Los Angeles Times - 23.08.2019

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BASEBALL

World Series after back-to-
back National League pen-
nants, the technological toy
has become a new tactic for
improvement.
“It just adds to the famil-
iarity [at the plate],” man-
ager Dave Roberts said. “It’s
not really taking the swing,
it’s just more seeing where
the ball comes out of, the
flight, the lane the ball is get-
ting to home plate.”
VR batting practice isn’t
universally accepted, nor
uniformly utilized in the
Dodgers clubhouse.
Some players, such as
Corey Seager and A.J. Pol-
lock, have integrated it into
their preparation regimen.
Others decline to use it alto-
gether. Most fall somewhere
in the middle, keen to see
specific pitchers but hesi-
tant to become completely
reliant on the cutting-edge
system.
“There’s never a big line
to get in there,” Beaty said.
“But I think a lot of guys like
it.”
Before facing Synder-
gaard for the first time,
Beaty slipped on the bulky
headgear — which is housed
in its own 12-by-15 foot space
adjacent to the Dodgers’
weight room and can be
packed up and taken on the
road — and previewed the 6-
foot-6 right-hander’s over-
powering arsenal.
The exercise set Beaty up
for success in the game. He
pulled the first pitch he saw,

an up-and-in 100-mph fast-

ball, down the right-field

line for an RBI double. In his

second at-bat, he turned an-

other high four-seamer into

a single.

“Just seeing how his

heater moved, obviously

that was really hard,” Beaty

said. “Just picking it up, see-

ing it [in the VR session be-

forehand], it was pretty ac-

curate.”

This was the vision Chris

O’Dowd, a former minor

league catcher, had in mind

when he co-founded Win Re-

ality with his father, Dan,

the former general manager

of the Colorado Rockies who

now is a studio analyst for

MLB Network.

They recognized a mar-

ket inefficiency: that for all

the “time and effort put into

the swing, currently it’s

really difficult to practice

[a hitting] approach before

a game,” Chris O’Dowd

said.

Their VR batting prac-

tice system was designed to

fill that vacuum. It com-

bines data-driven models,

actual video and computer-

generated images to create a

near-lifelike simulation in-

side the goggles.

“The idea that [hitters]

can get 10 at-bats against us

before they get in the box for

the day feels like an advan-

tage for them,” Dodgers

pitcher Ross Stripling said

with a wry smile. “It looks

like a video game — but a

really good video game.”

For all its potential, the

system is largely a supple-

mentary tool. But even the

occasional five-minute VR

session, O’Dowd believes,

could have positive effects at

the plate. A batter might

more easily recognize a pitch

sailing out of the zone, better

square up something over

the plate, or simply feel more

comfortable facing an unfa-

miliar foe.

“I don’t think there’s a

right way, an optimized way”

to use it, O’Dowd said. “It’s

more about: What is the spe-

cific player looking to take

away from the experience?”

In the months since the

system was installed in the

Dodgers’ clubhouse, players

have been trying to figure

that out.

Justin Turner used the

goggles four times to pre-

pare for different pitchers

but went hitless on each oc-

casion. Alex Verdugo and

Joc Pederson occasionally

use the VR systembut re-

main partial to traditional

video study. Russell Martin

recognizes its potential, but

thinks the visuals could be

better.

“I like the fact that it can

help with your timing and

give you a little bit of feed-

back on what the pitcher’s

pitches are doing,” Martin

said. But “you’re not seeing a

real baseball. It’s like a dot.

I’d really like to see the

seams and the rotation of

the ball.”

Nonetheless, some play-

ers experience benefitsfrom

repeated use. Seager fre-

quented the VR room during

his near-month-long stint

on the injured list earlier this

season to keep his instincts

and timing sharp. Pollock

has also spent extended

time in the virtual world,

helping him overcome his

own early injuries and spark

his second-half hot streak.

“It’s a juiced way to watch

a pitcher,” Pollock said. “It

gives you a different per-

spective, to get in there and

figure a couple things out

that you might have not real-

ized before. Because now,

you’re getting more realistic

reps.”

That’s validation enough

for the Dodgers. The tech-

nology is new, and to many

players foreign. It’s a long

way from reinventing the

game. But by marrying base-

ball’s data revolution with

the latest technological in-

novations, VR batting prac-

tice has already established

its short-term influence. At

the very least, it might be

one more way for the Dod-

gers to tilt their World Series

fortunes.

“Getting timing down,

seeing the ball coming at

you,” Beaty said. “I don’t

think it can hurt.”

Dodgers using VR headsets

to augment batting practice

[V irtual reality,from D1]

MATT BEATY, shown hitting an RBI single at Dodger Stadium in July, is among

the Dodgers hitters who have embraced the VR technology by Win Reality.

Luis SincoLos Angeles Times

plate. Tellez reacted as if he

knew it was coming, tucking

his hands in to swat it into

the right-field pavilion.

Jansen unloaded obscen-

ities as Tellez trotted around

the bases. It was Jansen’s

sixth blown save in 32 oppor-

tunities and bloated his

earned-run average to 3.70.

“It’s a transition,” Rob-

erts said. “The more conver-

sations we have, I think he’s

understanding that you can

still be just as effective as you

have been in the past.”

After Wednesday’s game,

after Muncy bailed him out

with a walk-off home run,

Jansen was in Roberts’ office

for another conversation.

They had one last week

about Jansen’s previously

nant in a weak National
League and topple an elite
American League team to
win the World Series with 31-
year-old Kenley Jansen as
their closer?
That question can’t be
answered until October. But
this weekend could provide
an approximation when the
New York Yankees, owners
of the second-best record in
baseball, descend on L.A. for
amarquee three-game se-
ries the entire industry will
shift its focus to. It could be a
World Series preview. It will
be a chance for Jansen and
the Dodgers to test them-
selves against a fellow behe-
moth.
Before that, the Dodgers
(85-44) spent Thursday
night concocting their 12th
walk-off win over a less for-
midable AL East opponent
after an eight-inning offen-
sive slumber.
The rally began with Max
Muncy working a leadoff
walk. Two batters later,
Cody Bellinger hit a one-out
double to put the Dodgers’
first two runners in scoring
position since the third in-
ning. Corey Seager followed
with another double to score
both runners before Enrique
Hernandez, two days after
coming off a three-week stint
on the injured list, floated a
line drive to center field to
score Seager and conclude
his bobblehead night with
his first career walk-off hit.
“I was trying to stay
short, trying not to do too
much,” Hernandez said.
Kenta Maeda’s single in
the third was the Dodgers’
only hit of the night until the
ninth. On the mound, the
right-hander was strong
over six innings. He limited
the Blue Jays to two runs on
four hits and a walk while
striking out nine. The Blue
Jays (52-78) scored in the
second inning on Derek
Fisher’s RBI groundout and
in the sixth when 20-year-old
Vladimir Guerrero Jr. hit a
first-pitch curveball for his
15th home run.
That was it for Toronto
against Maeda. But Jacob
Waguespack, in his seventh
career start, was better. The
right-hander held the Dod-
gers to Maeda’s hit, one
walk, and a hit batter in sev-
en scoreless innings. The
Dodgers were silenced until
they brewed more ninth-in-
ning dramatics to improve
to 51-16 at home, increase
their division lead to 20^1 ⁄ 2
games, and reduce their
magic number to 14.
“We’ve been doing it all
year,” Bellinger said.
The win developed with-
out Jansen emerging from
the bullpen. The right-
hander’s next appearance
will come sometime this
weekend against the Yan-
kees, the next challenge in a

season that has become

about adjusting to a thorny

reality in preparation for Oc-

tober.

After successfully relying

on his cutter so much to

dominate for so long,

Jansen, recognizing the

pitch is not as lethal any-

more, has begun acquiesc-

ing to the Dodgers’ brass,

mixing his pitch selection

and sequencing to become

more unpredictable. The

evolution started with

throwing sliders more fre-

quently at the beginning of

the campaign. Over the last

month, the repertoire has in-

cluded more four-seam fast-

balls.

The evolution is a sign of

Jansen coming to a realiza-

tion and it has provided

challenges. It requires better

preparation, more thinking

and improved execution.

Manager Dave Roberts

noted it’s similar to the

modifications Clayton Ker-

shaw, another 31-year-old

pitcher coming to terms

with new limitations, has ef-

fectively implemented this

season. Roberts, however,

indicated Jansen has been

more reluctant to expand.

“No, I don’t think so,”

Roberts said when asked if

Kershaw’s success has left

Jansen more open to accept

changes. “It should but I

don’t think that’s landed

with him.”

Jansen said he temporar-

ily forgot about his new blue-

print Wednesday. He

started the outing by strik-

ing out Randal Grichuk on

three cutters. It was a brief

flashback to vintage Jansen.

He explained the moment

duped him.

“Sometimes I get myself

in trouble because when I

[blow by] hitters like that,

three pitches, [it’s] like, ‘Ah

[shoot], I got it today. Let’s

go,” Jansen said.

Tellez, a left-handed bat-

ter, was next. Jansen threw

him three consecutive cut-

ters to begin the at-bat, fall-

ing behind 2-0 along the way,

before offering a four-seam

fastball. A cutter, four-seam

fastballand cutter followed.

The eighth pitch of the clash

was a 3-2 cutter in off the

light workload and decided

he would be used at least

once per series, even if it

meant appearances in non-

save situations.

The discussion was less

about baseball. Jansen said

he used the time to vent.

Anger, he explained, has

consumed him too often this

season, one that has in-

cluded more failure than

he’s accustomed to. He said

he wants to have fun and love

the game again regardless of

the results.

“They booed me last

night, that’s fine, boo me,”

Jansen said. “At the end of

the day, I’m here trying to

help the team win a champi-

onship and I’m going to

make them cheer.”

[D odgers, from D1]

Dodgers’ concern over Jansen grows

THE DODGERS’Enrique Hernandez begins the party after his RBI single in the bottom of the ninth produced team’s 12th walk-off win.

Harry HowGetty Images