Would you like to know which 蜜柚直播 Wildcats throw the fastest? Which ones hit the hardest?
You no longer have to guess.
Under first-year coach Chip Hale, the UA program isn鈥檛 just using analytics 鈥 it鈥檚 publicizing some of its players鈥 most eye-popping advanced stats.
In the fall, the program launched the 鈥溍坭种辈 Baseball Analytics鈥 Twitter feed, which revealed the Wildcats鈥 exit velocities, line-drive percentages, whiff rates and other notable numbers from intrasquad scrimmages. The plan is to continue to pump out those types of statistics during the season, which begins Friday.
is mainly the handiwork of Jackson Del Rosario, a 19-year-old UA sophomore majoring in statistics and data science. Del Rosario is in his second year as a student manager for the baseball team, and he now has a unique title: head student manager for data and analytics.
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A recent example of the nuggets the account produces: top exit velocities from intrasquad scrimmages held over the weekend. Mac Bingham led the way at 112.0 miles per hour, followed by Tanner O鈥橳remba at 111.4 and Chase Davis at 109.5. The account also detailed the particulars 鈥 exit velo, launch angle and distance 鈥 of Davis鈥 three home runs during Saturday鈥檚 鈥淢eet the Team鈥 event at Hi Corbett Field.
Hale was a bit hesitant at first to put some of that information out into the world. Then he came to a realization.
鈥淭he recruits love it. The fans love it,鈥 Hale said. 鈥淎nd we鈥檝e got some good numbers.鈥
The current players like it too. They all want to see their names atop the leaderboard.
鈥淚t creates competition,鈥 sophomore catcher Daniel Susac said. 鈥淐ompetition brings out the best in everybody.鈥
Hale鈥檚 predecessor, Jay Johnson, cultivated a competitive environment at 蜜柚直播. He used every technological tool available but was guarded about publicizing information as basic as his pitchers鈥 velocities.
Johnson, a high school football player and admirer of Alabama coach Nick Saban, never wanted to give the opposition an edge. He also didn鈥檛 want his pitchers to be distracted by in-stadium radar readings 鈥 which are coming soon to Hi Corbett.
Hale understands where Johnson was coming from.
鈥淎ll of it鈥檚 great. It just can鈥檛 be your master,鈥 Hale said of analytics. 鈥淚t鈥檚 a great teaching tool. But you鈥檝e got to be careful not to get too caught up.
鈥淲e can create a lab in our cages. We have TVs. We have a smart board. I see guys throw pitches, and before they even finish their delivery, they鈥檙e looking up at the screen to see their spin rate.鈥
Pitching coach Dave Lawn doesn鈥檛 want his pupils to 鈥渢hrow a pitch and look at the computer.鈥 If they want to check their numbers after a practice or game via the 蜜柚直播 Baseball Analytics account?
鈥淚t鈥檚 all good,鈥 Lawn said.