Bat speed is a hitting metric measured in MPH that describes the speed of the bat as you swing it through the zone.
Hitting is a powerful, explosive movement that involves a transfer of energy from your body to the bat, and ultimately from bat to the ball. This energy is what causes your bat to accelerate as you swing until ball impact, which is what we measure as bat speed.
The average Bat Speed among MLB players is roughly 75 MPH, with some of the most elite power hitters in the game peaking at 85mph.
Bat Speed has strong correlations with exit velocity and is one of the main determinants of how fast the ball may travel off the bat. Therefore, Bat Speed is an important metric to identify and understand if your goal is to hit the ball as hard as possible.
Measurement
As mentioned, Bat Speed is reported in MPH and is directly measured through technology such as a bat sensor. Motion capture technology can also be used, which utilizes reflective markers placed on the bat to measure the bat’s position and ultimately, its speed.
The factors that have the greatest impact on Bat Speed are an individual’s strength and the efficiency of the kinematic sequence of their swing. While we know which hitters might be the strongest, “swing efficiency” describes how well energy generated is transferred from the body to the bat.
Having improper sequencing or wasted movement can reduce a hitter’s ability to maximize the efficiency of their swing, and be a factor in why they may not be capitalizing on a higher Bat Speed.
Applications
In Major League Baseball, players have less than 0.4 seconds to react to pitches and decide to swing. While that is already a small-time frame, bat speed is a factor that plays a role as it pertains to swing decisions. Hitters with above-average bat speed create a larger margin for error because they can potentially react to pitches later and make solid contact.
Summary
Hitting is one of the hardest things to do in professional sports. To make contact with a 95+ mph pitch in only 0.4 seconds, hitters need every edge they can get in order to play at their peak performance.
When we analyze a hitter’s swing, Bat Speed is one of the most important metrics because it can help us quantify the potential for in-game power and the ability to hit elite pitching.
Related Links
https://medium.com/@smithryan/bat-speed-development-8a1a7fed2b60
https://www.drivelinebaseball.com/2019/05/debunking-bat-speed-myths/
https://blastmotion.com/blog/baseball-swing-speed/#gref
https://www.efastball.com/hitting/average-bat-speed-exit-speed-by-age-group/
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