pitching
Latest
Wearable Coach prototype promises to help you find the perfect pitch
A gadget that helps with your running or cycling is one thing, but can a device also make you a better pitcher? Designer Sebastiaan Pijnappel thought so, and the so-called "Wearable Coach" prototype is his solution. The idea is a simple but ingenious one; the device plays musical notes that correspond to certain movements, strike just the right ones and you know you've gotten in the zone. What's more, while the device has only been tested with pitchers so far (with some successful results), it's not hard to see how it could also be applied to a whole range of other sports and activities. Head on past the break for a video. Update: Unlike Major League, this particular video is no longer available.
Pro wrestler pitches first known perfect MLB 2K11 game, wins nothing
After the break, you can watch the last three outs of a perfect game pitched in MLB 2K11 by a gamer named Michael Manna, who also happens to be known as professional wrestler Stevie Richards. Manna posted the video on YouTube hoping to win 2K Sports' $1 million perfect game contest, but he's been thwarted by the rules. Rather than having the contest go live on release day, as it did last year, this year's contest doesn't actually start until April 1, which means Manna's win doesn't actually count. Too bad for Manna -- that's a pretty harsh chair to the back. But at least he knows he has the chops, so when the contest does kick off later this year, he can go up to the mound and try again. [Thanks, Darrenn!]
TUAW First Look: Flick Baseball Pro
Freeverse has released the latest title in their Flick Sports series, and Flick Baseball Pro is now out on the App Store for $2.99. We got a quick hands-on with the game right after release, and while it's a pretty good arcade-style baseball simulation, there are a few quirks and missing features that might make you want to go for a more official baseball app. Still, just like the other titles in the Flick Sports series, Flick Baseball Pro exudes polish and really takes advantage of Freeverse's growing familiarity with the iPhone and iPod touch hardware. Read on for an in-depth first look at the game.
Wade McGilberry luckiest (and richest) MLB 2K10 player ever
When 24-year-old Wade McGilberry of Semmes, Alabama was less than 24 years old, his friends and loved ones probably gave him a hard time about his penchant for virtual baseball. "Wade," they would say, "why don't you go play real baseball? Heck, with a name like 'Wade McGilberry,' you're already well on your way to the MLB Hall of Fame." Little do they know, Wade wasn't just wasting his time. He was training. On the very first day of the MLB 2K10 Perfect Game Competition, McGilberry managed to take down 27 in-game hitters without letting one of them place their cleated toe upon first base. For this accomplishment, McGilberry won the competition and its $1,000,000 prize, reaffirming his decision to skip all of his high school formal dances to put a few more hours into Ken Griffey, Jr.'s Slugfest. A wise decision indeed, sir.
Japanese researchers develop baseball playing robots, Mark Buehrle reportedly unimpressed
Professor Masatoshi Ishikawa at the University of Tokyo has developed two baseball-playing robots -- one that pitches, and one that hits. The three-fingered pitching bot throws a plastic foam ball at about twenty-five miles per hour, and lands ninety percent of its pitches in the strike zone, while the batting bot has a sensor which determines whether the pitches are balls or strikes, and hits balls in the strike zone with nearly one hundred percent accuracy. They are currently working on increasing the pitcher to about ninety-three miles an hour. The robots don't have any human stylings -- though, personally, we do detect a hint of Terminator.
