ESPN taking cuts at virtual pitches

(October 16, 2009) Eventually, TV coverage might include baseball replays showing what the play would have looked like from another planet. Or, what a fly buzzing over home plate might have seen just before it was beaned.

We're getting there. Fox will formally announce Friday that its MLB playoff coverage, starting tonight, will occasionally include this stat on replays: Speed of pitches as they leave hurlers' hands as well as their speed when they cross home plate.

Fox Sports President Ed Goren admits showing how fast pitches travel 60 feet, 6 inches isn't something Fox should "overuse." But he says those speeds, fed from mountains of data tracked at ballparks for all the onscreen graphics used on TV baseball telecasts, is akin to traffic "speed traps. It's not how fast you were going into one that counts, but how fast you were going when you're in it. … In TV, there are times when something sounds cool, but there's no editorial reason to do it. With this, there's editorial substance."

And ESPN, which doesn't air MLB postseason games but yaks about them a lot in studio shows, will Friday announce that its analysts will get to swing at pitches that have been thrown in playoff games.

Virtual pitches, that is. ESPN, like Fox with its pitch speeds, will use data generated from ballparks to create replays of actual pitches that can be superimposed onscreen on studio shows — letting ESPN analysts step up to in-studio plates to swing at virtual versions of real-life pitches.

ESPN's analysts, meant to educate viewers, obviously can't hit those virtual pitches. But Anthony Bailey, ESPN vice president for emerging technology, notes analysts can "do whatever they want around pitches" such as order them to be frozen in mid-flight and, say, walk in front of them. Without getting beaned.

Pretty fancy.

Too bad TV baseball technology can't do something about this weekend's weather. Maybe next year.

_______________________

You must be logged in to contribute.

blog comments powered by Disqus

Accelerate Your Sports Broadcasting Career

Uncover secrets to sports broadcasting success.

Meet Employers

Let sports talk, sports anchor and play-by-lay employers find you.

Secrets Revealed

Start improving your sportscasting in just 15 minutes from now!

Radio Demos, Resumes

You only get once chance to make a first impression. Make yours count.

TV Demos, Resumes

Get yourself noticed. Get the job.

Sports Broadcasting Books

Highly recommended reading for sports broadcasters of all levels.

Sportscastings Jobs

Free radio and TV sportscasting job listings.

Show Prep Links

The best sites for sports talk show prep.

Sportscasting jobs, sportscasting careers, sportscasting schools, broadcasting jobs, broadcasting careers, broadcasting schools, sports, sporting events, sports tickets, sports gambling, online sports gaming, sports news, sports podcasting, television careers, radio careers, television broadcasting, broadcaster training, radio training, sportscaster training, radio broadcasting, television schools, television broadcasting, television training, play-by-play, sports talk radio, sports reporting, football, basketball, baseball, NBA, NFL, MLB, hockey, NHL acting, models, actors, modeling, voice over, voice artists