Using Video Analysis for Strategy

Video analysis can be used to evaluate sports performance and technique. We discuss many of the biomechanics aspects and tools used to do performance assessments right here on this website. Video analysis however can also be used to provide detailed game strategy and analysis of on field play.

We see these game strategy statistics all the time when we watch almost any sport on TV. How many shots did Kobe Bryant take and make. What percentage of first serves did Roger Federer get in and how many resulted in winning points. These statistics are fun for the viewer, but they are essential to the coach and player in refining their strategy.

Let's take an example from basketball, as we are currently watching the NBA playoffs. Any team coming up against the Orlando Magic this year will need to find a way to get past Dwight Howard, who was once again named defensive player of the year. The teams employ a coach or video analysts to watch every play that Howard makes. Every time he blocks a shot or an opponent manages to beat him and score. Using this information they can determine how best to play against him.

Below is video of some of Howard's best blocks of last season. Notice how often Dwight is alone and far away from an opposition player as he gets into position for the block. This may seem necessary in order to make the block, or as the Orlando Magic play a zone defense he may not have a specific man defensive assignment. Coaches or video analysts though would look at this video and may be able to create plays that take advantage of his position on the floor.

Of course a team also needs to play to its strength and similar video analysis of the coaches own team can be used to determine how they may take advantage of any opposition mistakes, close any gaps or change any patterns that may be obvious and strategies the best approach to take on an upcoming game or player.

To do Video Analysis of this sort properly you need to have some basic equipment.

• You will definitely need a video camera and to set that camera up so that you can see the whole game. This can be difficult in sports with large fields such as soccer or rugby.
• For larger fields you can use 2 video cameras, with each one focused on, one half of the field.
• A great advantage in well televised sports is that much of the video footage already exists. A recorded video of an NBA game will allow you to track most of the players on the court for most of the game.
• Some video analysis software is also recommended. This software can be the same as the software that you use for performance and technique analysis, but the software must allow you to tag events. Tagging events such as the first serve will allow you to go back and look at all the first serves in one place. This will enable some statistical analysis of the results of the serve and if you have software that allows it you can also analyze each serve for technique and performance.

The website http://www.thevideoanalyst.com/ has some great information on video analysis of this type and everything that you may need.

When working with a team or player combining this type of video analysis with biomechanics and technique analysis will provide excellent resources for performance improvements wherever they are needed.

Disguising your Baseball Pitch Like CC Sabathia

The Major League Baseball post season is nearing an end. The League Championship series are in full swing with two great match ups. The Los Angeles Dodgers are taking on the Philadelphia Phillies and the Los Angeles Angels have the formidable task of attempting to overcome the New York Yankees.

Baseball particularly in the post season is dominated by the pitching. Great batters are successful only around 30% of the times they come up to bat but great pitchers on the other hand can dominate and beat the batter 80% of the time. A great pitcher needs to be able to throw a variety of balls, so that he can beat any batter and can throw to the batters weakness.

• There are 3 pitch varieties, the fastball, breaking ball (slider or curve ball) and the change up.
• The pitcher must then be able to throw each of the 3 pitches listed above to hit 4 different targets: high inside and outside and low inside and outside.
• The pitcher also needs to understand the batter he is up against, his strengths and weaknesses. Is he left or right handed? Does he have an open or closed batting stance?What did the batter do on his previous at bat?
• Finally the pitcher also needs to throw pitches according to the pitch count. This is often called pitch strategy. The pitch strategy will change as the number of strikes and or balls change. For a detailed description of pitch strategy have a look at this article by Tom House.

In the first game of the American League Championship final between the Angels and Yankees , we watched CC Sabathia of the Yankees put in an excellent display of pitching. He pitched to all corners of the plate and varied his pitches with the pitch count and player.

Below is some video of Sabathia pitching strikes to the Oakland A's in August this year. Watch for the variety of his pitches, fastballs, breaking balls and change ups, as well as the numerous targets he hits, inside and outside, high and low, to both right and left handed batters.

Sabathia is one of the best in the MLB this year and his ability to pitch a variety of pitches is one of the main reasons for this.

However it is also important when throwing these different pitches that the player is able to disguise the type of pitch he is going to throw. If the pitch is well disguised it gives the batter less time to react to the pitch and reduces their chances of getting a hit.

Lets look at the video of Sabathia again. Notice that his action is always the same for every pitch, whether it is a fastball or a slider, whether he throws high or low. Focus on Sabathia only as you watch the video.

• Sabathia covers the ball with his glove at the start of every pitch.
• He rotates his shoulders back the same amount each time. He also lifts his front knee to the same height on every pitch.
• He seems to stride forward to almost the same position on each pitch.
• His arm comes through at the same speed and height for all his pitches. Most of the pitches he throws in the video above are in the 83-84 mph range, but the 2 faster pitches 88 and 97 mph look very similar to the others.
• His follow through for all pitches also looks the same. His head remains looking up and forward.
• He even completes the routine after the pitch in the same way by pulling up his shirt sleeve.

We all know from our experience that the video above is not the best for analyzing Sabathia's technique or timing. The best footage would be from the batters perspective, but from the angle we have, it certainly looks like each pitch is very similar. If the batter is able to read the pitchers mechanics and guess at the pitch to be thrown, he will have that little bit more time to modify his swing and get a hit. By throwing different pitches using the same technique and timing, Sabathia is able to delay the batters decision to swing and therefore is able to beat them more often.

The best technique for throwing all types of pitches is the same, there should be no need to vary your technique to throw a different type of pitch. To throw a curve ball, slider or any other type of pitch the variation is in the grip and in the final position and snap of the wrist, not the pitching mechanics.

To pitch like CC Sabathia, concentrate on the pitching mechanics. Fool the batter by showing him or her the same mechanics on every pitch. We will follow up with a video analysis of good pitching mechanics soon. In the mean time enjoy the post season and World Series. Keep an eye out for Sabathia and see if you can spot any variations in his mechanics with each pitch.