Boise Preseason ID: Pitching Data Dive
February 27, 2025
On Sunday, February 23rd, the Prep Baseball Idaho staff hosted it's second of two preseason showcases with the Boise Preseason ID hosted at Northwest Nazarene University in Nampa, Idaho. The event featured roughly 35 prospects from the Boise area, which means our staff was able to get eyes and updated metrics/data on roughly 75 players within the State ahead of opening day between the two showcases.
The event included players in the 2025 - 2028 classes with all players running through a full workout alongside our tech partners TrackMan, Blast Motion, VALD Performance, Vizual Edge and Physical/Athletic Testing. Preseason ID showcases allow players a chance to showcase their offseason gains ahead of the high school season, while also giving their profiles a complete revamp. Attending Preseason ID showcases also makes players eligible for marquee Prep Baseball events such as the Future Games, Senior Future Games, Junior Future Games, West Coast Games and the Idaho State Games.
Earlier this week we began our post-event coverage within our Quick Hits and Statistical Analysis. Today, we'll continue our post-event coverage within this Pitching Data Dive article as we bring you the top TrackMan pitching data collected during the bullpen portion of the event.
For complete event results, click here.
To view Class of 2025 Commitment Board, click here.
FASTBALL
MAX VELOCITY (MPH)
Max Fastball Velocity: This metric calculates the speed of the pitch as it’s released from the pitcher’s hand.
SPIN RATE (AVG)
Spin Rate: This metric calculates the rate of spin on the baseball as it leaves the pitcher’s hand, measured in revolutions per minute (rpm). Historical data shows that high-spin fastballs lessen the impact of gravity, allowing for more ‘rise’ (or less fall, in other words) as it carries through the zone. Low-spin fastballs typically indicate the pitch has greater horizontal action, often making it tougher to square up, but generally easier to make contact with, leading to more ground balls, while high-spin fastballs show a correlation with swings and misses.
INDUCED VERTICAL BREAK (AVG.)
Induced Vertical Break: Used in short form as "IVB," this metric is most important on fastballs for creating rise and on curveballs for creating depth – it can also have some use when measuring sliders and cutters as well. Sliders tend to be closer to zero inches while cutters are generally between 5 and 15 inches. Usually fastballs and curveballs with large IVB have higher spin efficiencies as well. Sliders generally have very little (closer to zero) IVB and very low spin efficiency. You could also categorize IVB into spin rate as this is part of the “useful movement” you’re looking for. IVB is also a huge part of the vertical approach angle.
HORIZONTAL MOVEMENT (AVG.)
Horizontal Break: Outlined on TrackMan’s own website: “... horizontal movement is measured in inches between where the pitch actually crosses the front of home plate side-wise, and where it would have crossed home plate side-wise if had it traveled in a perfectly straight line from release. A positive number means the break was to the right from the pitcher’s perspective, while a negative number means the break was to the left from the pitcher’s perspective.”