Pop Time and the speed of sound

....or there be a standard place to stand when comparing.

Assuming your calculations are correct, .115 sec is negligible.  I wouldn't worry about it.  

Golfman25 posted:

Assuming your calculations are correct, .115 sec is negligible.  I wouldn't worry about it.  

I disagree. A 2.0 vs 1.88 is significant in the recruiting world.

(corrected the math)

Pop times during workouts should have a timer stationed close to the pitcher.  During games or located in the stands, pop times require vision more than sound. The catch at 2B isn't always a loud one. And from the stands you may not hear it at all.  Even if you do hear it, the sound will be later than the actual catch.

Hey guys, I'm new here but figured I'd throw my 2 scents in anyway. I believe the only true way to measure pop time correctly is with software that includes super slow motion technology. 2 tenths of a second is huge in the recruiting world. Have you ever tried to start and stop a watch in under 2 tenths of a second? It's almost impossible to make your thumb twitch that fast. This is why I can time a throw at 2.2 and daddy times the same throw at 1.9.

If you have worked a stop watch a lot, you know that there is a element of anticipation. going by sounds will make you late for the game. A few weeks ago I saw many scouts disagreeing with what a lazer timed event was displaying because they trusted their instincts and not modern equipment.

Really. Tenths is "significant" in the recruiting world.  Then they better calibrate their tests, stop watches, and such.  As Was pointed out the measurements are "suspect."  I get that recruiters want to see sub 2.0 pop times.  But I would suspect that they would verify on their own, their own way.  And take a number of readings which can account for variation.  While you certainly need to be in a range,  I just don't thimk that the lowest pop time gets the best offer.  I certainly could be wrong.  

Those that scout for a living tend to get very good with a stop watch.  They also tend to play it safe and not anticipate.  H to 1B times would be an example, most scouts are taught to start the watch as soon as they determine the bat is being swung.  This usually puts it close to exact contact.  Those that wait for contact sound or to see contact always have lower times, but they are less correct. Also it is easy to anticipate when stopping the watch. That is why so often scout times are slower than dads times.

We use technology for most things like (laser) these days.  It's just more consistent.

If you dont anticipate the action that is getting ready to happen you will be late, thats why dads that dont know what they are doing always have outstanding times for their kids. Scouts trust their watch and maybe a few others around them that they know.

I have always wanted to have a way to take the human stopwatch out of poptime. Dad's watch is always fast by a bunch, and a tenth of a second is huge. Heck if you are a 1.95 and .05 is huge. I wanted for someone to come up with something that would use vibration sensors on the catchers glove and the second basemen glove. With all of the bluetooth devises out there it shouldn't that hard. Like you said with the laser timing of the 60 yard.. it has taken the human error out of it.

Golfman25 posted:

I just don't thimk that the lowest pop time gets the best offer.  I certainly could be wrong.  

I don't think the lowest pop time gets the best offer either. PGStaff answered my curiosity on this one. The guys who know what they're doing, and who make decisions based on these numbers, have taken the speed of sound into account. And from what I've seen, they aren't off by 10ths of a second (and when they are, they know it).  But I do think that college coaches look at a catcher's PG or PBR profile, and they do expect the number to be measured using a consistent method.

toolsofignorance posted:

I wanted for someone to come up with something that would use vibration sensors on the catchers glove and the second basemen glove. With all of the bluetooth devises out there it shouldn't that hard. Like you said with the laser timing of the 60 yard.. it has taken the human error out of it.

This is what got me thinking about the subject in the first place. Maybe it could be done with wireless microphones at home and 2B, but as PGStaff says, you don't always get a good pop at 2B.

I may be wrong, but skills like that which have a great bearing on the selection process are like any other stat for a player. They only get the player on the radar. When push comes to shove and the final selection depends on that particular stat, it will be tested by the interested team however they test such things. IOW, if the pop time is all that separates two catchers, both will be timed by the same guy in the same manner, so worrying about a few hundredths of a second prior to that isn’t something that’s worth a lot of time and angst.

Some similar variations on HTF times. Though the crack of a bat is more easily heard from first base, (unlike hearing catcher's pop) where a good eye can watch impact to bag.

Funny, as far as the 60 goes, most of the schools and camps my son went to this past fall, I trusted the coaches with the watch in their hands vs the laser timed events. A lot of players have learned to stay a step behind the line when the timing light gets tripped when they pass it. That way, they have a full step into their run before the clock starts. Kids learn to cheat in all the areas, if they go to enough of these camps. When Im watching a catcher in a game that we are playing (vol assit. high school coach) or if Im lucky enough to go to a game before, I run a watch on the catcher in between innings, AND I only base my assumptions on who can run on him in our game, by their pop time in a game situation. Everyone can shave tenths in non game situations, which is huge. The true test is what they do in a game. Good discussion. 

The bigger error is the clock. Human reaction time is about .25 seconds or so.

Dominik85 posted:

The bigger error is the clock. Human reaction time is about .25 seconds or so.

 Not if you run a stop watch on a regular basis. Most dads yes but not full time coaches and scouts. You might as well throw your watch away if you are off by .25

How many of you watch the catcher throw down when you time them and how many of you look away or close your eyes? I've seen scouts do both.