Majestic Athletic will no longer be the on-field uniform provider for Major League Baseball starting in 2020 when Under Armour takes over, but the company is taking aim at competitors in technology with its Swing IQ smart apparel.
The Swing IQ shirt that was introduced Thursday is designed with Intel technology and contains motion sensors that provide 360-degree tracking of wrist, shoulder and hip movement throughout the swing. Competitors like Blast Motion and Zepp place their sensors on the bat.
In a nod toward the future with Major League Baseball, where wearables are in the early stages of being used, Swing IQ was designed to be used in both practice and actual game play, according to Majestic. In fact, current Major Leaguers contributed to the development of the apparel where sensors — each containing an accelerometer and a gyroscope — are strategically located and virtually unnoticeable.
It’s unclear if Swing IQ will ultimately be available for use in Major League Baseball, which has approved the use of bat sensors from Blast Motion and Diamond Kinetics on the field during workouts. Also, Under Armour starting in 2020 becomes the exclusive MLB provider of all on-field uniform components, including jerseys, baselayer, game-day outerwear and year-round training apparel.
Swing IQ gives hitters a new understanding of their batting mechanics by validating their kinetic swing sequence, helping them train smarter, according to the company.
“Majestic’s Swing IQ is shaping the future of performance apparel by leveraging technology to improve body kinetics,” Majestic vice president of strategy Michael Johnson said in a statement. “Starting with Swing IQ Baseball, Majestic is committed to smart apparel that makes athletes smarter about their athletic performance.”
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Intel designed the technology behind the Swing IQ shirt and soon-to-be-launched Swing IQ app after collecting data from a wide range of athletes. Training tools on the app will include real-time data/video overlays, telestration, side-by-side swing comparisons, historical archiving and sharing on social media.
“Intel is creating a sports industry human performance ecosystem that fuses data, technology and sports together,” Intel Corporation vice president and GM Sandra Lopez said in a statement. “Swing IQ shirt is a great example of this fusion.”
Swing IQ – High-Tech Performance Apparel from Swing IQ on Vimeo.