FOCUS: Japan’s Pro Baseball Data via App Aims to Boost Fan Engagement

Tokyo, June 11 (Jiji Press)–NPB+, a Japanese professional baseball live-updating app officially approved by the Nippon Professional Baseball Organization, was launched this season, offering fans access to advanced tracking data such as exit velocity and pitch movement. “We hope to increase opportunities for fans to engage with data and discover a new way to enjoy baseball,” said Yoshikimi Kuki, a senior official in the digital business department of NPB Enterprise Inc., who was involved in developing the app. The data available through NPB+ is collected by Hawk-Eye, a system that uses multiple cameras installed in stadiums to track the movements of balls, bats and players. Through the app, users can view detailed information such as pitch speed, pitch type, pitch movement and spin rate, as well as batted-ball speed and launch angle. The service gives fans access to data that had previously been used mainly by baseball clubs for player development and performance analysis. Added Interest Saitama Seibu Lions pitcher Kaima Taira, who has long used tracking data, welcomed the decision to make the information public. “Making it public is a very good move,” he said. As an example of how fans can interpret the data, Taira pointed to the break, or movement, of pitches. The figures show how many centimeters a pitch moves vertically and horizontally compared with a non-spinning ball thrown at the same velocity. For fastballs, backspin creates lift, causing the ball to reach home plate at a higher point than a non-spinning pitch. As a result, fastballs typically register positive vertical movement. Horizontal movement is shown as a positive figure when the ball moves toward the right-handed batter’s box and as a negative figure when it moves toward the left-handed batter’s box. Fastballs also naturally move horizontally. A typical fastball thrown by a right-handed pitcher is believed to have about +40 centimeters of vertical movement and +20 centimeters of horizontal movement. “If the amount of break on a two-seam fastball is +20 centimeters vertically and +40 centimeters horizontally, it looks to the batter as though it drops 20 centimeters and runs 20 centimeters more than a straight fastball,” Taira said. “Once you can look at it that way, I think it adds to the enjoyment.” Convey Greatness Since radar guns were introduced at ballparks, pitch velocity has become an essential part of the baseball-viewing experience. More recently, thanks in part to two-way superstar Shohei Ohtani of the Los Angeles Dodgers, exit velocity has also become a popular topic of conversation. In Japanese professional baseball last season, the highest exit velocity recorded was 191.8 kilometers per hour, on a ball hit by infielder Richard Sunagawa, now with the Yomiuri Giants. From a defensive perspective, that figure underscores just how hard-hit the balls are that professional infielders must handle. “Through the app, we hope to convey just how amazing these players are,” said Daisuke Niwa, executive officer and head of the digital business department at NPB Enterprise. Niwa added that his team aims to create “a world where data such as exit velocity, batted-ball distance, pitch break and spin rate become so familiar that fans feel something is missing without them.” END [Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]