On Saturday morning, news was being released that there was going to be a new tracking system that would be in place at Miller Park in Milwaukee, and Target Field in Minnesota. Citi Field in New York actually already has this system there and they were being used as the first MLB testing grounds for this tracking system that will, excuse the cliche, change the way you watch baseball. I don’t believe there’s any exaggeration on my part, because watch this video and you’ll see what I mean:
See what I mean? So, you have the play that happens first, then we get to the analytics. For a reminder on what they featured, here are some captured screenshots from the video:
First, we have the metrics from Justin Turner‘s hit, mentioning batted ball speed, launch angle, distance the ball goes, and the baseball’s time in the air. Right now, we only see data for Turner so at the moment, less experienced baseball fans like myself don’t have a good idea for what that means in relation to other players.
Here, we get to see how much ground Reed Johnson and Jason Heyward have to cover in order to get to the ball in play, if they took the most direct route to the ball. That in itself is useful and gives us context for what needed to be done since even people in early grade school can get an idea for how long ~81-83 feet is. We also get their first step, and then everybody starts hating on Reed Johnson because he reacts .03 seconds slower than Jason Heyward, he’s slower, and his acceleration isn’t as good. The acceleration stat would take some time to contextualize, like some of the stats from Turner’s hit in the first screenshot would.
The direct path versus the actual path and the route efficiency will give fans a great idea for how a defender did in getting to, and not getting to a ball hit in their direction. I’m definitely curious to see how this tool will be used when we get to see the likes of Angel Pagan and Gregor Blanco rated, Gary Brown if he ever makes it.
Right now, it feels like a lot of information to digest even in a highlight, and a commenter from the Deadspin article on the matter said that there will be up to seven terabytes of data per game. Keep in mind that from that highlight, they didn’t even take a look at the metrics for what pitcher Craig Kimbrel did in that sequence. We see the other ways they can be used in these embedded tweets from the Saber-friend, Brian Kenny.
MLBAM says some pitcher/batter data will be in Real Time. Must. Have. This. pic.twitter.com/d6JJUqYG5c
— Brian Kenny (@MrBrianKenny) March 1, 2014
Route efficiency for the runner. Oh my.. #SSAC14pic.twitter.com/vOkasDkA2Y
— Brian Kenny (@MrBrianKenny) March 1, 2014
Also included a baserunning shot, which will also provide plenty of talking points for fans when that info becomes available. Some comments from the anti-data-all-over-my-screen crowd include phrases such as:
- Why do I need to see all this on my screen? I know what’s going on anyway.
- I don’t care if their route efficiency is x% vs. y%
- Can’t you just enjoy a baseball game?
To the first question, I believe that this information provides a greater depth of information to understanding the game. This is a game, yes, but in wanting to understand so much about Player A vs. Player B, you want the most information you can get your hands on to be as accurate as possible in your analysis. Granted, this is a lot of data to take in right now, I wonder if it gets saturated a bit, or even if newer measurements are put in and replace other ones. Or even if they do the replay of the play first and then go to the numbers to break down the play, I think that would be a better procedure. It’s not like they don’t have time for it in a broadcast. (Bet they have time for it in a Yankees-Red Sox game, right, Joe West? *wink*)
To the second, the original comment in question said they didn’t care because the play was made. As a response, the author pointed out that the play doesn’t always get made. While you may not care if Pagan’s route efficiency is 93% all of the time and Blanco’s is 94% all of the time, we could actually say in confidence in the end, “Gregor Blanco has been more efficient in his routes than Pagan so far, but just barely!” This is still about being accurate in your analysis.
To the last question, you set yourself up for a lot of fire from everybody that likes to analyze the game. Why would we put so much into a game we hate, or just be OK with? We love the game of baseball and we want to be as accurate as possible in our analysis of what has happened while giving way to better hypothesize what could happen later.
All baseball parks are said to have the technology in 2015, so if your team stops by one of Miller Park, Target Field, or Citi Field in 2014, maybe you’ll get to catch a glimpse of the numbers MLB Advanced Media is providing for you before you possibly see it 162 games a year in 2015. I believe that this is great for the sport and help advance the quality of discussion and debate we have as fans of the game of baseball. It may be a little heavy in its initial rollout, but this tool has some great potential.
