(NEW YORK, NY | PITTSBURGH, PA) – Major League Baseball (MLB) and baseball and softball technology leader Diamond Kinetics (DK) have announced a long-term strategic partnership, making Diamond Kinetics the Trusted Youth Development Platform of Major League Baseball, benefiting the experiences of youth players across the country.
With MLB gaining an equity stake in Diamond Kinetics, the partnership will create a unique and cutting edge experience in DK mobile apps, including MLB highlights, player and game stats, and Statcast data that will continue to make Diamond Kinetics a best-in-class digital product helping youth players, parents, coaches, and teams understand their performance, improve, and have more fun playing the game they love. Diamond Kinetics will also continue to support and expand on its role as a trusted technology partner of MLB and USA Baseball’s development and scouting programs such as the MLB Draft and Draft Combine, MLB Draft League, Appalachian League, Prospect Development Pipeline Events, and more. Additionally, Diamond Kinetics will be an active, involved partner in MLB’s youth participation initiatives including the Jr. Home Run Derby, Pitch, Hit and Run, and PlayBall events, among others, using the DK SwingTracker and PitchTracker for metrics and analysis at these events. Diamond Kinetics will also have a role at the club level and with emerging youth development partners such as the EL1 training programs to make an impact at the local level.
“What’s great about Diamond Kinetics is their products and app allows us to meet young players where they are”, said Chris Marinak, MLB’s Chief Operations and Strategy Officer. Marinak went on to say, “Diamond Kinetics allows us to foster and encourage the activity of playing baseball and softball, but in the digital setting that the youth are already engaged in. We are excited to partner with Diamond Kinetics to grow the game at all levels, integrating DK tech into our grassroots initiatives like PlayBall, to our elite development programs like the MLB Draft Combine, all the way to our Showcase and Player Development Leagues and beyond”
“We are very excited to partner with such an influential, historic, and respected organization as Major League Baseball”, said Diamond Kinetics co-founder and CEO C.J. Handron, “As Major League Baseball’s Trusted Youth Development Platform, together we will build out high-quality instructional and educational content in our apps and digital channels tailored appropriately to beginner, intermediate, and advanced players, thus giving players and coaches the opportunity to customize their experience and engage the game and their own development like never before.”
The Diamond Kinetics innovation pipeline starts with mobile apps and connected devices and expands out to computer vision and virtual reality initiatives. It marries the physical acts of hitting and throwing with digital experiences, thus elevating the entertainment value as well as the instructional opportunity for players at all levels. MLB’s strategic investment in Diamond Kinetics deepens a commitment to engaging youth players in fun and supportive ways, while empowering parents and coaches with feedback, tips, and tools that can help them teach the game in better ways, whether it’s on the field, in the cage, or simply in the backyard.
