Statcast bat tracking is available beginning with the 2024 season.
Since different parts of a bat can move at different speeds, an individual swing’s speed is measured at
the point six inches from the head of the bat, what is popularly called “the sweet-spot.”
The fastest 90% of a player's swings, plus any 60+ MPH swings resulting in an exit velocity of 90+ MPH, are deemed to be his 'competitive' swings. The average of these swings are his seasonal average. A “fast swing” is 75+ MPH.
Learn more here.
A swing’s squared-up rate compares how much exit velocity was attained to how much potential exit
velocity was possible based on bat speed and pitch speed. Learn more here.
A “blast” is a swing that squares up the ball and does so with a fast swing. Learn more
here.
Swing length tracks the sum distance traveled by the head of the bat in XYZ space from the start of
data until contact point. Learn more here.
A “sword,” popularized by Pitching
Ninja, is an expression of the art of forcing a batter to take an
uncomfortable, awkward swing.
Learn more here.
Why do these matter? Learn more about the context of selected metrics here.
