On August 13th & 14th, the PBR Nevada/Idaho travelled to Montana to host the inaugural Montana State Games at Legion Field at Heroes Park in Bozeman, Montana. This event featured 28 prospects from the 2024 - 2027 classes and allowed our staff an opportunity to get an in-depth first look at the talent in Montana.

Earlier this week we began our post-event coverage with our Quick Hits and Statistical Analysis article, highlighting top players at the event. Now, we will take a further in-depth look at the top pitchers with the help of our tech partnerships, broken down by the categories down below:

For complete event results, click here.
To view upcoming event schedule, click here.

FASTBALL

MAX VELOCITY (MPH)

Max Fastball Velocity: This metric calculates the speed of the pitch as it’s released from the pitcher’s hand.

SPIN RATE (AVG)

Spin Rate: This metric calculates the rate of spin on the baseball as it leaves the pitcher’s hand, measured in revolutions per minute (rpm). Historical data shows that high-spin fastballs lessen the impact of gravity, allowing for more ‘rise’ (or less fall, in other words) as it carries through the zone. Low-spin fastballs typically indicate the pitch has greater horizontal action, often making it tougher to square up, but generally easier to make contact with, leading to more ground balls, while high-spin fastballs show a correlation with swings and misses.

INDUCED VERTICAL BREAK (AVG.)

Induced Vertical Break: Used in short form as "IVB," this metric is most important on fastballs for creating rise and on curveballs for creating depth – it can also have some use when measuring sliders and cutters as well. Sliders tend to be closer to zero inches while cutters are generally between 5 and 15 inches. Usually fastballs and curveballs with large IVB have higher spin efficiencies as well. Sliders generally have very little (closer to zero) IVB and very low spin efficiency. You could also categorize IVB into spin rate as this is part of the “useful movement” you’re looking for. IVB is also a huge part of the vertical approach angle.

HORIZONTAL MOVEMENT (AVG.)

Horizontal Break: Outlined on TrackMan’s own website: “... horizontal movement is measured in inches between where the pitch actually crosses the front of home plate side-wise, and where it would have crossed home plate side-wise if had it traveled in a perfectly straight line from release. A positive number means the break was to the right from the pitcher’s perspective, while a negative number means the break was to the left from the pitcher’s perspective.”

STRIKE ZONE RATE%

CURVEBALL

SPIN RATE (AVG.)

INDUCED VERTICAL BREAK (AVG.)

HORIZONTAL MOVEMENT (AVG.)

SLIDER

SPIN RATE (AVG.)

INDUCED VERTICAL BREAK (AVG.)

HORIZONTAL MOVEMENT (AVG.)

CHANGEUP

HORIZONTAL MOVEMENT (AVG.)

UPCOMING EVENTS

SHOWCASE	STATE	DATE	LOCATION
2023 PBR Hawaii State Games (2024-2028)	NV	08/19	Les Murakami Stadium
Big Island Wood Bat Academy Scout Day (2024-2028)	NV	08/20	Walter Victor Field
Northern Idaho Open (2024-2028)	NV	09/09	Lake City High School
College of Southern Nevada Scout Day	NV	10/03	College of Southern Nevada
College of Southern Idaho Scout Day	NV	10/06	College of Southern Idaho
Southern Idaho Open (2024-2028)	NV	10/07	College of Southern Idaho
Las Vegas Fall ID (2024-2028)	NV	10/15	College of Southern Nevada
Northern Nevada Fall ID (2024-2028)	NV	11/11	Bishop Manogue High School

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