Chandler-engineered sports tech could help catchers

By Jason W. Brooks
Mail | X: @JasonWBrooks2

No one can outrun a thrown baseball — it it’s thrown in time.

That’s the message two former pro ballplayers and a Chandler engineer are pointing out as they try to market a new app system that tracks catchers’ throws and the time it takes them to get the ball to infielders.

The app system, called the Caught Stealing PRO100, is a developmental tool designed primarily for career catchers ages 18-22 who are attempting to go from capable to Major League-caliber times. It’s meant to improve each catcher’s “pop time,” or time from when the ball hits the catchers mitt until the throw arrives at second base in the glove of a middle infielder.

Greg Mills of Chandler, the co-founder and president of Southwest Engineering Concepts, is the lead engineer of the app. He developed working with two longtime pro players turned coaches.

Those players are California natives Caleb Balbuena, 6-foot-7, 240, pitched in the minors for about 11 years, and Matt Ceriani, a catcher whose career was nearly the same 1998-2010 years as Balbuena.

“One key here is that scouts are always looking for new, more-accurate metrics,” Ceriani told the Chandler Independent. “Defense has always won championships in sports, and that’s really going to be true with MLB rule changes going forward.”

According to Baseball Savant, Philadelphia Phillies catcher J.R. Realmuto has had one of the shortest “pop” times in the majors over the past several years, averaging between 1.81 and 1.88 seconds from 2018-24.

While Balbuena acknowledged college or early-career pro players might not be quite in that sub-2.0-seconds range yet, the PRO1000 is a tool to help them get there.

“In testing this system, we’ve seen guys use it to grow by leaps and bounds,”Balbuena said. “We’ve seen guys who have managed to drop from 2.2 (seconds) to 2.0 over the course of a couple of college seasons.”

Balbuena said the system not only replaces the stopwatches that he and Ceriani believe aren’t accurate for such quick plays, but also tracks multiple aspects of a catcher’s throw.

The velocity of the ball in the air is important and can be improved by working on basic baseball mechanics and strength, he said. But the “transfer” — the act of a catcher transitioning from a crouch or near-crouch to getting the ball into the throwing hand and starting a throw — is an important time split as well.

“With the data from the PRO 1000, combined with video of the catcher’s motion, we can find hitches and all sorts of other things to eliminate or improve to make the transfer faster,” Balbuena said.

Ceriani, who splits his time these days between Gilbert and Payson, says he’s coached for 13 years and has heard lots of talk about catcher throwing velocity, but not nearly as much about smaller ways to make smaller fixes and help good catchers become great.

“In talking with Caleb, I knew we’d need some new kind of app,” Ceriani said.

Ceriani said the system is to be used in spring training and practices or instructional workouts, he said, rather than tryouts, scouting or in live games.

“It could morph into in-game data, at some point, but right now, it’s for development, and we’re trying to get the word out across the baseball world,” he said.

Ceriani said he’s received plenty of positive feedback. A March demonstration for (formerly Oakland) As coaches was productive, he said.

“Scouts and coaches are always looking for the latest tech,” he said.

Mills said one of the greatest benefits of the technology is that it will produce useful data coaches and others can have on their phones or other devices.

“You can have it all in your hand,” he said.

Ceriani said not only is baseball very focused on data tools now, there aren’t many for the defense. Most Major League and other league rule changes since the late 1960s have aided the offense in some way.

“There’s plenty to help hitters, pitchers and even fielders, but not much for catchers,” he said.

Balbuena agrees, pointing to a recent rule change about blocking the basepath as an example of ways leagues encourage more stolen-base attempts.

“You’re seeing fewer pickoff attempts, bigger leads, baserunners taking more chances,” Balbuena said. “And sometimes, catchers can’t throw a guy out even though everyone knows he’s about to run. So our system appeals to catchers and their coaches as a way to be aware of liabilities.”

Ceriani said it would help the system sell if a well-known MLB catcher will decide to endorse the PRO 1000 publicly.

“We could use a few guys saying that it’s not a fix-all, but it is a tool that emphasizes the importance of the catcher position,” Ceriani said.

Learn more about the PRO 1000 system, including how organizations or individuals can order it, by clicking here.

We invite our readers to submit their civil comments on this topic. Email AZOpinions@iniusa.org.   Email Jason W. Brooks at jbrooks@iniusa.org.

Jason W. Brooks
News Editor | Chandler Independent

Jason W. Brooks joined Independent Newsmedia, Inc., USA, in July 2021 as an associate editor. After a year covering Buckeye, he has covered Chandler since the fall of 2022, in addition to assisting the Daily Independent throughout his time at INI.

Education: University of New Mexico, bachelor of arts in journalism and mass communication, print emphasis, English minor.

Random Fact: He and his siblings witnessed a Space Shuttle launch and landing in the same year in person, on opposite coasts.

Hobbies: Karaoke, bicycling and American Sign Language.

Community: He supports animal shelters.