Home to first speed

[55dad]

all times should be the same way, start when bat makes contact with ball. Stop when Foot hits the bag. When you hit the ball, fielders don't wait til you move toward first to throw. That would be a flawed time. Any thing hypothetical is a waste. IMO Why would you care how fast you get over and into the grass??? The point of slapping is to be moving so you are closer to first. Don't see to many right handed slappers!!! Maybe Domingo Ayala can show us that one!

I think an electronically timed 20 yd dash gives you a good baseline because you know how fast they are against an established standard that does not include differences in stopwatch operator etc...

I agree that contact to first is important but I want to see that over several ABs in games against different pitchers. Front toss from a coach or BP pitching from a pitcher does not accurately simulate a game.

I also agree with Marriard. To some extent you know speed when you see it. Kind of like watching a pitcher who makes you want to ask her coach how hard she throws.

What I think is most interesting about this thread and all the responses is all the different opinions on how to best measure speed. It makes me think that running speed is far more subjective than pitching velocity. Of course if you are going to lie you are going to lie regardless of what you are going to lie about.

Sent from my LG-H820 using Tapatalk

 

[Greenmonsters]

Herb Washington, an Olympic sprinter who "played" for the Charlie O. era Oakland A's, never had to run to first.

 

[55dad]

Herb Washington, an Olympic sprinter who "played" for the Charlie O. era Oakland A's, never had to run to first.

He ran to second a lot!

Sent from my LG-H820 using Tapatalk

 

[slugger3]

Ok, I know there are different ways to measure home to first, for slappers and regular batters, but I'm talking about straight up 20 yard times
Which I time from a dead stop from a starting line and them to the finish line.

Since there is a belief that there is a large discrepancy in how people time the 20 yard dash, has anyone used one of the Video Top Watch apps for timing their DD running the 20 yard dash?
I've downloaded a couple of the apps on my POC smartphone, but I don't have any 20 yard dash videos on my phone.
Apparently, you put the 20 yard dash video into the app and you can set the start time/stop time at any point you want in the video (I start of of the first sign of movement...arms, legs, whatever, and then stop as they cross the 20 yard line)
And then you can start/set the stopwatch on that movement in increments of milliseconds.

There should be no variables in a Video Stopwatch if you start on initial movement, and stop as they cross the line. Which the timer/videoer should be standing at.

Has anyone tried one of these Free Video Stopwatch Apps?

I just saw that Coach's Eye has a timer option that can be added to the base free app, but it costs $15

 

[Ken Krause]

There is always a skinniest kid at fat camp!

Very true! Like the old joke about escaping from a bear. I don't have to outrun the bear. I just have to outrun you.

 

[MadtownMike]

I like the way OnDeck Softball (ODM Measurements) does it- they do 40-yard dashes electronically timed where the back leg coming forward starts the timer (essentially after back leg lands). They take measurements at 10, 20 and 40 yards. At least they are very consistent and have a database of some 10,000 players to compare to. Now, surface differences and head/tailwinds are not accounted for, so it's not perfect but at least the methodology is very consistent.