The Johansen Baseball Hitting Assessment.
“Data Driven” programming, as almost it’s own, sub-sector of the baseball training industry, has come a LONG way since we “thought” we were ahead of the game in 2013 w/ our Athlete Farm, Measurable Hitting, and Throwing Programs, simply using a Stalker radar gun. (Read The JB Story, to hear more on that)
Several companies, coaches, and programs are on the cutting edge of not only utilizing technology, but integrating it in a way that makes sense. For us, this means a written report in words rather than numbers just swirling around a spreadsheet, or locked up into different computers, iPads, and machines.
The first part of our assessment is a combination of mobility and strength metrics that paint a picture about how a player moves in general, along with an idea about their coordination, and relative strength. If we don’t know how a player moves, then how can we possibly make mechanical suggestions without guessing. At Johansen Baseball, we don’t like to guess, so this process will let us know if a physical deficiency is holding a player back, how to help them with their load and sequence, and how they can maximize their body type to become a better hitter.
After that we look at swing metrics using Blast Motion to measure how long a player is staying connected, their bat speed, angle of their bat as they approach the ball, and how well they accelerate to get to top bat speed.
Next we use 4D Motion Sensors to create an animation that we can manipulate angles during different points of the swing, measure kinematic sequencing, and angular velocities in general. This means that we can tell if a player is leaking power, how fast they transfer energy during important parts of the swing, and how they can specifically be more efficient in their mechanics.
Our batted ball data using three wheel machines to simulate live pitching, and using HitTrax baseball gives a clear picture of what the player is capable of currently performance wise. We look at things such as peak power, average power, what the player can do to all fields, and even divide up performance by all 9 sections of the strike zone.
Next, we use Great Lakes Bat Company Bat Fitting Service. They are the industry leader in bat fitting, and make tremendous quality wooden bats. By using their bat fitters, and measuring different placements of “relative mass” with a Blast Motion sensor, we can use their proprietary algorithm to recommend the bat that will be most ideal to each players swing. Currently they make custom wooden bats for our Pro-Athletes, and can recommend many BBCOR bats based on optimal swing weights, essentially amplifying the performance of the materials of the bat. One key to this process is to re-test as we make size, speed, and strength gains. The details in the testing are so precise that as a players optimal swing changes, their optimal bat could change as well.
We also assess vision, using uHit. This technology measures accuracy of pitch and strike recognition using virtual imaging, along with measuring reaction time to those pitches. uHit has made its way into a few affiliated clubs and will continue to be an important product and test to measure the decision making skills of hitters.
While there aren’t many other facilities around the nation doing this extensive of testing, there certainly are some. So, when we write our reports with all of the tools we have at our facility we are able to build a clear direction of where we need to go, how likely a player is to get better, what their potential ceiling is, and whether or not they need to swing more, or “move” more. Because we are outfitted with a strength and conditioning section of our building we are able to put players through a variety of different workouts, cue them differently through different exercises, and help them get the most out of their body, their age, their season, and their career.
Our Assessments are shared with families, players, and/or coaches via Google Sheets. It provides an interactive approach to communicate with everybody on goals. After our assessment is complete we have players fill out their info card which discusses their specific goals, the time frame they would like to complete in, and their plan of action. Having accountability in the plan, while measuring objective data is a big part of why I think our program is successful.
If you’re a High School, College, or Professional coach and want to schedule assessments for your team. E-mail Support@JohansenBaseball.com