As the Royals roll, this KC tech startup wants to develop its future pitchers
October 27, 2015 | Bobby Burch
A local startup hopes to cultivate the next Wade Davis or Yordano Ventura with the help of its pitching technology.
Precise Play’s Digital Pitch Analyzer
In early 2015, Kansas City-based Precise Play launched its digital pitch analyzer, which the company is selling to baseball academies, schools and private leagues.
Precise Play founder Victor Villarreal said that his machine has been a hit with young players — ages eight to 18 — who hope to improve their pitching skills.
“We can’t get kids off these machines,” Villarreal said. “I took it to a maker’s fair, and the kids were throwing into it and having a blast. Finally, their parents had to tell them that there were other people in line. … You can’t keep them off this thing.”
The six-foot, 300-pound machine uses laser light to track and locate a pitch. A digital display quickly reports back to a pitcher his speed, whether the throw was a strike or ball and its general location.
Painted a Royal blue, the Wi-Fi-enabled pitch analyzer also produces printable performance reports for pitchers to see their pattern. Soon the machine will send the report to a mobile app that’s now in development, which will allow for pitchers to create an online profile of their skills and progress.
“We developed a light curtain with this machine,” Villarreal said. “It has a triple layer light curtain and there are laser arrays that are disrupted by a passing ball and we can collect the data as it passes. We can detect its position on an x and y (axis) and a delta and z axis with a speed component to very accurately determine the speed of the ball.”
Villarreal is selling the laser light version of his product for $4,400 and a radar-based machine for $1,500.
An electrical engineer by training, Villarreal said he plans to capture data from the machines in hopes to create additional revenue opportunities for Precise Play. Eventually, Villarreal said he sees the potential for college scouts and recruiters to pay a subscription to learn more about prospects.
Founded in 2012, Precise Play now has eight people on staff.
Here’s a brief demonstration of the machine from Villarreal:
2015 Startups to Watch
stats here
Related Posts on Startland News
KCMO forms small biz task force for entrepreneurs; underinvested businesses a key focus
Editor’s note: KC BizCare, the small business office of Kansas City, Missouri, is a partner of Startland News. A new task force committed to giving space for Kansas City small business owners to share their voices — on issues ranging from major events like the NFL Draft to everyday concerns on permits and zoning —…
Rescue florists give new life to leftover flowers; nonprofit just needs 6-inch stems and someone to surprise
Impact is growing again for an initiative that sends recycled floral arrangements — flowers otherwise headed for the trash after events — to homebound Kansas City seniors. Volunteer-run Unexpected Blooms recently celebrated its sixth birthday, after being forced to take a pause when the pandemic stalled many large gatherings from which they sourced flowers, shared…
Poio’s chef-owner lets go of his popular KCK restaurant: ‘I’m still learning how to relax’
Carlos Mortera struggled with the idea of not working all hours of the waking day, he shared, explaining that this subconscious guilt is sometimes known as “immigrant shame.” “Being a first-generation [American], you see all the sacrifices your parents made to get you to this country. Because of their sacrifices, you feel like you should…
Chat GPT isn’t an AI superhero, founder says, but with the right context this new tech can save the day for businesses
An emerging Kansas City entrepreneur hopes to train businesses on how they can harness the power of Chat GPT to gain a competitive advantage, he said. Learning how to effectively utilize Chat GPT — an artificial intelligence chatbot developed by OpenAI and recently introduced into the market — can benefit all companies by streamlining operations…