Technology in Baseball

     Technology in baseball has been at the forefront of arguments for the last few years and it doesn't make any sense because it will only grow the game. Most old-school baseball coaches just trust their eyes when making their evaluations of players but in reality, without technology, they are just guessing what is going on. Some people are better at guessing than others because they have trained their eyes over the years but technology will help make coaches guessing a lot more educated. I know some facilities or lower-level programs don't have the money to afford the technology but there are cheaper options that can still help in the long run if used properly. 

This goes to the next point which is how technology should be used as a tool to help players get better, which is by tracking players' progress over time and seeing if they are improving. The data points with radar guns and velocity are an easy thing to track and as has been proven many times throwing the ball harder is a good thing for pitchers. Bat sensors or anything that can track bat speed or attack angle are easy data points to see and track to see if the athlete that you are working with is improving their skills. This added-on with something that measures exit velocity and launch angle can really give you a complete view of any hitter. Without some type of data points or technology to measure progress in athletes coaches are just guessing if their player is improving over time just because their eyes are telling them that they are improving. The gap can be bridged between these people that just trust their eyes and the people who only trust technology if they put their egos aside and see the positive of using some sort of data to track players' progress.

    The proper use of technology in baseball will only increase the ability to make decisions on how players can progress development-wise. The people that see technology as evil in baseball don't want their guesses to be put to the side because tracking with technology is more accurate than guessing will ever be. They think technology is wrong because they only have views on certain players with their eyes and if they don't pass that test they must not be good even if they test well with technology. Mechanics is an overrated word used and people think swings or throwing mechanics aren't to their aesthetic it means they can't play. Technology is here to stay in baseball and if everyone can embrace it to improve player development the game will only grow to higher levels. The people that don't adapt and just keep guessing will be left behind or complain their whole lives that technology and data are ruining the game.

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