Wired Training Center uses technology to improve baseball players’ skills

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    OMAHA, Nebraska (WOWT) — The game of baseball hasn’t seen many changes over the years, but the implementation of technology recently changed that.

Data is everywhere.

It isn’t just how fast a pitch is. Did it spin efficiently? How fast did it spin? How much movement did the pitch have?

These are all things that can be tracked now with sensors and cameras.

The same goes for hitters.

No longer is the conversation about whether or not it felt like a good hit.

How did your pelvis and torso move through the swing? What was the exit velocity?

These are all questions Brian Southworth is tackling at Wired Training Center.

It’s all new tech that’s only been around the last few years, and he admits he, like everyone else, is still learning and adapting as time goes on.

“We’re still at a point that I don’t think we fully understand everything that we’re tracking and what it means,” Southworth said. “I think in another five years it’s going to look completely different from what it looks like now.”

The technology works.

Pitchers who have worked with Southworth have added serious velocity to their pitches in shorter amounts of time.

The same goes for ballplayers like Eli Small, a sophomore catcher at Elkhorn South.

“It really makes me more aware of what my body is doing,” Small said. “Sometimes I’ll be in the cage and be like ‘Oh, I hit that one well,’ and then you turn around and you’re like ‘Oh, those aren’t the numbers I’m used to seeing.’ You can be like ‘ What did I do wrong on that swing? How can I make a better adjustment?’”

Creighton Prep Freshman Michael Meckna had a fastball that only touched roughly 80 MPH before he started training at Wired Training Center.

Now, Meckna says his fastball is touching 90 MPH.

“All the little things that you know, it just helps you get to your max potential,” Meckna said.

Using the evolving tech is allowing players to reach greater heights, and send that data out to scouts.

It also allows for the ability to constantly track whether you’re improving or not.

“If you want to be a Division I player, if you want to play professional baseball, it holds everyone accountable. The player, myself as a coach, we have to monitor progress over time and make sure we’re making progress. If we’re not making progress, we have to go back to the drawing board. Ok, what do we need to do from there?,” Southworth said.

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