IT’S A HIT

KAU using technology to assist its baseball teams

When KAU Little Leaguers take the field this spring, many will have a huge advantage, after playing all winter using a new, state-of-the-art virtual baseball simulator called HitTrax.

“I believe we are the first nonprofit Little League in the country to implement this system,” said Brian Regenye, a KAU board member. “This will give our kids an advantage and it’s a way to improve their skills. They love hitting the ball and watching to see how far it goes.”

The $30,000 system was installed in the large KAU indoor facility that sits between the upper and lower field off Route 82 near Route 1.

HitTrax is a data capture and simulation system that provides powerful combination of performance data and entertainment value. It measures key performance metrics and generates indepth reports, allowing for pitchby-pitch analysis, session summaries, and trend charting over any time period. Each session, performance can be tracked using HitTrax’s video analysis feature and key hitting metrics.

The simulator allows players to compete on simulated major league baseball fields, against

simulated major league players and provides accurate results that show incoming pitch speed and outgoing exit velocity with a high degree of accuracy.

“The kids today are hooked on technology,” said Matt Patterson, KAU president. “We are one of the few Little Leagues in the country that have HitTrax. So far, the parents and players love it. It’s phenomenal. It’s one of the best things we have ever done.”

Thomas Edmonds, a Kennett High School junior who plays first base, has been using HitTrax during the winter and he said it has helped his swing.

“I love it,” he said. “You can see what your swing looks like. Going into the

season, I think this will help me out a lot and it will help a lot of these boys and girls.”

Sean Regenye, a Unionville High School freshman who plays KAU ball, uses HitTrax for improving his hitting and catching.

“It’s awesome,” he said. “We can play all year round. It can track everything for catchers and hitters and it’s really accurate. I definitely have gotten better using HitTrax, and you can track it in the stats.”

Patterson said that while HitTrax is available to KAU league members and alumni, it is not available to the general public. KAU teams have won two national championships in the past four years.

Brian Regenye said the investment in HitTrax is to give the kids better training and to have some fun at the same time. They can get to know what it is like to go up against flame-throwing Aroldis Chapman, or take the mound and try to strike out Mike Trout.

“This will be great next winter, when there are no other options to play outside,” Brian Regenye said. “The kids can come in here to practice and train.”

Plans are to form a full indoor league using HitTrax with games played on a weekly basis, with tournaments and even a Home Run Derby.

This spring, the fields at KAU will be upgraded Right field on the upper field will be expanded by 25 feet and four covered batting cages will be built.

FRAN MAYE — MEDIANEWS GROUP Brian Regenye hits a ball at the KAU indoor facility that is monitored by HitTrax.

FRAN MAYE — MEDIANEWS GROUP Pictured near the HitTrax system at the KAU fields are Matt Matterson, Tom Edmonds, Sean Regenye and Brian Regenye.

FRAN MAYE — MEDIANEWS GROUP The white tracer line shows the direction of a baseball hit off the bat of a player using the system at the KAU facility in Kennett Square.