Analytics have become an integral part of baseball at all levels, and the Lebanon Valley College Baseball team is implementing this data to aid their performance on the diamond. Former Dutchmen pitcher Brady Frankland '25 is contributing to these efforts, working with the program to provide players and coaches with information through TrackMan and data analytics.

Frankland competed for Lebanon Valley for three seasons and experienced injuries during his career that prompted him to transition into a baseball data analytics role last year. Frankland, a Computer Science and Digital Communications double major, incorporated the projects and baseball analytics into his Independent Research class this past semester. A key aspect of Frankland's work is breaking down data provided by the TrackMan system, which tracks pitched and batted baseballs.

"I have worked with baseball data analytics for LVC for just over a year and have loved the experience," Frankland said. "The TrackMan system outputs a spreadsheet with over 165 columns for every pitch thrown. This can be used for pitchers' bullpens, batting practice, and live games. My job has been to transform the raw data into meaningful narratives and visualizations that enable the numbers to tell a story. This has been a great opportunity to blend my passions for baseball and writing code."

While team members can view the statistics that TrackMan provides, Frankland has created a way to present players and staff with the most essential information. Players can use this data to notice their tendencies, which can help them determine what adjustments they need to make.

"All coaches and players have access to the raw Trackman file, but to make better sense of it, I've created an interface that allows for uploading the file," Frankland said. "It formats and presents the meaningful numbers that the players and coaches really care about, such as exit velocity, spin rate, tilt axis, etc. These numbers can be primarily used for player development by finding strengths and weaknesses in each player and giving everyone a better generalization as to where their performance level is."

During Frankland's three-year pitching career for the Flying Dutchmen, he tallied 17 strikeouts in 11 appearances on the mound. Frankland said he believes his experiences as a player have allowed him to be successful in this analytics role.

"Being a pitcher at LVC my first three years, until running into injuries, allows me to understand the wants and needs of players and coaches much better," Frankland said. "As a player, I was always interested in the science and analytics behind baseball and sports in general. When we purchased TrackMan, it was the perfect opportunity for me. It is very beneficial to have a deep understanding of the game before getting into the analytics because you know where your main focal points will be."

Frankland decided to attend LVC because he was impressed by the Computer Science Program and the opportunity to play collegiate baseball. He added Digital Communications as his second major late in his first year. Frankland believes that the knowledge he has gained through his courses and work with the Dutchmen will help him achieve his aspirations.

"My career goal is to get into software engineering post-graduation with my Computer Science degree," Frankland said. "Doing baseball analytics at LVC has given me tons of experience with outside-of-classroom projects, which has also greatly helped my portfolio. I would love to explore sports analytics as a career or even help schools with their analytics on the side."

Any LVC student interested in this position for this upcoming year is encouraged to contact Frankland or Head Coach Jonas Fester.

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