When people analyze and evaluate the history of sports from a technology aspect, the game has tremendously been influenced where gathering content is attainable expeditiously with the click of a mouse. The ability to gather information so rapidly in today’s sports market is something that was unheard of about 15-20 years ago. Furthermore, technology just doesn’t influence sports; it has an impact on everything in society. For example, music has been recorded for over centuries when technology was an afterthought.
There were no computers, digital mixing systems or the latest technological equipment available to past musicians during the 1920’s or 1930’s. In addition, the quality of movies that were produced from the beginning of the 20th Century until today has drastically evolved with graphics and special effects enhancements. Lastly, I remember the era when people had beepers and would use a pay phone or go back upstairs to return the page received. Looking no further than our own pockets, the majority of people today are cell phone subscribers.
These are some examples on how technology influences society and now I’m going to elaborate on how technology influence is significant in sports. Technology in Baseball Major League Baseball has been perhaps the sport most resistant to technological advancement over the years, but even baseball purists can’t deny that there have been significant strides made in improving the game from all angles. Some of the top technological advancements in baseball are: Instant Replay, The K Zone, Tommy John Surgery, The Glove, and Sabermetrics.
There was no such thing as instant replay in Major League Baseball until the year 2008. Prior to instant replay existing, games have been affected where teams lost games due to bad calls. For example, the St. Louis Cardinals were up 3 games to 2 versus the Kansas City Royals in game 6 of the 1985 World Series. The Cardinals were leading 1-0 in the bottom of the ninth inning when Kansas City batter Jorge Orta hit a ground ball to Cardinals first baseman Jack Clark. Clark fielded the baseball and tossed it to pitcher Todd Worrell who raced to cover first base.
The umpire Donald Denkinger called Orta safe when television replay clearly showed the runner was out before he touched the bag. The Cardinals argued profusely but to no avail, there was no overturn on the call. Another incident that occurred in the playoffs was the Derek Jeter controversial homerun versus the Baltimore Orioles in game 1 of the 1996 American League Championship Series. Instant replay clearly showed that Jeffrey Maier interfered in the field of play by sticking his glove over the wall to catch the baseball. The Baltimore Orioles were furious that fan interference was not called which allowed the Yankees to tie the game.
If replay was available and utilized when these plays occurred, the umpires could have overturned the initial call with definitive evidence where the outcome might have been different for the losing team. The K Zone is a technology that was introduced by ESPN in 2001 for fan viewership with the concept of breaking down each pitch. It’s an onscreen graphic that shows each batter particular strike zone area. When the pitch is thrown, the speed and location at which the ball crosses the plate shows if the pitch was a strike or ball.
For instance, commentators who broadcasted games prior to the introduction of this content would basically commentate without breaking down each pitch. This technology is receiving mixed reviews where some fans have embraced it while other fans would prefer not seeing an onscreen graphic being displayed. Tommy John Surgery is a medical surgical procedure to repair damage to the ulnar collateral ligament (UCL), which is a ligament in the elbow. The injury is named after Tommy John who was a pitcher with Los Angeles Dodgers. Dr. Jobe, who was an orthopedic surgeon, erformed the surgery in 1974 and said John’s chance of resuming his baseball career, was at one percent. John defied the odds and pitched 14 years after the surgery. Prior to the 1974 season, this was a career ending injury for pitchers. The injury usually occurs due to repetitious overuse on the arm where torque is involved with each pitch. For example, imagine pulling a rubbing band back and forth and releasing from the most resistant point, it will eventually get weaker where the rubber band would snap. When something is strained, the inevitable is it will breakdown from wear and tear.
Since the inception of this medical breakthrough, hundreds of surgeries have been performed where pitchers were able to extend their careers, due to Dr Jobe medical advancement of the procedure. The evolution of the glove has come a long way since the beginning of baseball. The game was originally played without gloves back in the 1800’s. Since players were not wearing gloves, a lot of hand injuries where occurring during that era. In 1919, Rawlings which is a sports equipment company that manufactures baseball equipment created a glove that included webbing in between the thumb and index finger.
This was one of the first gloves that provided solid protection where players can field the ball and not worry about getting injured. As time continues to pass, gloves are being made for specific positions such as catcher, pitcher, infield, and outfield which are now an essential piece of equipment. Sabermetrics is a term coined by Bill James which is used to answer objective questions by analyzing data in new ways. There’s a stat call (WAR) Wins Above Replacement that attempts to breakdown how many wins a player contribute to their team.
Stats that is available on player performance can be evaluated thoroughly. Thanks to sabermetrics, there appears to be unlimited access to information that scouts, managers, and players can utilize for strategic purposes. Technology in Basketball The game of basketball was invented in 1891 by Dr. James Naismith in Springfield, Massachusetts. The sport has evolved tremendously since its inception where Dr. Naismith incorporated a soccer ball that players had to throw into a peach basket nailed high on a wall. Whenever a basket was made, the team would get credited for scoring a goal.
After the basket was scored, someone would have to climb up the ladder each time to remove the ball since there was no opening through the bottom of the basket. Furthermore, dribbling was not allowed and the person who possessed the ball had to be stationary when making a pass. These early rules were regulated to minimize the risk of players getting injured. Basketball has transcended from its early days until today where the game is now played where dribbling is allowed and the goal is an apparatus with a cylinder rim where players are credited points for making a basket.
In addition, new technological innovations are being implemented throughout NBA arenas to gather data on players. The NBA is installing six cameras in each arena called the SportVU which is software that tracks the movements of every player on the court and the basketball per 25 seconds. Information gathered provides plenty of statistics based on speed, distance, player separation, and ball possession. For instance, each player would be analyzed by how fast they move, how far they traveled during a game, how many touches of the ball they had, and how many passes they threw to name a few stats.
The actual stats versus the perceived stats display how much an impact players can have within a game. For example, a player on defense will contest shots where they’re not credited with blocking shots but data gatherers will analyze the whole game to see how many shots were altered in comparison to how many shots were wide open. Coaches and General Managers can analyze and evaluate their team rosters to enhance performance. Technology in Football The history of football has evolved tremendously where equipment was not adequate during the early stages of the league.
The advancement of technology has allowed the NFL to evaluate and improve officiating and protect players. The NFL has a command center where they can monitor games to evaluate officials so the correct calls are made. Within the command center, there’s an instant replay system and wireless communications that is enabled for coaches, players, and officials to utilize during the game. Furthermore, content can be retrieved instantaneously on tablets during the game for coaches to dissect their opponent’s tendencies by trying to best their competition.
For example, coaches didn’t have immediate access to analyze plays when the content had to be printed out in black and white paper which is time consuming during a live game. The ability to gather information rapidly and efficiently can be the difference between winning and losing. In addition, the NFL has done a better job of protecting their players with advanced equipment. When players are injured and diagnosed with concussions; they are required to be evaluated thoroughly before receiving medical clearance to play.
Certified trainers have access to electronic medical records and video to offer better treatment for players. This is vital to ensure the safety of all players so nobody is putting themselves at more risk of getting seriously hurt after the initial injury. Another technology the NFL implemented is instant replay where coaches are allowed two challenges per game to question calls on the field they’re not in agreement with. When coaches make challenges, the referees have 90 seconds to review the play in question where they consult with officiating experts from Game Day Central to reach a confirmation.
The instant replay system has advanced tremendously in comparison to the 1970’s where VHS tapes was the equipment used during game broadcasts when the technology is limited. The impact of instant replay is a system looking for the latest innovation to continue enhancing the game. Technology in Hockey The NHL has been around for almost 100 years but they’re lagging behind the other three major sports in technology. The earliest known technology innovation in hockey was the glow puck during the 1996 All Star game. The glow puck received a lot of negative review where viewers said the glow was blurry which made visualization uneasy on the eyes.
Although the NHL initial technological concept didn’t work back then, the idea this time is to add chips inside the pucks and players jersey where quantitative data can be measure such as puck and skating speed, puck trajectory, puck and player location, and ice time. The concept is to create a database that will collect on ice data so information can be broken-down where fans can have a better understanding of the content. Conclusion When analyzing and evaluating the influence of technology within the four major sports, the impact is tremendous where each sport has evolved since their inception.
Technology has come a long way where it affects sports management where every piece of data is quantified and analyzed to the final minute. Thanks to technology, life has been made easier where unlimited resources and information is available with the click of the mouse. This was unheard of 20 to 30 years ago, when there was no internet or cell phones, and film being developed took days to process. Technology will continue to revolutionize sports where organizations are looking for the latest innovations want to be able to compete with minimal deficiencies.