mass for the bat would be needed, preferably accelerating moreso than the normal swing, a snap. I suppose, if the force provided by the hips allows that snap to produce an above-average acceleration with a heavy bat, then a quality force is possible, but it's difficult to make up for bat speed in producing the momentum to crush the ball. And as for the curveball, no freaking clue. Something tells me no.

As I said in my IM

[realmofotalk]

A curveball curves because it is thrown at a trajectory with a larger angle?