White Sox Minor League Big Data Developments ?

[CaliSoxFanViaSWside]

First of all I'd like to state I am pretty ignorant on this subject and only in the past year or so have I become interested in it.

Travis Sawchik wrote Big Data Baseball and the MVP Machine and is an expert on how MLB teams use big data, technology, biomechanics etc. to improve the system from top to bottom.

Does anyone here have much info on how , who or what the Sox have done in this regard ? I know in the past couple of years they have placed more emphasis on it .

I always thought an upgrade in these areas should have gone hand in hand with the rebuild since Big Data was out in 2015 and although I haven't read it used Houston as an example for modern baseball tech.

I am hearing from Sawchik the Orioles have used some of the pioneers from Houston to upgrade their data tech.  He brings up that the 2020 lost season may have developed a gulf from those teams who used that season productively for their minor leaguers and those who did not. His latest writings on this are on the Score.

https://www.thescore.com/mlb/news/2178631/after-a-lost-season-some-minor-league-systems-have-vaulted-ahead-of-others

I know I am asking for a lot of info and I would appreciate any long involved post for an honest opinion of the state of the Sox tech side of things.

This would include the dates the Sox really started taking data seriously ,hirings from different organizations, equipment and data available to all in the system without coaches being involved so the more studious prospects can do research on their own on things such as different grips for pitchers  and how that is handled for those players from foreign countries whose primary language isn't English. Thank you.

Edit: It would also be helpful do know anyone besides Sawchik who writes about these things that I can follow on twitter.

Edited July 20, 2021 by CaliSoxFanViaSWside

[bmags]

I'm not sure there is an easy answer to this. Getz has clearly modernized player development and kept up with the technology that flooded that field in the last 5 years. All teams have though and I don't know that it's ahead or behind anyone.

He hired Ben Hansen as a senior biomechanical engineer, and he was credited with finding velo for McClure and Pilkington. He has since left. But the thing is he came from Motus Global which he helped found and was a company that created wearables, which the sox were a client. So it isn't easy to just add up the number of analysis or sciencey titles in the sox F.O., they may just outsource more than others and that's not necessarily bad.

Katz came from SF which had been great at "using data" in their pitching staff success.

They hired Ryan Johansen from Johansen Baseball who uses blast motion and other monitors for hitters and he is the sox assistant hitting coordinator and integrates that stuff to all of the instructors. 

Jake Burger was reported a darling of the sox because of the trackman data available on him at Mo. State and I believe there was similar info on sheets since WF had it but that's fuzzy.

You have this year's 5th round pick who was put on the map due to great spin rates on his slurve.

So sox are clearly integrating all of these known techniques, but also aren't just a team that has a model spit out their draft picks. I don't know that there is a baseball team other than the rockies that would be considered "behind the times" now. 

[southsider2k5]

I don't think you will get a clear answer to this, just because the nature of big data is proprietary and non-public.  I think there are definitely points where the Sox usage of data spills out into the public domain, such as a couple of their draft picks getting their scouting data talked about during the course of the draft.  If they are getting that deep into the woods in scouting, I have no doubt they are getting WAY deeper internally.