PBR was in Maiden, NC in Lincoln County on Thursday July 9th to see the players from the Athlete's Lab.  A fairly new program, ALab operates out of a massive 33,000 sq foot facility that houses a full weight room, multiple short cages, a pitching area with 5 bullpens, as well as a fully open cage that measures approximately 120ft x 100ft.  The area allowed the players of the ALab to run through a full pro-style workout for PBR scouts.

Position players in attendance were able to run a laser timed 30 followed by an offensive evaluation with TrackMan and Blast taking advanced analytics on the swing and ball flight.  Players then went through a defensive workout.  Pitchers were able to throw controlled bullpens for PBR as well.

Below we take a look at some of the notes from the day, as well as some of the statistical leaders from the PBR Scout Day.

CLICK HERE to see the roster and all of the stats collected from the workout.

 

By the Numbers:

• 34 Players from the Athlete's Lab went through the workout
• 29 position players worked out.
• 8 hitters produced an exit velocity off of the tee of 84 mph or higher
• 19 pitchers from the organization threw
• 2 arms worked at 87 or higher
• 6 arms flashed a fastball above 82
• 9 INF/OF showcased carry at 77mph or higher from their position
• 4 catchers flashed pop times of 2.20 or better
• 2 catchers posted a positional velocity of 75 or higher.

 

Statistical Analysis

 

THE 30 YARD DASH

With the event being held indoors ALab players ran a laser timed 30 yard dash instead of a sixty.  Inside the Athlete's Lab there is plenty of room to run a full thirty on the laser timer, giving coaches and scouts another metric to measure players against.  Twenty Nine players ran the 30 with a median time of 4.24.

(Note: The chart lists this category as Home to First, however this was a straight 30 yard dash from a steal break.)

 

EXIT VELOCITY (OFF A TEE)

Twenty-Nine offensive players went through multiple rounds off of a tee to gauge their exit velocity.  Exit velocity was also take in BP using TrackMan and those numbers will be posted soon.  Three players posted an exit velocity of 86 mph or higher with the top bolt getting to 88 mph.  The median exit velocity posted came in at 81 mph.

 

POSITIONAL VELOCITY – INFIELDERS

With the indoor setup at The Athlete's Lab, infielders were able to simulate a full length ground ball, working through an exchange and make a throw of approximately 140 feet to a target.  PBR scouts were able to watch the catch, footwork, hands, exchange, and release while gathering information off of a radar gun to give us a feel for arm strength.  Scouts were also able to see carry and accuracy on throws.  Eighteen infielders worked out for scouts present.  The median reading for the group checked in at 74 mph across the diamond.  Below are the top positional velocities for infielders from the ALab Scout Day.

 

POSITIONAL VELOCITY – OUTFIELDERS

Outfielders were able to take a full ground ball off of a fungo, playing through the ball and working to a throw that was approximately 40 yards in distance, at a target.  With the space The ALab provided, scouts in attendance were able to see outfielders work through the ball, transition the baseball into a throw.  Carry and accuracy were paired with a gun reading to give feedback on the arm strength of each outfielder.  Below are the top outfielder positional throws. 

 

CATCHER POP TIMES & POSITIONAL VELOCITY

In the pro-style workout, catchers workout from behind home plate, making multiple throws to 2B, simulating a stolen base attempt.  Scouts again are looking for a quick, clean transition to the release as well as carry and accuracy on the throw.  For catchers, evaluators will put a stopwatch on the “pop time” or the time the ball hits their glove to the time the ball hits the MIF’s glove at 2B.  Coaches can also time the transition from when the ball hits the catchers glove to when he is able to release his throw.  PBR scouts add the radar gun to put a number on the arm strength out of the crouched position.  The top pop time in the workout was a 2.07, with a median time from the group of 6 catchers of 2.45.  The top positional velocity checked in at 78 mph out of the hand, while the median for the group clocked in at 73 mph.

 

MAX FASTBALL

Pitchers threw a controlled bullpen for scouts at The ALab as part of the Scout Day.  In total, 19 arms threw on the day.  TrackMan was used to track and verify all velocity readings. A Stalker Pro SII was also used to flash velocities to an LED board for the player videos, and so the pitcher had some feel for his performance.  The top fastball 88 mph on the TrackMan.   From the 19 arms, the median fastball for the day was 77.