Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) has announced a new partnership with 3D sensor and analytics company Blast Motion. The company will become the official swing sensor of AAU baseball, potentially opening the door for big data in youth sports.
AAU’s new partnership follows suit with with Major League Baseball, as the MLB announced Blast Motion as its official swing sensor technology last June.
Blast Motion’s sensor-based swing analysis system brings to life the metrics and mechanics that are the building blocks of the big league swing. But the company is not limited to swing analysis, describing its efforts as “360-degree game improvement solutions.”
“(AAU) liked our core messaging about just improving human performance and our vision around just developing the athlete in general,” Blast Motion Vice President of Sales Jeff Fallis said. “With our product giving them real-time feedback delivering that personal message around player development and insights — that’s what AAU is all about.”
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Blast Motion’s sensor technology extends beyond the baseball field. The company also sells sensor products for golf, basketball and track and field on its website. Blast’s broad spectrum approach to athletics bodes well for a partnership with the largest facilitator of youth sports in the country. AAU claims upwards of 700,000 participants across 55 U.S. districts in 35 sports, according to the company’s website.
The announcement for Blast comes on the heels of a major upgrade to its Blast Baseball 360 Application.
“Our latest version of the Blast Baseball 360 App gives coaches more powerful insights into their athletes swings, equipping them with new charts, trends, interactive drills, and metrics to effectively communicate with their players in real time,” Fallis said. “The new app has also been seamlessly integrated with our cloud solution, Blast Connect, giving coaches access to analysis, player management, and scheduling tools, as well as a brand new training center. With all of these tools consolidated into one easy to use platform, coaches from organizations like AAU can connect with their athletes like never before.”
Now having laid stake to the amateur and professional markets, Blast will likely make a push to connect the emotional appeal of the big leagues with its new, younger customer base. AAU players will now have the opportunity to track their swing speed, direction and power — just like the pros.
“There’s gonna be some really cool exciting things that are happening with our technology and we’re excited that AAU is going to be part of that,” Fallis said. “They’re the leader in amateur athletics, so it was a perfect fit.”