Baseball
Rapsodo Cloud: Driveline Pitch Recommendations FAQ
Determining the best plan of action during a pitch design session can be challenging for both coach or player. Which pitch should we prioritize during a session? What should our goal be for a given pitch? How much better will these adjustments make us if we execute properly?
The answers to each of those questions are extremely difficult to quantify with precision; however, they matter immensely if we’re looking to be as efficient as possible when developing our repertoires.
Using Driveline Pitch Recommendations Report
As an attempt to try to quantify these unknowns for coaches and athletes, Driveline has created Pitch Recommendations to give Rapsodo users a data-driven approach to pitch design. Using over two million pitches collected by MLB’s Statcast Pitching Tracking Technology, Driveline’s Pitch Recommendation algorithm intrinsically measures the quality of each pitch thrown in the big leagues to find the highest quality pitches that most resemble the user-inputs provided.
The Driveline algorithm is designed to make all pitch recommendations both attainable and realistic for athletes of all skill levels.
Below we’ll answer a few common questions customers have surrounding using pitch recommendations.
How Will I Know Which Pitch Recommendations to Prioritize?
Each pitch input and recommendation will have a Pitch Score. Pitch Scores utilize the principles of the 20-80 scale alongside PITCHING 2.0 data. Inevitably, some pitches that are entered into the tool will have current and recommended Pitch Scores that are similar in output. These pitches should be interpreted as being “maxed out” (or close to it) and thus already close to their ceiling.
As a result, we recommend starting with pitch types that have a large gap between their current and recommended Pitch Scores, as executing those suggestions will likely give an athlete the best bang for their buck.
Does This Report Only Work For High Level Players?
Our Pitch Recommendations Report is designed to work for all levels of play. Even if your fastball is several ticks below MLB average, Driveline will be able to adjust your spin characteristics to generate the same recommendations that higher level athletes would receive, adjusted for your level of play.
How Will I Be Able to Achieve These Recommendations?
Since Recommendations and Pitch Scores do not help athletes with the ‘how’ component of pitch design, our report processes the recommendations provided and generates specific cues for athletes to try out during future sessions.
Because every athlete is different, some cues and grip suggestions will resonate with one athlete, while other cues or grip suggestions will resonate with another. Driveline believes coaches and athletes should be willing to experiment with several cues and grips before landing on the right blend to get the best results.
Get the Most Out of Your Pitch Recommendations
Hopefully, you will find that these pitch recommendation reports help you become more efficient when working through a pitch design session. Best of luck achieving your targets and developing a repertoire that reaches your own ceiling!
For more information on Rapsodo Cloud and Driveline integrations, visit https://rapsodo.com/team-membership/.
