Mark Anderson
Posts: 12725
Joined: 9/1/2007
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quote:
ORIGINAL: Todd M
I remember arguing with JT2 (Pete C/whoever was posting with that user name) about a hitter being able to "pick up the seams". I always thought it was silly. I asked AI.
It is one of those facts that feels like it violates the laws of physics until you realize the human brain is essentially a biological supercomputer. You aren't just "looking" at the ball; you are performing predictive modeling.
The secret is that the batter isn't making a conscious, verbal decision like, "Oh, look, a slider! I shall now adjust my hands." If they did that, they’d strike out every time. Instead, it's a process of Non-Conscious Integration.
The "Software" of a Hitter
The brain uses a shortcut called Smooth Pursuit and Saccadic Eye Movement.
The Database: An MLB player has seen hundreds of thousands of pitches. Their brain has a "library" of what a 94 mph fastball looks like versus an 84 mph curveball.
The Trigger: The moment the ball leaves the pitcher's hand, the brain compares the visual "blur" and "flicker" of the seams against that library.
The "Auto-Pilot": If the pattern matches "Slider," the brain sends a signal to the muscles to adjust the bat path before the consciousness even realizes what happened.
I remember when I played HS baseball.
We would put different colored dots on the balls. We would just watch a pitch come in and try to say the color.
Granted, these were probably 60 MPH pitches we were watching.
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