TrackMan Partnership Adds Invaluable Tool to WVU Athletics Programming
"Slider!"
"That's a two-seamer."
"367 feet!"
It's a beautiful April afternoon at Monongalia County Ballpark. The ranked WVU baseball team is on the diamond.
Up in the press box, removed from the action, a group of student managers diligently monitor each pitch and its repercussions.
Strike Zone. Ball. Strike. Catcher throws. Exit Speed. Spin Rate. Launch Angle. Flight distance.
Each Mountaineer player then receives detailed reports on hitting, fielding, and pitching through TrackMan, a software system uniquely tailored to data analytics for athletics.
WVU Baseball has been using TrackMan's capabilities since Monongalia County Ballpark was built in 2015. WVU Baseball head student manager Joseph Yanchak is one of the handful of current undergraduates tasked with monitoring TrackMan, as well as data collection from WVU's other system, BATS.
"Both systems have been heavily relied on for both practices and games," Yanchak said. "BATS is used heavily and operated by our Video Coordinator, Robert Kirschenmann, who videos and tags each pitch and play from every scrimmage, sim game, and official games. We use this system to cut and edit clips which are used by coaches and players for evaluations and when looking over mechanics.
"This system allows our players to rewatch every pitch and ball put in play within minutes after each outing. TrackMan has also been heavily relied on by coaches, players, and support staff this year. This system is run by our Lead TrackMan Operator, Josh Bieser, along with other data managers who tag each pitch and play, along with data from the pitchers, hitters, and catchers."
Yanchak's team tracks half a dozen statistics per pitch. In the seconds it takes for a ball to travel from the pitcher's hand to its connection with a bat or a glove, TrackMan has already recorded and logged information for future use.
"Unlike other sports, nearly everything going on during a baseball game is being analyzed through data," Yanchak said. "The velocity of a pitch, the number of times a ball spins, the velocity and angle at which a ball is hit, the sprint speed of a base runner, and even the velocities of catchers when they are throwing down to bases. It is incredibly unique and interesting and really adds an entire new level of the game and allows programs to have an edge on others when used properly.
"Without going into our team’s detailed scouting tools, we can track all the basic statistics such as earned-run average (ERA), batting average (AVG), slugging percentage (SLG), fielding percentage (FLD%), and counting statistics such as home runs, hits, and strikeouts," he said. "We are also able to track some analytical data such as on-base plus slugging (OPS) and runs created (RC)."
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Across town, at the Steve Antoline Family Football Practice Field, WVU Football kickers use similar TrackMan software. The Mountaineers are the first Power Five team to weave TrackMan Football into special teams dynamic data collection. In the same way that its baseball counterpart monitors applicable stats, TrackMan Football monitors ball speed, hang time, apex, launch angle, spin rate, and length of kicks and punts.
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"These guys can go out there and get instant feedback," WVU special teams coordinator and inside linebackers coach Jeff Koonz said. "We're one of the only schools in the country that has that. Guys can see the difference in leg speed, strike, where they hit the ball, how far it went, where it would have been good from... They've really dove into that and that's something we're really excited about. The guys are really embracing that."
WVU Football has been implementing TrackMan technology since June 2022. Former WVU placekicker Casey Legg, one of the nation's most consistent special teams threats last season, gave the software a nod of approval.
"The box is set up behind the kickers and logs the kicks onto a TrackMan app. We can see results live on an iPad or iPhone," Legg said. "Trackman logs makes/misses, launch angle, spin rate, hang-time, and a few other measurements.
"The immediate feedback from the TrackMan software, while I was kicking with my kicking coach, was the most beneficial part of the experience," Legg added.
"When you have the TrackMan system that we've invested in, that sets you apart," Koonz added. "It's like going to a school to play golf and they've got the nicest practice facility in the country. When those guys go out there, they can have that ability right now."
WVU golf coach Sean Covich would agree.
West Virginia's men's golf program has been utilizing a TrackMan Golf simulator, housed in the Evansdale Crossing, since 2015. The software allows golfers to mimic different courses, and it's vital when January, February, and March weather prohibits on-location practice.
"You can actually play a golf course," Covich said. "You can pull up PGA National and play and kind of have fun and hit shots on the course. The other component is the learning. You get your ball flight data. You get your club data. Tracking your yardages. There're so many different data points, but the main thing is, 'How far are you hitting shots? Spin rate. Curve of the golf ball. Your club path. Are you coming from too far inside? Are you coming from too far outside? Attack angle, especially with a driver.'"
All nine players have access to the data, as well as Covich and assistant coach Clay Bounds. Covich says that each member of his team interacts with the availability of in-depth stats differently. Some spend two minutes going over their play, while others become meticulous, staying on for up to an hour.
"Some guys are all in on TrackMan," Covich said. "They want to get as much information as they can. Some guys just want the basics. It kind of depends on the player.
"Some guys really focus on how far they're carrying their wedges," he added. "Some guys are focused on their spin rate. Some guys are focused on their club path, basically their swing direction... A good golfer is going to struggle on certain things his whole career, because that's his tendency. You've got to constantly monitor that area. When they get to this level, there's only a few things that they constantly work on and make sure they don't get in bad tendencies."
Constant comparison to logged data has been a welcome switch from coaching styles of the past, and Covich has been privy to the impact of high-tech training resources.
"Coaching golf in the 80's and 90's was all VHS recording and really what your swing looked like," Covich said. "Now, if you're delivering the club head that fast and that square at impact, keep doing it. I think that's where TrackMan helps.
"There are so many different features," he added. "Like dispersion. Say you hit 100 6-irons. What does your dispersion look like? Obviously, the tighter the dispersion, the better player you are. It can be kind of technical on your swing or it can be just where the golf ball ends up and how it got there... This year, they updated it using strokes gained stats on top of a golf course, so it made it more realistic. It's things like that that they're constantly giving us feedback on that [TrackMan brings] to the table. They're working with professional golfers, college golf, amateurs... They're constantly updating their software and making it better every year."
The inclusion of TrackMan software into sports broadcasts has even further upped the ante. "Good from" field goal lines, strike zone boxes, and ball flight paths have become commonplace in broadcasts like The Super Bowl, Major League Baseball games, and golf tournaments like The Masters. On screen, yellow lines denote ball movement and add storytelling elements to televised sports.
"It's the exact same system that they use on NBC," Koonz said. "Close to half of the NFL teams have it. They've invested in it for the NFL and [TrackMan Football is] kind of growing their way into college."
Sunday Night Football broadcasts have been using TrackMan analytics to bolster TV broadcasts since 2018, touting statistics like "good from" distances and ball speed in the mere seconds the football takes to sail through the uprights.
Covich says that his team enjoys comparing their data against the pros.
"Our guys can measure their club head speed, their ball speed, the same way," Covich said. "They can say, 'This guy on Tour, he's only one mile an hour faster than me." or "I'm faster than him." or "I'm right there with him." You start to see things like that. I think that definitely helps because our guys can compare directly with their ball speed, their club head speed, carry of a certain club. They'll look and say, 'Man. I can hit it just as far or just as good as they are. What else do I need?' I love it when you get that kind of data... The more data the better. If you can measure it, you can improve it."
At the crossroads of elite sports and high-tech data science, TrackMan gives all teams an edge up, and staff members and fans alike are fully in support.
"It cannot be understated how much analytics has taken over the baseball world. College and major league baseball teams have found more and more use for this data and are applying it to help teams win," Yanchak said. "Our coaches and staff have a large interest in this data, and it is only continuing to be used more within the program... There is no doubt that the data and statistics that we use are helping our program win, and people appreciate that."
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