Exit velocity… Launch angle… Route efficiency… Spin rate… All these fancy new metrics are brought to you by MLB’s system Statcast (formerly PITCHf/x). These things are even beyond your advanced metrics (advanced advanced metrics?). Teams and players are using these more and more to change their game and optimize everything they do. And MLB is using it to entertain you. If you have MLB.tv or MLB At Bat, these are the stats behind some of the videos you’ll see between innings.
I went to the Mets v. Nats game on July 4th and happened to be in the suite where at least one of the components is placed in the stadium (usually in the club or suite level immediately behind home plate). So I looked up a little more about it to share with you.
The History and Background of Statcast
The PITCHf/x system was the precursor to Statcast and was first used in 2006. This was a camera based sysem. This is what broadcasters would tap into to show pitch locations and speed and the type of pitch. There were three mounted camaras in the stadium to do that tracking. While known to be accurate, I have heard that the newer system is even more accurate. And from what I’ve seen in reading there were some known differences at different ballparks.
Statcast was first brought to us at the MIT Sloan Sports Analytics Conference in 2015. It was tested in three stadiums in 2014 and then later installed in all 30 stadiums in 2015. This new system bring in Doppler radar and HD video to measure things now. This season (2017), TrackMan replaced the PITCHf/x system for official measurements for pitch speed. This is where we really see the difference in velocity.
TrackMan measure the official pitch speed at hits maximum velocity. One would assume this is based on the release of the pitch, but pitchers can release at different points. PITCHf/x was measuring the speed at 55 feet from home plate. This is causing some higher speed measurements. It might not mean its that much less accurate just that it is measuring something different.
The Technology Behind Statcast
Statcast uses two cameras to replicate the binocular vision of the human eye. Then it combines that with the radar system which measure the data (speed, angle, etc.). This combination brings us even more metrics. The typical game brings roughly seven terabytes of data. Most of that is not useful for entertainment so computers parse thought the data for interesting things.
MLB doesn’t necessarily know where all of this is going. They are really evaluating what people like and what is useful and seeing where to take it from there.
What does Statcast Measure?
Here are just a some of the things that Statcast is looking at:
Hitting:
- Exit Velocity – The speed at which the ball comes off the bat
- Launch Angle – The angle the bat leaves the ball at
- Hit Distance – The distance the ball travels
- Projected HR Distance – How far would the home run have gone if there were no stadium/stands?
Baserunning:
- Lead Distance – The distance a runner is off of a base
- Acceleration – Measures the time between the hit and the time it takes for the runner to be at max speed
- Dig Speed – The time from contact to first base on a ball hit on the infield
Pitching:
- Velocity – The maximum speed at which the pitch is at any point to home plate
- Spin Rate – Measures the spin of the ball at the point of release
Fielding:
- First Step Efficiency – measure the angle of deviation in a straight line to the trajectory of the ball v. the actual path taken
- Max Speed – The top speed of the fielder
- Total Distance – How far the fielder ran to the ball to make the play
So the next time you are in a ballpark, look up behind home plate and see what’s collecting all that cool data.